Occupational therapy

Community Occupational Therapists can help you live independently in your own home by offering advice on managing your disability, providing specialist disability equipment suited to you and small or more substantial adaptations to your home that can help you get on with your daily activities as comfortably and safely as possible.

If you are interested in any of these services you can contact your local social care team (contact details are at the bottom of this page) and ask to be assessed by an Occupational Therapist.

The assessment

An Occupational Therapist will then visit you at home to discuss what difficulties you may be having. They will ask you questions about your health and your needs, look at any difficulties you are experiencing and try to find solutions suited to you. They will then prepare a Care Plan, which explains what equipment or adaptations are recommended.

If the Occupational Therapist orders equipment for you it will be delivered directly to your home. Equipment is free of charge but it is on a long term loan to you - you do not own it.

Small adaptations to your home such as fitting rails in the bathroom or rails by the front door are also provided and fitted free of charge.

When your equipment or adaptations have arrived the Occupational Therapist will visit you again to show you how to use it and check that everything is right for you.

Major Adaptations to your home

The Occupational Therapist may recommend that you need substantial adaptations to your home or larger items installed such as stairlifts, level access showers, ramps or adaptations to your kitchen.

If this is the case, you will either have to pay for the equipment and works yourself, or the Occupational Therapist will help you apply for a Disabled Facilities Grant(pdf, 112KB) to cover the costs. The Occupational Therapist will help you in your application for this grant and check on the adaptation once it has been completed.