Children’s Occupational Therapy aims to help children to engage and participate in their daily occupations. Occupations are activities that children want to do, need to do or are expected to do in order to promote independence and improve quality of life.
The service supports children and young people in the community from 0-16 years old (or up to 19 years if attending a special school) in the Dudley borough. We see children with conditions ranging from motor coordination difficulties through to complex neurological or neuromuscular conditions, including cerebral palsy, and children presenting with complex health care needs.
We provide a community based service in a range of settings such as homes, schools, nurseries or The Sunflower Centre. Our service offers specialist assessment and intervention to enable and maximise the potential for children to engage in their daily living activities (occupations) such as:
Self-Care:
- Eating and drinking
- Dressing
- Mobility and seating
- Toileting, bathing and personal hygiene
School and Nursery Activities:
- Handwriting
- Fine motor skills (e.g. using scissors, ruler)
- Organisational skills
Leisure:
- Sports
- Hobbies
- Play
Intervention may include:
- Individual therapy sessions focussing on the child’s identified needs and goals
- Group therapy sessions e.g. baby group, handwriting, ‘Bikeability’, football and parent workshops
- Information and advice on equipment or strategies to enable participation in daily activities at home or school
- Supporting schools and nurseries with the ‘Get Moving’ programme
- Assessment and provision of hand splints
- Liaison with parents, teachers and other professionals.
We have developed a poster highlighting the support available from the team.
Text-only version of content within the poster.
Referrals can be made by any healthcare professional, including health visitors, school nurses, GP’s, consultants and other therapists.
Referrals must be in writing and be discussed and agreed with the child/family. They can be posted or emailed to the Children’s Occupational Therapy Department at the Sunflower Centre.
The service is provided Monday – Thursday 08.00-17.00 and Friday 08.00-16.00 (excluding bank holidays).
The Children's Occupational Therapy Manager
The Sunflower Centre
John Corbett Drive
Stourbridge
DY8 4HZ
Tel: 01384 366912 or 01384 361369
Email: bchft.childrensot@nhs.net
Dudley Children’s Occupational Therapy Facebook page
NHS Greater Glasgow & Clyde: A fantastic website offering a range of advice to help develop your child’s life skills