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Occupational therapy

We help children and young people to overcome challenges with daily activities such as dressing, washing, eating and moving.

Who we work with

We work with families, healthcare professionals, education and social care colleagues. Our aim is to help your child get the most from their lives and achieve their potential.

What we do

Children and young people may need help with certain activities. We help to develop participation skills in self care, productivity and leisure. This might include things like:

  • eating, drinking and washing (self care)
  • using classroom tools such as a pencil or scissors (productivity)
  • playing in the park with friends (leisure).

My child needs help. What should I do first?

Look at our resources below. These include recorded webinars and guides on how to encourage and support your child at home.

Choose the area below that your child needs help with

Recorded webinars

Resources (guides)

 

Recorded webinars

Resources (guides)

 

Recorded webinars

Resources (guides)

 

 

 

Resources (guides)

Gross motor skills

Resources (guides)

Fine motor skills

Recorded webinars

Resources (guides)

Play and leisure

Recorded webinars

Resources (guides)

 

Recorded webinars

Resources (guides)

Recorded webinars

Resources (guides)

Resources (guides)

If your child still needs help – how to access our services

If your child doesn’t meet our high/urgent health and care need criteria, they can still access direct occupational therapy support through our virtual advice sessions.

You don’t need a referral and anyone supporting the child or young person can access this.

We see children and young people who match our criteria for high health and care needs for a face-to-face assessment.

High health needs – physical

This includes children and young people who need:

  • postural control advice/equipment who are at risk of developing contractures, respiratory complications or other ill health as a result of not being positioned correctly
  • dysphagia support (postural support/equipment)
  • post-surgery rehabilitation
  • equipment for hospital discharge
  • an assessment for developmental co-ordination disorder (DCD)
  • support for chronic fatigue
  • support for severe developmental delay.

High health needs – sensory

  • Sensory based eating/drinking support if impact on weight/failure to thrive
  • Sensory behaviours causing significant participation concerns such as school refusal or break down of family/home setting.
  • Sensory behaviours resulting in harm to self or others.

High care needs – equipment

This includes children and young people who need:

  • home equipment to be safe or to enable others to care for them safely
  • equipment in a school setting such as seating or moving and handling equipment.

Educational health and care needs assessments – EHCP

The local authority can request these.

Children and young people who are looked after and those with significant level of vulnerability within the family will also be considered for face to face assessment.

To make a referral into the service please complete our referral form

We support young people from age 5 up until the day before their 19th birthday with high/complex urgent health and social care needs, who have a GP and an address within Buckinghamshire.

We work closely with school occupational therapists and other treating professionals so that the support children and young people get in school transfers to the home environment.

Our team work alongside the housing occupational therapists to provide equipment in the home. This equipment helps children and young people access community activities, participate in family life and remain safe at home.

Seating

We promote optimal seating positions to support safe feeding, taking part in family activities and how to protect body shape through postural management. Please see our writing and drawing posture advice sheet.

Personal hygiene equipment

This helps your child to have a dignified personal hygiene routine whilst minimising manual handling risks for their carers.

Equipment can range from a simple bath chair to a more supportive showering system. We can advise you if your child needs adaptations and make a referral to the appropriate service. See our toileting advice and tips sheet.

Hoists and slings

These help to reduce the handling risk to a young person, their parents/guardians and carers. Hoists and slings can be used in home and school for transfers such as from a chair to the toilet. It is important that hoists and slings are checked daily before use and serviced every 6 months. Please refer to the hoist and sling paperwork provided by our Occupational Therapy team.

Sleeping and lying

We encourage 24 hour postural care by improving night time positioning. This can help promote regular sleep patterns and reduce the risk of pressure sores and contractures by using a sleep system. We may recommend profiling beds for ease of care and safety.

Use our referral form to make an equipment request .

For young people who have had their 18th birthday

You can make a self referral, or get a referral from your GP to the Buckinghamshire Community Learning Disability Health Team.

Call 01494 838260 for High Wycombe or 01296 387516 for Aylesbury. You can also send an email

For adult housing needs, call 01296 387024 or email ottriage@buckinghamshire.gov.uk

Find out more about occupational therapy services in Buckinghamshire

Children and young people will need a health referral and be:

  • registered with a Buckinghamshire GP practice that’s a member of the Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire, and Berkshire West Integrated Care Board (BOB ICB)
  • aged 0 to 18 years, up to the day before their 19th birthday.

