Therapies Complex Discharge Clinical Lead

Band 7

Main area Complex Discharge Grade Band 7 Contract Fixed term: 4 months (Dec 2026 - March 2027) Hours Full time - 37.5 hours per week (Includes weekend working) Job  
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Site University Hospitals of Northamptonshire Town Northampton Salary £49,387 - £56,515 Per annum/pro rata Salary period Yearly Closing 27/09/2026 23:59 Interview date 06/10/2026

The Therapies Complex Discharge Lead will provide advanced specialist Occupational Therapy or Physiotherapy expertise across inpatient services, supporting patients with complex therapy needs that are impacting discharge and patient flow. This is the second year of receiving winter funding for the complex discharge therapy team, this year we will be approaching this as a UHN Therapies model, adding resilience and expertise across both NGH and KGH.

Whilst NGH will be your primary site there may be occasions where you are required to work at KGH.

The post holder will lead a roaming therapy function, providing expert assessment, clinical decision making and advice to the daily Discharge Hub, escalation areas and medically fit wards. They will act as the senior therapy representative within discharge planning processes, working collaboratively with multidisciplinary teams to facilitate timely, safe and effective discharge decisions whilst ensuring the patient remains at the centre of all decision making.

The post holder will undertake highly specialised assessments and interventions for patients with complex clinical, functional and social needs. Working autonomously within professional standards and scope of practice, they will demonstrate advanced clinical reasoning, positive risk management and expert decision making to support discharge planning and optimise patient outcomes.

As a senior therapist, the post holder will provide clinical leadership, advice and support to therapy colleagues and the wider multidisciplinary team, helping to resolve barriers to discharge, promote evidence-based practice and maintain high standards of care. They will contribute to service development, quality improvement, education and workforce development activities across Therapies.

The post holder will be responsible for team leadership of the Therapies complex discharge team including day to day operational management, as well as responsibility for data collection and reporting on the impact of the service to Therapies management and the wider trust when requested.

The role includes participation in seven-day services and, where appropriate, professional on-call rotas. The post holder will lead on service development, audit, quality improvement and evidence-based practice initiatives, acting as a role model for professional standards, patient-centred care and collaborative working across UHN.

We recognise that AI tools can support application writing; however, candidates are asked to keep their use to a minimum. Responses should reflect your own experience, skills and knowledge, as over-reliance on AI-generated content may result in generic answers that do not accurately represent your abilities.

University Hospitals of Northamptonshire (UHN) brings together Kettering General Hospital NHS Foundation Trust and Northampton General Hospital NHS Trust. As a group, we are committed to improving services for our communities through collaboration, modernising care delivery and striving for excellence. Working together enables us to share expertise, strengthen services and create greater opportunities, and there may be a requirement to work across sites depending on service needs.

Our Excellence Values are Compassion, Accountability, Respect, Integrity and Courage. UHN welcomes applications from all…