This is an exciting time to join our recently established Birth to Settled Adulthood Service, supporting disabled children, young people and their families from birth through to adulthood. The service brings together a range of teams including social care, early help, short breaks, young carers and paediatric occupational therapy, all working closely to provide the right support at the right time. This is a unique opportunity to be part of a developing service with a clear focus on helping disabled young people prepare for adulthood and achieve positive, lasting outcomes. Working with us You will join a committed, friendly and highly skilled team who are passionate about improving the lives of disabled children and young people across Dorset. The service values collaboration, creativity and flexibility as it continues to evolve, and you will be supported to contribute your own experience and ideas. You can expect regular supervision, team and service-wide meetings, and access to a wide range of training and development opportunities, with flexible working considered wherever possible. What you can expect to be doing In this role you will manage a varied caseload, completing assessments and supporting the provision of specialist equipment and minor and major adaptations tailored to individual needs. You will work closely with colleagues in children’s social care and adult services to support smooth and timely transitions into adulthood. The role involves close partnership working with health, education, housing, the Dorset Accessible Homes Service, the Integrated Equipment Service, and external professionals including builders, architects, surveyors and equipment providers. Our locations The Occupational Therapy team operates from two local offices. Dorchester Local Office covers West and North Dorset, and Westport House in Wareham covers the east of the county. About you you will be a qualified and experienced Paediatric Occupational Therapist with strong knowledge of moving and handling, adaptation work and specialist paediatric equipment you will hold a BSc in Occupational Therapy or equivalent and be registered with the Health and Care Professions Council. You will have a good understanding of disability and its impact on children, parents and families, alongside knowledge of child development and family dynamics you will also demonstrate an understanding of children’s safeguarding procedures, relevant childcare legislation and current practice. Experience of working with disabled children and families, and the ability to communicate clearly and confidently in spoken English, is essential. Support and development You will receive regular, effective supervision and appropriate training to support you in the role and meet your ongoing professional development requirements. Further Information For an informal discussion, please contact Karen Long, Team Manager Occupational Therapist, on 01305 216632 or by email at [email protected]. This post involves working with children and/or vulnerable adults and/or having access to significant information about them. It will be subject to a Disclosure and Barring Service check. See our policy on the employment of ex-offenders. See our policy on safeguarding children and young people. See our adult safeguarding policy. You must: have a degree in social work / Occupational Therapy or equivalent be registered with the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC) be able to fulfil the travel requirements of the post About Us At Dorset Council, it's not just about the work we do, it's about how we do it. Hear directly from our employees about what makes Dorset Council special in this short video: Unable to show this video due to your cookie preferences We’re passionate about making Dorset a great place to live, work and visit. Working for us should be no exception. At Dorset Council we: provide more than 450 services to over 300,000 residents have ambitious aspirations are excited about our future care about Dorset and all the people who live here know that all roles make a difference and that our employees are key to our success You will: have access to a range of employee benefits be part of an organisation that supports each other to grow and succeed have access to range of training opportunities which will help with your personal development and career progression We are challenging ourselves to become a more diverse and inclusive organisation. We recognise that recruitment and inclusion of individuals with diverse skills, perspectives and backgrounds will bring real strength to the council and our communities. We have a commitment to equality and welcome applications from everyone. We are proud to be a Disability Confident Employer. We offer an interview to everyone who declares a disability and meets the essential criteria for the role. We are keen to make our interviews accessible. Let us know on your job application if you have a disability and need any reasonable adjustments. We also look for applicants who share our commitment to our values. We will ask you to evidence when you have demonstrated them as part of the selection process. This role is UK based and we will need to establish your Right to Work as part of the appointment process. We use generic job descriptions and person specifications. This means the job title on any attachments may differ from the job title in the advert. We may provide specific information in a context statement if relevant. Find out more about how to apply .