Physiotherapy Team Lead - OPU
Job summary
This is a great opportunity for those who wish to lead a forward thinking and dynamic OPU teamWe are on a mission to improve the responsiveness and proactivity of our therapy services at the RUH. We are looking for someone who is passionate about OPU and frailty.
This role includes leading a team of Physiotherapists and Occupational Therapists as well as contributing to the wider function of the Adult Therapies Department.
Within the OPU team, we cover a variety of wards, including ED, MAU and OPU wards, giving the post holder a wide variety of experiences working with older, frail adults.
Main duties of the job
Demonstrable leadership experience at band 6 or equivalent is required as a minimum for this post. The successful applicant will need excellent communications skills and will need to demonstrate suitable knowledge and experience in this speciality, enabling them to work autonomously at a high level, and to provide highly specialist input within the team.
Supervision of band 6 and band 5 physiotherapists will form a key aspect of this role. Alongside the leadership aspect of this role, clinical expertise will be nurtured and developed with speciality training as required. We are looking for a keen clinician who will strive to improve the patient experience as well as ensure the safety and well-being of our staff by way of service improvement projects.
Working hours are spread from Monday-Sunday, as part of the commitment to our 7-day service, enabling a varied and flexible working week. As part of our commitment to you and your career development, we provide ongoing training opportunities both in-house and externally.
In the summer of 2019 we opened the doors to the new Therapies and RNHRD (Royal National Hospital for Rheumatic Diseases) department which is home to state of the art equipment, gym and hydrotherapy pool. This is a very exciting time, as we continue to improve patient experience and integration of therapies.
About us
At the RUH we put people at the heart of what we do, working together as one team to make a difference for our patients, each other, and our community. No matter what your role is, we value everyone's contribution in supporting the exceptional, person-centred care we pride ourselves on.
We are proud to be in the top 20 best hospitals to work for in the country.
We are committed to creating a compassionate and inclusive environment. This can be seen in our growing community of staff networks - celebrating successes and creating opportunities to listen and learn. We value our differences, champion kindness and civility, and truly believe that diversity makes us stronger.
A culture of learning, developing and innovating is the thread that runs throughout our whole organisation. We want to support you to thrive, taking your career to its full potential.
We value staff well-being, with a well-established programme of support. We believe in a holistic approach spanning all aspects of living a healthy life, including physical, emotional, spiritual and financial well-being. We've even got a pool!
We are committed to supporting you and hope you want to join our team. In the meantime, find out more about living and working the beautiful historic city of Bath, learn about our extensive package of staff benefits, and read about how we're providing healthcare fit for the future with the landmark Dyson Cancer Centre and our passion for research.
Details
Date posted
30 October 2025
Pay scheme
Agenda for change
Band
Band 7
Salary
£47,810 to £54,710 a year per annum
Contract
Permanent
Working pattern
Full-time
Reference number
427-7558056
Job locations
Royal United Hospitals Bath
Combe Park
Bath
BA1 3NG
Job description
Job responsibilities
Please see the job description for more details. We encourage candidates to get in touch to discuss the role.
Job descriptionJob responsibilities
Please see the job description for more details. We encourage candidates to get in touch to discuss the role.
Person Specification
Qualifications
Essential
- Diploma/degree in relevant AHP Profession
- Attendance at recent postgraduate courses relevant to the clinical fields
Desirable
- Involvement in special interest groups
Knowledge & Experience
Essential
- Advanced knowledge of broad range of conditions in specialist area
- Experience of working as part of a multi-disciplinary team
- Experience of supervising more junior staff/students
- Knowledge of national service guidelines and own professional guidelines, especially those related to care of the elderly and pre/post surgical conditions
- Demonstrates awareness of NHS targets for acute trusts And NHS development plans
Desirable
- Experience supervising AHPs from other professions
- Teaching skills
- Experience of implementing change
Values
Essential
- Values and respects others, treats everyone as an individual, is non-judgemental
- Pro-active and takes responsibility
Specific Skills
Essential
- To be experienced in performing highly specialist assessments and treatments with patients with a variety of specific conditions relevant to the specialty area
- To have experience of organisation, prioritisation and delegation
- Ability to co-ordinate clinical management of AHP staff
- To be able to work alone in domiciliary settings, assessing and managing risk
Desirable
- Demonstrate ability to work under pressure
- To carry out assessments and treatments of patients for several periods with moderate to intense physical effort whilst carrying out concurrent activities
- To deal sensitively with patients who have high levels of anxiety and distress caused by pain, cognitive impairment, physical impairment or other cause
- To be able to frequently care for critically/terminally/ chronically ill patients and deal with distressing and difficult circumstances often giving unwelcome news regarding limited expectations from rehabilitation
Qualifications
Essential
- Diploma/degree in relevant AHP Profession
- Attendance at recent postgraduate courses relevant to the clinical fields
Desirable
- Involvement in special interest groups
Knowledge & Experience
Essential
- Advanced knowledge of broad range of conditions in specialist area
- Experience of working as part of a multi-disciplinary team
- Experience of supervising more junior staff/students
- Knowledge of national service guidelines and own professional guidelines, especially those related to care of the elderly and pre/post surgical conditions
- Demonstrates awareness of NHS targets for acute trusts And NHS development plans
Desirable
- Experience supervising AHPs from other professions
- Teaching skills
- Experience of implementing change
Values
Essential
- Values and respects others, treats everyone as an individual, is non-judgemental
- Pro-active and takes responsibility
Specific Skills
Essential
- To be experienced in performing highly specialist assessments and treatments with patients with a variety of specific conditions relevant to the specialty area
- To have experience of organisation, prioritisation and delegation
- Ability to co-ordinate clinical management of AHP staff
- To be able to work alone in domiciliary settings, assessing and managing risk
Desirable
- Demonstrate ability to work under pressure
- To carry out assessments and treatments of patients for several periods with moderate to intense physical effort whilst carrying out concurrent activities
- To deal sensitively with patients who have high levels of anxiety and distress caused by pain, cognitive impairment, physical impairment or other cause
- To be able to frequently care for critically/terminally/ chronically ill patients and deal with distressing and difficult circumstances often giving unwelcome news regarding limited expectations from rehabilitation
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).
UK Registration
Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).
Additional informationDisclosure 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).
UK Registration
Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).
Employer details
Employer name
Royal United Hospitals Bath NHS Foundation Trust
Address
Royal United Hospitals Bath
Combe Park
Bath
BA1 3NG
Employer's website
https://www.ruh.nhs.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)
Employer details
Employer name
Royal United Hospitals Bath NHS Foundation Trust
Address
Royal United Hospitals Bath
Combe Park
Bath
BA1 3NG
Employer's website
Salary range
- £47,810 - £54,710 per year