Julia Scott will be leaving the Royal College of Occupational Therapists at the end of the February, after 15 years as Chief Executive. There is no doubt that Julia has worked tirelessly to support RCOT members and further raise the profile and value of occupational therapy over the years – the organisation has achieved Royal status and has grown its membership to its highest ever. But what are the biggest changes she has seen – for both the organisation and the profession as a whole – during this time?
‘Membership of the organisation has never been higher, and I think RCOT is no longer “faceless”, we are all out there, engaging with members all the time, they know who we are, and what we are doing for them.’
She adds: ‘I think I introduced the concept of a “professional community” early on in my time at RCOT and that’s been a very strong mantra for the organisation and it’s members. Of course, you have a community where you work, you might have a strong community of friends, or graduates you are training with, or academics you work with, but this professional community is all of those people and more. We [during the pandemic] have seen that we are more valuable than ever to our members on the front line, because they turn to their professional body for impartial, honest and reliable advice.’
She continues: ‘If I reflect on the changes in occupational therapy over the last 15 years, it’s wonderful to behold. The profession has come of age…we are very much more established now then when I joined RCOT and we are delivering interventions in many more settings.’
‘My personal test of that is when I meet people and say, “I’m an occupational therapist”, I’m astonished by how many people have heard of us, and that’s a delight.’ However, the fact that while more people might know about occupational therapy, many still don’t know what occupational therapists do, is not lost on her. She says: ‘Because occupational therapy is so broad in terms of settings, and its offer, it’s very hard to promote it in just a few words. But that’s our challenge, and I think we are doing a good job of working on it.’
When it comes to the professional body itself, Julia has overseen a huge amount of internal change, not least with the form and function review, a review of Council, the introduction of new technology and the achievement of more joined-up working, all of which has made RCOT ‘leaner and more cohesive’.
One of the key issues that occupies Julia’s mind, is our impact. ‘I’m very focused on this,’ she stresses. ‘As a charity we do need to report on and measure the impact of what we’ve done.’
And what of the challenges of leading a professional body of this size? On membership, Julia acknowledges that the challenge there is making sure what we offer is good value for money.
And importantly, while the membership is diverse, she says ‘it’s not diverse enough’, recognising that ‘in terms of equality and diversity, we have got a long way to go on that and it involves welcoming a more diverse community into our wonderful profession, as well as doing more to support the development and engagement of those already within our ranks’.
When pushed to name the highlights, she says it’s all about the profile of the profession, which has been enhanced in part by our achieving Royal status. ‘Government agencies are more inclined to ask us to meetings, they tend to consult with the “royal colleges” routinely and they listen to us, and we have the chance to influence,’ she stresses.
And finally, she is proud that the organisation is more connected to its members now than ever before. ‘If you listen to any conversation RCOT staff have, the word you hear most is “members”,’ she says proudly.
Looking to future challenges for the profession, she points to the need for occupational therapists to address public health challenges, the social determinants of health and health inequalities in society, grow the evidence base and to do more to influence how services are delivered.
She adds that she would like to see more occupational therapists working outside of health and social care – and she would like to see an occupational therapist in every school, ‘so that all of our children can gain maximum benefit from their time within the education system’.
So why has Julia now decided to stand down as Chief Executive? ‘It’s never easy and its a job I’ve absolutely loved,’ she says. ‘I want to leave on a high and to be able to develop interests I have in other areas. It was a big decision for me, but I think it was the right one.’
She adds: ‘I’m excited for Steve coming in. It’s a good point in time – there are new things coming towards us and there will be plenty of new developments for him to get his teeth into’.