Occupational Therapist

Location: Children’s Services – Haverhill, Suffolk

School: Independent Special School | Ages 8–16

Working Pattern: 22.5 hours per week, Term Time Only (standard full time is 38 hours per week, 40 days annual leave)

Salary: £38,386.19 - £48,059.49 pro rata (dependent on experience). Annual salary for 22.5 hours, term time only is £20,455.80 - £23,075.14 per annum (dependent on experience)

Make a Meaningful Difference

At Kisimul Group, we believe everyone deserves a meaningful life, with their individual needs, choices and aspirations at the heart of everything we do.

We’re excited to offer an opportunity for a dedicated Occupational Therapist to join our new specialist school community in Haverhill, Suffolk.

We are progressing plans to open a new Independent Special School for young people aged 8–16, supporting children and young people who are autistic and may have additional learning, social, emotional and health needs.

With small class sizes and a personalised approach to education, our school will provide an environment where young people can thrive through innovative, therapeutic and person-centred approaches.

Learning will take place both in the classroom and throughout everyday experiences, with a strong focus on functional learning, independent living skills, emotional resilience and preparing young people for fulfilling lives. As part of an integrated multidisciplinary therapy team, you will work closely with education colleagues to embed therapeutically informed practice across the school.

About the Role

As an Occupational Therapist, you will play a key role in supporting young people to develop the skills they need to participate meaningfully in education, daily life and activities of their choice. This is an opportunity to use your clinical expertise in a specialist setting where your work can have a genuine, lasting impact. You’ll help pupils increase their independence, access learning and education, and participate more fully in everyday life.

You will:

• Provide effective, person-centred occupational therapy to young people aged 8–16.
• Build positive and meaningful therapeutic relationships with the young people you support.
• Assess and respond to individual occupational needs, including sensory, functional and emotional needs.
• Support young people to develop independence, life skills and participation in everyday activities.
• Work collaboratively with education, care and therapy colleagues as part of a multidisciplinary team.
• Contribute to therapeutically informed practice throughout the school environment.
• Use evidence-based approaches to inform clinical decision-making and interventions.
• Contribute to the development of innovative and effective service initiatives.
• Help young people overcome barriers to engagement and achieve meaningful educational and personal outcomes.

This is an exciting opportunity to join a new service where your clinical expertise can help shape the development of the provision and positively influence the lives of the young people we support.

About You

We’re looking for a dynamic, resilient and motivated Occupational Therapist who is passionate about helping children and young people reach their potential.

You will have:

• A professional qualification in Occupational Therapy.
• Current HCPC registration.
• Ideally, membership of the Royal College of Occupational Therapists (RCOT).
• Knowledge and understanding of the occupational needs of autistic people and people with learning disabilities and associated complex needs.
• A commitment to person-centred, evidence-based practice.
• A proactive approach to professional development and clinical decision-making.
• The ability to work collaboratively within a multidisciplinary team.
• A genuine passion for supporting young people with complex needs and helping them achieve positive outcomes.

Experience gained through previous employment, placements or relevant life experience in areas such as learning disability, specialist education or mental health would be beneficial.

Postgraduate training in sensory integration is desirable. A willingness to undertake postgraduate sensory integration training is essential.

Most importantly, you’ll bring enthusiasm, compassion and a commitment to providing meaningful and aspirational support to young people who may have experienced disrupted education or additional barriers to engagement.

 

Why Join Kisimul?

At Kisimul, we are committed to helping the people we support develop their skills, abilities and experiences through our Meaningful Life Model. Our approach puts individual needs, values, aspirations and outcomes at the heart of everything we do. As a clinician you will have opportunities to collaborate and engage with continued professional development and supervision with other therapeutic professionals within the multidisciplinary team.

Find out more about life at Kisimul

Hear from our teams about what it’s like to work at Kisimul:

Life at Kisimul: https://youtu.be/pP-sFmzkR88

Meaningful Life Model: https://youtu.be/XWo2VXzeGIg

In return for your commitment, you’ll receive:

• Competitive salary, dependent on experience.
• Extensive training and development, with time rostered out of your work schedule to attend.
• Fully funded qualifications to support your career development.
• Genuine career progression, with transparent pay grades and development opportunities.
• Life Assurance of 1x your annual basic salary.
• Salary sacrifice pension scheme.
• Stream, allowing you to access a percentage of your earned wages before payday.
• Blue Light Card, providing discounts at over 15,000 venues across the UK.
• Employee discounts from over 150 retailers.
• Health and wellbeing support, including access to an online GP, confidential telephone counselling, internal wellbeing support and an Employee Assistance Programme.
• Flexible working opportunities, including the option to work on bank holidays and take the time back on another occasion that is more meaningful to you.
• Cycle to Work Scheme.
• Refer a Friend Scheme, with the opportunity to earn up to £500 for every successful hire.
• Fully funded DBS check.
• The opportunity to work within a beautiful home and grounds as part of a supportive specialist service.

About Kisimul

Kisimul Group provides specialist education, residential care and supported living services for children, young people and adults with autism, learning disabilities and associated complex needs.

We are dedicated to creating nurturing, supportive environments where the people we support can develop their abilities, build independence and experience a meaningful life.

We are proud to have been recognised as an outstanding company to work for through our most recent employee survey.

Diversity, Safeguarding & Inclusion

Kisimul is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and adults, and expects all colleagues to share this commitment.

We are also committed to creating a workplace that celebrates and welcomes diversity in all its forms. We believe that different perspectives make us stronger, more innovative and better equipped to support the people in our care.

If you’re excited about this opportunity but don’t meet every requirement listed, we still encourage you to apply. Your experience, perspective and potential could be exactly what we’re looking for.

Please note: Due to current UK Government guidelines, we are unable to provide visa sponsorship for this role. Sponsorship is restricted to eligible colleagues who are already employed by the organisation. Children’s Homes positions are not eligible for sponsorship.

Ready to Make a Difference?

If you’re an Occupational Therapist looking for an opportunity to use your expertise, develop your career and help shape a brand-new specialist education provision, we’d love to hear from you.

Apply now and become part of Kisimul’s new chapter in Haverhill.