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Benefit from the support of an RCOT Annual Award. With over £18,000 available across 14 different awards, there is an award category to suit all learning, development and research activities. Whether you’re a learner, practitioner, researcher, educator or manager, find out today which award could...

This month’s issue has a real focus on you, our members, and why you volunteer your time to support RCOT, be it on Council, for your region, or for one of our Specialist Sections. We kick off with a Q&A with Odeth Richardson, who took over the reins as our new Chair of Council, from Professor Diane Cox, on 1 July.

We’re looking to find out what occupational therapists’ experiences of effective supervision have been. You can take part in this short survey to complete an audit as a supervisor or as a supervisee. Share with us by Monday 19 December 2022.

The Government in England has published the long-awaited outcome of the 2020 consultation on raising accessibility standards for new homes. Newly built homes will now have to achieve an increased level of accessibility and adaptability in line with Part M4(2) of the building regulations, a standard...

We’re running a survey for OTs working in neonatal care to find out what your training needs are. Our online survey is open until 9pm on Tuesday 30 August 2022. If you’re an occupational therapist working in neonatal care in the UK, we want to hear from you . We want to understand your training...

Leadership is 'the action of leading a group of people or an organisation, or the ability to do this' (Oxford English Dictionary). Leadership involves developing a vision or idea and inspiring others with how the vision or idea can be realised. RCOT Leadership Forum Take part in the forum and...

We’ve been contacted by the casting agency Extra People who are looking for a qualified occupational therapist to appear in the Netflix TV show The Crown. Update 4 August 2022: The casting agency have received an incredible number of applications and they’ve now cast the role. Applications are now...

We’re delighted to announce our 2023 Elizabeth Casson Memorial Lecture speaker will be Keir Harding. Keir Harding is a highly regarded occupational therapist specialising in mental health, supporting people who use self-harm and recurrently feel suicidal. He is currently the CEO and Clinical Lead...

We’re calling for Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss, contenders to be the UK’s next Prime Minister, to make health and social care a key priority. We’ve written to both contenders with our five asks and will be reiterating these calls with the governments of Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Now we...

RCOT and Health Education England (HEE) are joining forces to create an Allied Health Professionals (AHP) Workforce Reform. It is a 12-month project to shape the future of the AHP personnel.

We’re calling for Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss, contenders to be the UK’s next Prime Minister, to make health and social care a key priority

A report by the Health and Social Care Select Committee, issued today, describes thousands of unfilled roles in the NHS and social care in England including many for occupational therapists and other allied health professions (AHPs).

It’s Disability Pride Month, and we spoke to Natalie Hicks, an RCOT student member about her experience as an OT student with disabilities and how it has shaped her time at university.

Our Senior Leadership Team have answered all your questions. And they are happy for you to contact them with questions, comments or feedback at any time.

Today, we are calling on the UK government to ensure that occupational therapists, and all Allied Health Professions (AHPs), working in social care are given a fair deal.

Over 1,000 people came together virtually last month to share in RCOTs 45th Annual Conference, and in your July issue we report on some of the many and varied plenary sessions, papers, posters and presentations.

You can now volunteer to join your branch’s committee and support your local or specialist community to thrive. Applications are open until midnight on Wednesday 31 August 2022.

Applications are now closed. Thank you to everyone who has applied to volunteer with their region’s committee – we’ll be in touch with you in September 2022. If you have any questions, you can contact stacey.abraham@rcot.co.uk or olivia.lokko@rcot.co.uk . Our regions are branches of RCOT. They are...

UNISON is consulting BAOT/UNISON members covered by the NHS Agenda for Change pay in Scotland on the Scottish Government’s pay offer.

We want to ensure students and prospective students know where to turn when they need funding support. If you’re a student, prospective student or an OT supporting the next generation of our profession, we have collected the resources and links you need to make your next steps. A great place to...

We have renewed our contract with UNISON - the UK’s largest union, serving more than 1.3 million members across the UK.

We have joined forces with the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy (CSP) to produce a series of principles for practice-based learning.

We’ve been shortlisted for two Memcom Excellence Awards 2022.

We’re running a survey looking into children’s access to occupational therapy across the UK. The survey is open until 9pm on Friday 29 July 2022.

The Department of Health and Social Care has announced changes to the way COVID-19-related sickness absence and self-isolation will be managed for NHS staff in England.

I want to say a huge thank you for the warm welcome and congratulatory messages I’ve received since being appointed as Chair. I’m aware there is a lot that I don’t know about the role and will be requiring your support as I get to grips with the requirements of the role.

We’re delighted to welcome Odeth Richardson as our 21st Chair of BAOT/BAOT Council. Odeth took over the reins from Professor Diane Cox, who stepped down after three years, at last night’s AGM.

