Why children and young people are a priority for RCOT
Children and young people represent a third of the UK population. 11% have some form of disability, and the number of young people with special educational needs is increasing year on year.
Health and care inequalities are widening, and health, education and social outcomes are worsening for children and young people in the UK – especially for those living in deprived areas.
Occupational therapists have the skills and expertise to help children and young people realise their potential and take part in the activities they need and want to do.
Timely involvement also has economic benefits by affecting people’s use of health, education and care services – as children and adults.
But demand for occupational therapy is growing and waiting lists for children and young people’s health and care services are among the highest in the system.
Occupational therapists are working hard to deliver the support children, young people and families need, but unprecedented service pressures and limited opportunities for practice development are affecting staff recruitment, retention and morale.
That’s why children and young people are a priority practice area for RCOT.
So...how are we approaching this?
As part of our Workforce Strategy we have set ourselves some clear objectives to better support OTs and, in turn, the children and young people they work with.
Current and future RCOT activities will:
- Promote workforce growth by attracting, recruiting and retaining occupational therapists in children and young people’s services.
- Support the modernisation of practice by prioritising occupation and aligning practice with national standards, evidence and policy.
- Enable effective workforce planning by helping children and young people’s service leaders understand, access and use demand and capacity data.
- Position the occupational therapy workforce to have maximum impact. This means ensuring easy access to our expertise and early intervention to help children and young people fulfil their potential and prevent their needs from escalating.
- Develop a career pathway for occupational therapists working with children and young people. This will support retention and ensure we have a workforce with the skills and confidence to address children and young people’s needs now and in the future.
- Showcase good practice that extends our reach, makes good use of resources and demonstrates improved outcomes through partnership working and a broader offer of universal and targeted support.
- Make the case for additional investment in children and young people’s occupational therapy services by building real world and research evidence to justify and quantify our impact.