Senior Occupational Therapist (Autism Specialist Function)

Job Description

The London Borough of Harrow is creating a specialist Autism Function within Adult Social Care, designed as a preventative, high‑impact intervention to reduce avoidable harm, inequality and high‑cost escalation for autistic adults.

We are seeking a Senior Occupational Therapist with strong autism expertise to play a pivotal role in this function. This is a senior, specialist post, focused on early intervention, formulation, sensory and environmental adaptation, and system‑wide influence — not a traditional equipment‑led OT role.

You will be embedded within the Mental Health, Learning Disabilities and Autism (MHLDA) service, applying specialist OT expertise upstream, before distress escalates into crisis, hospital admission, or high‑cost packages of care, but also support cases where there is a need for specialist expertise to reduce restrictions and support independence.

This role is ideal for an OT who wants to work at the interface of practice, prevention, public health and system leadership.

The Senior Occupational Therapist will:

• intervene early in high‑risk situations
• reduce reliance on restrictive and staffing‑intensive support models
• stabilise placements
• support accurate formulation of need
• build autism‑informed capability across Adult Social Care and partners.

Key Responsibilities:

• Specialist Practice & Prevention
  • Provide autism‑ and sensory‑informed assessment and formulation for adults at risk of escalation.
  • Design sensory, environmental and occupational interventions that reduce distress and prevent crisis.
  • Influence care planning to reduce reliance on 1:1 / 2:1 staffing and containment‑based models.
  • Support stabilisation of placements, tenancies and daily routines.
  • Contribute to safeguarding responses that understand autism rather than misinterpret distress as behavioural risk.
• System Leadership & Consultation
  • Provide specialist consultation and advice to social workers, care managers, AMHPs and managers.
  • Support targeted review of high-intensity packages, identifying unmet autism‑related needs.
  • Influence provider practice through review activity, commissioning conversations and quality work.
  • Contribute to system learning
• Partnership & Integration
  • Work closely with Social Care colleagues, CNWL, health partners, housing services and commissioning.
  • Contribute to the development of autism‑informed approaches across the local system.
• Workforce Development
  • Deliver training, case consultation and reflective learning to improve autism capability across the workforce.
  • Champion trauma‑informed, neurodiversity‑affirming practice.

You will:

• Be a registered Occupational Therapist (HCPC).
• Have significant post‑qualifying experience working with autistic adults or people with complex neurodevelopmental profiles.
• Have strong expertise in sensory integration, environmental adaptation and functional formulation.
• Be confident working with complexity, ambiguity and risk.
• Understand how autism intersects with trauma, mental ill‑health, safeguarding and capacity.
• Be able to influence practice beyond your own caseload.
• Be comfortable working flexibly across community, office and partnership settings.

We welcome applicants with experience in Adult Social Care, mental health, learning disability, forensic or complex community settings.

For more information, please refer to the Role Profile/Selection Criteria

About us

Harrow Council is the 12th largest London borough and one of the most culturally diverse local authorities in the UK, making it a great place to live, work and visit with a range of cultures, religions and opinions that come together to produce high achieving schools and a close and friendly community. Located 10 miles from the city centre and just 13 minutes to Euston from Harrow & Wealdstone station there are great transport links via the Metropolitan Line, Watford DC Line and national rail service. It is easily accessible to the M1, M25 and A406.

Other information

Support for candidates visit:Harrow.gov.uk Our behavioural indicators roles below G11 and above G11 Here at Harrow Council, the vision is one of 'Working together to make a difference for Harrow' Please click here to view Harrow Council's benefits

Important Note

To deliver our commitment to equality of opportunity in service provision, all staff are expected to promote equality in the workplace and in the services the Council delivers. All sections of the population will have equal access to jobs at the London Borough of Harrow. No applicant or employee will receive less favourable treatment because of age, disability, gender, reassignment, race, religion or belief, sex, sexual orientation, marriage or civil partnership, pregnancy, or maternity unless a Genuine Occupational Qualification applies. As such, we value diversity and welcome applications from all backgrounds. For further information, please read our equality statement.

As a disability-confident employer, we are committed to making our recruitment practices barrier-free and accessible to everyone. This includes reasonably adjusting the recruitment process for those with disabilities or long-term health conditions. For further information, please contact us at resourcing@harrow.gov.uk

London Borough of Harrow is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people, and vulnerable adults and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. Harrow operates stringent, safer recruitment procedures.

Due to the high number of applications received for some posts, we may close vacancies before the stated closing date if sufficient applications are received. Therefore, please apply as soon as possible.

Harrow redeployees will be given priority consideration.

The personal information we have collected from you will be shared with Cifas who will use it to prevent fraud, other unlawful or dishonest conduct, malpractice, and other seriously improper conduct. If any of these are detected you could be refused certain services or employment. Your personal information will also be used to verify your identity. Further details of how your information will be used by us and Cifas, any your data protection rights, can be found by visiting www.cifas.org.uk/fpn