‘Back to school’ – piloting an occupational therapy service in mainstream schools in the UK

This paper gives an account of learning, which occurred as a result of occupational therapists piloting a new occupational therapy service in two mainstream schools in a socially deprived area of the South East of England. The paper explores how therapists, familiar with working within the National Health Service, developed new approaches and understandings of their role, in order to meet the challenges of working as part of a team in a mainstream school. The paper considers how new understandings have led therapists to contemplate changes in their practice and possibilities for the future development of the occupational therapy service.