We see babies, children and young people who are having difficulty participating in everyday activities.
We're a specialist service and try to focus on families who are likely to benefit specifically from occupational therapy at the time of referral and cannot receive this support from other services.
We consider referrals for children or young people:
- registered with a Lambeth or Southwark GP
- aged 0 to 19 years old
Who can refer
We only accept referrals from health, education or social care professionals. We do not accept referrals from parents or carers.
Before making a referral
Before making a referral, please consider whether:
- the family or child wants to work on the child's daily living skills, as the activities the child cannot do may not be a current concern for the family
- the family or school have tried to address areas of concern, as we expect them to have already explored typical child development strategies and universal service options
- the child has difficulties across many areas, as we find that these children benefit the most from occupational therapy
- written advice or an online resource would be sufficient
- other services are already supporting the child and family
- there is a universal team that could support the child and family
- the family have the time and capacity to engage with occupational therapy
Do not make a referral if:
- our resources may be more appropriate for supporting the family in the first instance, for example if the child's skills are immature but in line with their development
- the child's difficulties are mostly due to attention difficulties (consider providing the attention difficulties resource pack to the family instead)
- the child's difficulties are mostly due to emotional regulation or behaviour difficulties, as this is not something occupational therapy will address
- you need us to complete an education, health and care needs assessment
- the child has pica
- the child's condition has a specific psychological approach, such as functional neurological disorder
- the child needs home equipment and adaptations (please refer to the Southwark social services occupational therapy team or Lambeth social services occupational therapy team instead)
- our health visiting service or school nursing service would be better able to meet the child's needs
- the child has sensory difficulties where there is no clear impact on the child's participation in everyday activities (for example, sensory processing disorder, stimming or sensory behaviours). We do not offer input aimed at changing a child's sensory processing skills
How to make a referral
Complete the community children's services referral form (Word 182KB) and email it to gst-tr.EvelinaCommunityReferrals@nhs.net.
When making a referral, please explain to families why you are referring their child to occupational therapy and give them the Community occupational therapy leaflet (PDF 291KB) for more information.
Information to include in your referral
Your referral must include information about:
- the number, type and longevity of the child's difficulties
- all the activities or routines that are causing a problem at home, school, nursery or elsewhere
- what the child would like to be able to do, or what the family would like them to be able to do
- the strategies or approaches that the family have tried already
- services the family have already accessed
Please do not ask for a specific assessment, intervention or piece of equipment.
Referrals for toileting difficulties
We consider referrals for children who have received support from universal services, and continue to have difficulties with their toileting routine like:
- tolerating the toilet or bathroom
- managing their clothing
- wiping themselves
We'll also consider referrals for children who have difficulties accessing the toileting environment in school. We may make recommendations for any relevant equipment or adaptations at school.