Job summary
Working Full time: 37.5 hours per week
We are looking for a highly motivated and enthusiastic Occupational Therapist to join our supportive Therapy Department.
You will be part of the Band 5 Rotations at The Countess of Chester Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, having the opportunity to work at Ellesmere Port Hospital and in the Community setting.
The rotations will provide you with an opportunity to gain a wide range of experience across Medicine, Care of Older People, Neurology including Stroke, Rapid Response, Hand Therapy, Vascular Surgery and Intermediate Care.
Applicants must be HCPC Registration and able to demonstrate they have successfully completed a broad range of placement across clinical areas in the NHS. Good time management skills, organisational skills and an ability to work under pressure are essential requirements to this post.
The post holder will be part of an established network for peer support and professional development and will contribute to the development of Therapy Assistants and Students when on placement. Participation on the trusts weekend and 7 day rotas is an integral part of the post.
Benefits
* Good team support
* A supportive and reflective learning environment
* Regular formal and informal supervision provided by experienced Occupational Therapy and Physiotherapy staff
* Opportunity to engage in Service wide clinical governance activities
Main duties of the job
* To work as an autonomous practitioner to undertake occupational therapy assessments for a designated caseload, addressing occupational performance and skill deficits, enabling the client in areas of self- maintenance, productivity and leisure using individual and/or group interventions, in collaboration with the client using graded activity to achieve therapeutic goals.
* To communicate empathetically with patients with complex clinical presentation, explaining their clinical diagnosis and treatment programmes. Ensure that patients understand this and answer any queries they may have in relation to their diagnosis and treatment plan.
* To identify and carry out Home Visits (where appropriate) in accordance with Trust and Professional standards to assess patient condition and suitability for discharge.
* To contribute to monitoring and evaluation of treatment in order to measure progress and outcomes to ensure effectiveness of interventions and service delivery.
* To be professionally and legally accountable for all aspects of own work, and hold responsibility for own caseload for a defined area of the service, working with direct supervision.
About us
The Trust's services are provided from three locations:
* The Countess of Chester Hospital: providing 473 general and acute beds.
* Ellesmere Port Hospital: providing 60 beds as a rehabilitation, intermediate and outpatient facility.
* Tarporley War Memorial Hospital: a base for community services which serve the local rural population.
The Countess of Chester Hospital NHS Foundation Trust employs 5,964 staff (headcount) to provide care and treatment to a population of over 400,000 people living in Chester and West Cheshire which includes Ellesmere Port and Neston as well as the Deeside area of Flintshire. The Trust works collaboratively within the wider Cheshire and Merseyside Integrated Care System. Due to its location on the border with North Wales, the Trust also works closely with the Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board. The Trust treats patients from England and some parts of Wales. During 2024/2025, there were approximately 643,000 patient attendances (inpatient, A&E, outpatient and diagnostic) ranging from a simple outpatient appointment to major cancer surgery.
Details
Date posted: 11 February 2026
Pay scheme: Agenda for change
Band: Band 5
Salary: £31,049 to £37,796 a year pa
Contract: Permanent
Working pattern: Full-time
Reference number: 210-2025-858-A
Job locations: Countess of Chester Hospital, Liverpool Road, Chester, CH2 1UL
Equal opportunity and support
If you have a disability that meets the definition set out in the Equality Act 2010, and you can show that you meet the essential criteria described in the person specification for an available position, please answer YES to the question: Do you wish to be considered under the Guaranteed Interview Scheme?
Please inform the team if you have any special support needs to be considered as part of the interview and selection processes.
The trust offers a Guaranteed Interview Scheme to any armed forces community applicants who meet the essential criteria for the post.
If a DBS is required for your role, you are encouraged to enrol for the DBS Update Service. A small annual fee applies which is payable to the DBS Service. Please note applicants will be required to pay for their DBS check. Costs will be deducted from their salary over the first three months of employment.
New entrants to the NHS will commence on the minimum of the scale stated above.
Applicants requiring sponsorship may wish to determine the likelihood of obtaining sponsorship for this position by assessing themselves against the criteria on the gov.uk website - https://www.gov.uk/check-uk-visa.
The Trust will not sponsor where the starting salary does not meet immigration rules.
Applicants are advised to apply early as if a large number of applications are received for this post, we reserve the right to close the vacancy prior to the advertised date.
Good luck with your application.
Disclosure and Barring Service Check
This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.
Certificate of Sponsorship
Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).
From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).
Person Specification
Qualifications (Essential)
* Degree in Occupational Therapy or equivalent
* HCPC Registered
Qualifications (Desirable)
* Membership of professional body
Knowledge and Experience (Essential)
* Evidence of CPD and reflective practice
* Evidence of group working and team working
* Evidence of audit and/or research work
Knowledge and Experience (Desirable)
* Knowledge of current best practice in specialist OT area
* Knowledge of the principles of clinical governance
* Understanding of professional ethics and their application in practice
Skills and Abilities (Essential)
* Communication skills (verbal and non- verbal)
* Ability to reflect and critically appraise own performance
* Ability to organise and respond to complex information, and work under pressure
* Basic computer skills
* Good interpersonal and organisational skills
Employer details
Countess of Chester Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
Countess of Chester Hospital
Liverpool Road
Chester
CH2 1UL
Website: https://www.coch.nhs.uk/working-with-us.aspx
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