Occupational Therapy

This collection consists of 4 boxes of artefacts relating to the training of occupational therapists from 1953-2010. It also consists of 3 boxes of photographs depicting the work of the students. Contained within the collection are 5 boxes of documents relating to the development of the training, the changes made to the service including location of teaching and practice, as well as reviews and validation documents, a series of student handbooks, and teaching materials. The collection also comprises of a series of framed items, some anatomy posters and books relating to the subject of occupational therapy.

In the early 20th century the first school of occupational therapy was set up in Boston USA. The first school set up in Britain was in 1930 with the government encouraging the implementation of such therapies in mental hospitals in 1933 prompting a push in the education and engagement of occupational therapists. Initially seen as "War Work", occupational therapy was recognised as being vital for recovery through work.

Initially the drive towards occupational therapies was made by military leaders and doctors who were faced with a workforce depleted by war, who believed that OT was a way to get injured servicemen back to work.

In 1941 St. Andrew's hospital in Northampton established a school of occupational therapy, only the third in the country, and by 1943 they had been officially recognised by the Association of Occupational Therapists.

The rise of the arts and crafts movement emphasised the virtues of creative activities. Such activities had been widely used in psychiatric hospitals previously, but now they had also been proven to have a very valuable effect on the rehabilitation of individuals following both physical and mental illness and injury.

Initially the students would have lessons at St. Andrew's hospital in the morning, and then learn the crafts and activities they were employing in the afternoon in the Northampton School of Art.

By 1948 the course ran at St. Andrews extended over a period of 2 to 3 years and students qualified at completion with a Diploma as accredited by the Association of Occupational Therapists.

When the school was founded by Dr Tennent in 1941, the teaching of the subject was carried out in various rooms across the hospital but did not have a designated space. As the intake of students grew rapidly in the early 1960s, the need for larger premises became a matter of urgency. During 1962 Dr Tennent died and his former home, Priory Cottage in the hospital grounds, was aptly given to the school of occupational therapy and the rooms were converted to teaching rooms, a library and some residential rooms for students to rent. Originally intended to be a temporary move, the main work of the school remained in situ there until it's move to Park Campus in 1997.

Links had already been made with the then Nene College in 1976 when the Dean of the School of Sciences approached the School of Occupational therapy to offer assistance in the teaching of the academic subjects such as psychology, anatomy and physiology and sociology.

By 1981 the school had a new director in Elizabeth Cracknell who was part of a new wave of occupational therapists pushing for it to become a degree profession. By 1988 the school was facing a decline in student numbers and began to consider this might be improved by offering the OT training as a degree programme. However, they recognised that this would need input from a higher education establishment, a precedent for which had been set by Dorset House in Oxford who had linked with Oxford Polytechnic to do just that. The arrival of Dr Gaskell to Nene College in 1989 was the catalyst to cement the links between them and a Statement of Commitment was signed in 1990 and they almost immediately began work to prepare for the validation of a BSc in Occupational Therapy in 1991.

Occupational therapy training officially made the final move to Park campus in 1997.

Not yet specified.

A detailed catalogue is available at https://northampton.epexio.com/records/OT/01/HEA