Thank you to all our members who attended our 2022 Annual General Meeting. At the meeting members voted for a 1.5% increase in membership fees for 2022/23.

On Tuesday 19 July 2022 we’re welcoming Rebecca Swenson (she/her) and Hannah Spencer (they/them), NHS Occupational Therapist, co-founders of LGBTQIA+ OTUK network to speak to us and the occupational therapy community.

Baroness Greengross was Director General of Age Concern England from 1987 until 2000, where she established many innovative programmes, including the Employment Forum on Age, and was also responsible for building Age Concern Enterprises into a multi-million-pound business.

Pride month is ending, but that doesn’t in any way mean that queer visibility is finishing. For me, June started with announcing to all my colleagues that I was queer and is ending with me launching the RCOT LGBTQIA+ Colleague Network.

We are delighted to announce the winners of our Celebration of Excellence in Occupational Therapy Awards 2021. Each year, we recognise the outstanding contributions that members make to the profession and to raising its profile by presenting a series of awards and funding opportunities. Fellowship...

Advice and resources to help you navigate the entire job application process. Your studies are coming to an end and you're keen to join the occupational therapy workforce. Here you will find some information to support the recruitment process as you seek out your first graduate job! We suggest you...

We’re proud of our LGBTQIA+ members and staff and to celebrate this year’s Pride Month, we’re delighted to introduce you to Dia – our student member at RCOT. Hear them share about their experience as an occupational therapy student and being part of the LGBTQIA+ community and how we can better...

This year marks a big year for Pride – 50 years since the first Pride in the UK in 1972. Much progress has been made and much more still needs to come. We have changed the ‘O’ in our RCOT and OTnews logos for this month to show solidarity with our LGBTQIA+ members, staff and people everywhere.

The second day of Annual Conference got off to a fast paced and fascinating start with a session by Hector Minto, Lead Accessibility Evangelist (Director) at Microsoft, who urged all occupational therapists to actively join in the digital technology and accessibility agenda.

Over 1,000 people from the global occupational therapy community are expected to join our 45th Annual Conference over the next two days, to ‘learn, discuss, debate and grow’.

The UK government has announced that anyone needing fit notes after Friday 1 July 2022 will be able to get them legally certified by an occupational therapist. This will apply in Scotland, Wales, England and Northern Ireland.

Dion Sutton is one of our many valued volunteers at RCOT. He is a committee member for the RCOT Wales (Cymru) region. We caught up with Dion to learn more about his career and hear why he chooses to volunteer with RCOT.

We’re expecting changes to the current GP fit note legislation to go live on Monday 13 June 2022. The government announcement covering Wales, Scotland and England will say that anyone needing fit notes after July 2022 can get them signed by occupational therapists. Physiotherapists, nurses and...

This year marks a big year for Pride, It has been 50 years since the first Pride in the UK in 1972. Much progress has been made and much more still needs to come. We've changed the ‘O’ in our RCOT logo for this month to show solidarity with our LGBTQIA+ members, staff and people everywhere. The...

After carefully considering the different views and findings from our community discussion events, we’ve decided to support the addition of a pre-registration doctoral level entry route into the occupational therapy profession in the UK. This will be an additional route – it will be one of many...

Project summary What we wanted to explore To help explain what we wanted to explore in this project, please notice your first reaction to the following questions: How would I feel about the opportunity for people to register as an occupational therapist and be awarded a doctorate at the same time?...

Health Education England (HEE) has released a new elearning programme, AHPs in Neonatal Care , which RCOT helped to produce. If you’re new to working in neonatal care or thinking about being an occupational therapist in this area, this elearning is for you. You’ll find two sessions about the role,...

A survey we recently conducted has found that our members have seen an 82% increase in demand for occupational therapy-led rehabilitation services in the UK over the last six months alone. As the country begins to ‘live with COVID’, already overstretched, rehabilitation services have seen demand...

In March 2022, we conducted a survey of our members across the UK regarding rehabilitation services – the largest survey of its kind we’ve carried out. We did this on the back of anecdotal feedback received from members and other healthcare professionals about challenges in both the access to, and...

Welcome to your May issue of OTnews. Our cover feature this month is from former inpatient Jerome Sewell, who once fitted into the category of ‘psychotic ex-offender in the mental health system’.

The Northern Ireland Department of Health has announced that there will be an additional 10 undergraduate occupational therapy places at Ulster University for the 2022/23 intake. Commenting on the additional places, Karin Orman, RCOT Director of Practice and Innovation said: “We welcome the Health...

As our RCOT Library is now digital, we would like to offer the printed dissertations and theses back to their authors. Thank you to everyone who contributed to the print collection. Many of the printed dissertations and theses are not available online via our catalogue. Some may be available via...

Odeth will become our 21st Chair of Council when she takes over from Professor Diane Cox on Thursday 30 June 2022.