For children and young people who are being referred for equipment you must:

  • ordinarily be a resident in Buckinghamshire.

Services are only provided within Buckinghamshire. Children and young people with a Buckinghamshire EHCP attending a school outside of Buckinghamshire should contact the local authority to discuss spot purchasing of therapy needs.

This is the process for schools to request a therapy assessment from Children and Young People’s (CYP) therapies to inform an annual review. This applies when a child or young person’s education, health and care plan (EHCP) doesn’t currently include therapy provision, but new therapy needs have been identified.

What you need to do

Follow the step by step process below to request a therapy assessment.

Step 1 – identify new needs

Make sure the child or young person has an EHCP without existing therapy provision. Ensure there are new recognised therapy needs.

Step 2 – consult with a therapist

The special educational needs co-ordinator (SENDCo) at your school must discuss the CYP’s new needs with a therapist during a school advice clinic.

If a referral is necessary, the SENDCo completes a referral form provided after the clinic.

Step 3 – submit the request

The SENDCo must email bht.cyptehcp@nhs.net with the subject line ‘Request to assess to inform annual review.’

They must also include in the email the:

  • completed CYP therapies annual review referral form
  • most recent EHCP

Step 4 – triage process

CYP therapies will review the request. Insufficient information may result in the request not being processed.

Step 5 – assessment and guidance

If further assessment is needed, CYP therapies will give guidance. This guidance will be in the form of an annual review report.

Step 6 – update EHCP

The SENDCo uses the CYP therapy annual review report to inform proposed changes to the EHCP.

The child or young person must be:

  • resident in Buckinghamshire, or ​
  • living in Buckinghamshire with no fixed abode, or​
  • temporarily resident in Buckinghamshire (including children looked after and refugees).
  • aged 0 to 18 years, up to the day before their 19th birthday. ​

They must also:

  • attend an early years setting in Buckinghamshire, or​
  • on roll at a mainstream educational setting in Buckinghamshire (mainstream primary and secondary including Additionally Resourced Provisions (ARPs), or ​
  • on roll at a pupil referral unit (PRUs) or inclusion unit in Buckinghamshire, or ​
  • placed in a mainstream independent setting by Buckinghamshire Council as part of an EHCP or​
  • registered as electively home educated (EHE), or with an agreed education other than at school package whilst not enrolled at a registered educational setting (EOTAS).

We don’t provide therapy to:

  • special schools in Buckinghamshire
  • independent schools (unless placed by the local authority)
  • pupil referral units
  • those who are electively home educated (unless part of an agreed EOTAS package by the local authority) or in respite care and hospices.

Other sources of help

MK in car safety centre provides assessment, support and advice for all in car safety including car seats. Call 01908 220909 for an assessment.

You can access assessments from the Regional Driving Assessment Centre (RDAC) for people who have difficulty getting in and out of a vehicle as either a passenger or a driver, or need to assist people or load equipment into vehicles.

Visit the website to complete a referral form or call 0300 300 2240 for centres located in Aylesbury, Northampton and Oxford.

We can provide supportive letters if you want to apply for charitable funding for equipment. We can not provide funding for car seats.

Charities include:

 

Contact the Paediatric Community Occupational Therapy Service – Buckinghamshire Council (Housing OT). Support include:

  • housing adaptations
  • housing support
  • permanent equipment, for example ramps ceiling track hoists.

Email general enquiries and referrals to ChildrensOT@buckinghamshire.gov.uk or call 01296 383 762

Buckinghamshire Wheelchair Service provides assessment and wheelchairs for children over 3 years old. They must have a Buckinghamshire GP and a long-term disability resulting in permanent or significant difficulties walking indoors and outdoors.

Call 01494 734046 or email buc-tr.WheelchairService@nhs.net

Nottingham Rehab Supplies (NRS), the Buckinghamshire community equipment loan service repair and maintain all equipment we provide for a young person living in Buckinghamshire.

This equipment is on loan and remains the property of NRS. Read the loan agreement and safety information sheet that is provided when the piece of equipment is delivered to you.

Call 0345 123 8248 or email enquiries@bucks.nrs-uk.net For any equipment collections and use of their assessment room for demonstrations, you’ll need to go to the NRS depot in Aylesbury.

Contact our Occupational Therapy team
Contact our Occupational Therapy team

Text messaging service: BHT Therapy Link

Call: 01296 838000

Email: Buc-tr.cyptherapies@nhs.net 

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