Following our joint letter with the AHP Federation, we welcome NHS England and NHS Supply Chain’s decision to withdraw their proposal for a single-colourway AHP uniform in England. 800 members filled in our survey with 71% not supporting the proposal. You shared concerns about a loss of...

We’re looking forward to welcoming you, those of you who can make it, to the upcoming 2022 BAOT/RCOT Annual General Meeting (AGM) this June. On Thursday 30 June, the RCOT AGM will take place virtually. Here are some of the things happening at the AGM: Chair, Diane Cox, will speak about the work of...

Vacancies for Board Chairs The Royal College of Occupational Therapists (RCOT) is looking for active and engaged members to contribute to their profession and make a difference. We have two board chair vacancies: Chair of the RCOT Board: Wales – this role is for a professional member who is working...

Neurodiversity is a term used to describe natural differences in the way people learn and think. Although there is no universally recognized definition of neurodiversity, the term is usually used to include autism, ADHD, dyspraxia/developmental coordination disorder (DCD) and dyslexia. Other...

We are delighted to announce that world-famous author and children’s poet, Michael Rosen will be one of our keynote speakers at our 2022 Annual Conference. Rosen who is renowned for his book We’re Going on a Bear Hunt , contracted COVID in March 2020 and was put into an induced coma for 40 days...

Tuesday 17 May 6.30-7.45pm Online, free to attend Delivered by Musharrat J. Ahmed-Landeryou EDB Insights: Inclusion is an invitation to the Master’s house – Book now On Tuesday 17 May we’re welcoming Musharrat J. Ahmed-Landeryou, Associate Professor, Occupational Therapy, London South Bank...

The Specialist Section – Children, Young People and Families NEC are pleased to announce Annual Conference will be taking place on 11 November 2022 and have launched the call for abstracts. Applications to submit an abstract are open until 30 June 2022. Submissions are welcome for the delivery of a...

Aisha Sharif, Research and Development Administrator at RCOT, tells us about Ramadan and shares tips on how you can support your colleagues during this month.

In our April issue, the cover story is about the value of occupational therapy within addictions services.

RCOT, as members of the AHP Federation, have written to NHS England and NHS Supply Chain to express concern about the lack of robust consultation with AHPs to date, and to object to the current proposal of a single-colourway uniform.

Karin Orman, Director of Practice and Innovation, commenting on the Department of Health’s Health Inequalities Annual Report in Northern Ireland said: 'The Health Inequalities Report published this morning shows that while there have been improvements in healthcare in Northern Ireland, there is...

We’ve changed our leadership structure so that we can better focus on our member’s needs, deliver on our strategic priorities and live our values . Our new leadership structure will position us so that we can grasp the opportunities for occupational therapy and for us as a membership body. It has...

Steve Ford, Chief Executive, commenting on the UK Government’s announcement about the health and social care levy, said: “We welcome that there will be more resources for the NHS but are concerned that the needs of social care have been pushed back.

Wednesday 20 April 12.15-1.45pm Online, free to attend Delivered by Dr Wendy Bryant EDB Insights: Practising what we preach, disability and inclusion – Book now On Wednesday 20 April we’re welcoming Dr Wendy Bryant, Honorary Professor in the School of Health and Social Care, at the University of...

We’re looking for the speaker at our 2023 Elizabeth Casson Memorial Lecture . Our lecture is an opportunity for the chosen speaker to talk about a topic important to them and the profession. If you know an occupational therapist who has made or is making a significant contribution to our profession...

Shane Elliott, our current Council Member, Northern Ireland gives us a glimpse into being part of Council. Could you be our next Council Member, Northern Ireland – or Council Member, Research and Development? We have two one-year interim vacancies for these roles. Find out more about these roles...

Our leadership structure positions us so that we can grasp the opportunities for occupational therapy and for us as a membership body. We are focused on our members' needs, delivering on our strategic priorities and living our values . Here you can meet our Senior Leadership Team.

We’re always here to support you and your wellbeing. Many of you have shared with us pressures you’re experiencing at work and personally. We hear you – and are here for you . Our team will listen and talk through any workplace or professional issues you have – you can contact our Professional...

Share your excitement about presenting at RCOT Annual Conference 2022! Download these images and share on your social media, don’t forget to include the hashtag #RCOT2022.

You will now be receiving your ballot papers in the post for our BAOT/RCOT Council election. By voting, you’re helping to choose our next Chair who will help take our work in championing occupational therapy into the next phase of our history. They will lead and safeguard the future direction of...

The NEC for CYPF are pleased to launch their call for Abstracts for the 2022 RCOT SS CYPF Annual Virtual Conference taking place on Friday 11th November 2022. The theme for the 2022 conference is 'Occupational Equity - Occupational therapists as Agents of Change'. Tell us how you are promoting...

We’re looking for OTs to be part of a campaign to encourage people to choose occupational therapy as a career. Being part of a campaign like this will help raise your own profile and that of our profession. You’d need to be happy to share photos, possibly a video or blog with us. If you’re chosen,...

Thank you to everyone who nominated themselves in our recent BAOT/RCOT Council nominations. Here we share the outcomes. Council Member, Wales We’re delighted to welcome Paul Dunning as our new Council Member, Wales who will join Council at June’s Annual General Meeting (AGM), after we received one...

Why should I join Specialist Section – Independent Practice? This specialist section is for occupational therapists, new to or established in the independent sector; with the aim of promoting awareness and implementation of sound business practices and supporting members in the start-up, running...

We’re focusing on neurodiversity and mental health in the March issue of OTnews. It starts with a group of neurodivergent occupational therapists reflecting on how they’ve continued to experience the world around them during the pandemic, since first sharing their stories about their lives with us two years ago.

In our March OTnews , we caught up with Dr Sidney Chu ahead of his online Elizabeth Casson Memorial Lecture on Thursday 28 April 2022. Dr Chu will talk about Optimising performance, clinical and economic outcomes in occupational therapy service delivery. We wanted to find out more about what...

The RCOT Library and Information Service is going digital. Our Library has been digital only since March 2020 when we closed the physical Library space due to the pandemic. Since then, you’ve used our Library’s digital resources over 200,000 times. We’ve decided to keep the physical Library space...

Jules Pentney, a second-year occupational therapy student at Salford University, discusses why she is passionate about social prescribing and how it has the power to improve peoples physical and mental health.

We have temporarily paused our rolling programme of placement opportunities for pre-registration learners (students and apprentices) while we review and improve the offering. Over 150 learners have joined us since we introduced the program in January 2022. We value the feedback from learners,...

We’re asking all members working in rehabilitation settings to complete our survey on the issues affecting rehabilitation services across the UK. The survey launches today and will close at 11pm on Sunday 27 March . It should take around 10 – 15 minutes to complete and can be accessed here . We’re...

The Government in England has published its response to its recent consultation looking at mandatory vaccinations as a condition of employment in the health and social care settings in England. On 2 February 2022 the Government announced that it would consult on the legal requirement for staff...

No one can fail to be moved by the heart-breaking scenes taking place in Ukraine. Every day through the media we continue to see and hear the traumatic events taking place. We, at RCOT, stand firmly with the people of Ukraine and categorically condemn the invasion by Russia. War is never the...

The R&D Bulletin newsletter will be launching as a monthly email this spring. Hear about our latest research news, events and publications, plus funding and career development opportunities. Perfect for any occupational therapist or learner interested or engaged in research. You can sign up now...

Here are the main places to research the history of occupational therapy in the UK: RCOT Email: library@rcot.co.uk Holds archive of RCOT publications, Specialist Section newsletters and journals, including: • Journal of the Association of Occupational Therapists, 1938 – 1949 * • Occupational...

We are encouraging all members across the UK who work in or with people in Parkinson’s services to register for the UK Parkinson’s 2022 Audit . The Audit takes place every two years and is a quality improvement tool for Parkinson's services. It looks at areas where services can improve, what’s...

Throughout 2022, Steve Ford, Chief Executive, and Karin Orman, Assistant Director – Professional Practice, will be hosting a series of discussion events about how we can support you and lead the profession boldly with a stronger voice. The first event will take place on Wednesday 13 April 2022, 12-...

If you’re a senior leader or decision maker, get involved in our RCOT Leadership Forum. Steve Ford, Chief Executive, and Karin Orman, Director – Practice and Innovation, will be hosting a series of discussion events throughout 2022 about how we can support you and lead the profession boldly with a...

Virtual Coffee Chat: We are aiming for a Virtual Coffee Chat on MS Teams on Thursday 10 March 2022, 8pm-9pm. It would be great to meet some of you virtually. We’d particularly like to chat through how best to use our networking time at the conference, as well as plans for the coming year. Please...

We’re encouraging the occupational therapy community in Northern Ireland to call on their local candidates to support our manifesto in the upcoming Northern Ireland Assembly Election. We’ve shared ways below for you to contact your MLA candidates. Ahead of the election on Thursday 5 May 2022, we’re...

We want to hear from occupational therapists across the UK on proposals by the UK Government on whether occupational therapy should be a regulated profession. The UK Government has launched a consultation looking at the future statutory regulation of all healthcare professions in the UK. It is...

We want people everywhere to value the life-changing power of occupational therapy. So, in this year’s Northern Ireland Assembly election, we’re calling on all candidates to support the three key asks of our manifesto. These asks place occupational therapy at the centre of health and social care in...

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