UK AI JobsExpected · in use · happened
UK AI Jobs/Social Care/Occupational therapist
Mixed signals

Occupational therapist

46.7K UK workers · typical pay £39,000 · entry route Postgraduate degree (Level 7+). Projected growth of +5% to 2035.

How AI is actually used here · measured · Anthropic Economic Index
49%
Augmentation
AI mostly does the task
4.6×
Time compression
~4.2h → ~56min
2.76/5
AI autonomy
how hands-off it runs
51%
Automation
of measured usage
How the collaboration splits · the six measured modes
task iteration 29.5%directive 28.6%feedback loop 21.3%learning 16.7%validation 2.5%unclassified 1.5%
What people make with AI here
document / report40%advice / recommendation20%plan / strategy8%

Real Claude.ai usage mapped to this occupation's SOC group, Apr+May 2026, CC-BY. Claude users only; task times model-estimated; augment/automate is how AI is used, not a count of jobs lost. Method →

Facts · ONS + NCS
UK workers (2024)
46.7K
Median pay
£39.0K
Our scored call · a labelled hypothesis, not a measurement
AI exposure
3 / 10
Elasticity
6.5 / 10
2035 outlook
+5%
Exposure · 3/10
Why AI can do the work

Occupational therapy is a highly physical and interpersonal role requiring hands-on intervention, home assessments, and emotional support in unpredictable environments. While AI can assist with administrative tasks, progress tracking, and suggesting home adaptations, the core work of physical rehabilitation and mental health support remains protected by the need for human presence and clinical judgement.

Elasticity · 6.5/10
Gated by population
Whether demand expands when it gets cheaper

Cheaper delivery would shift the model from reactive crisis management to proactive, preventative home-adaptation and long-term wellness monitoring for a massive underserved population.

Trajectory to 2035

Headcount grows +5%, a Jevons-pattern curve.

Adoption scenario
×1.00 · Consensus

Change the scenario in the nav to reshape this curve.

Headcount projection · 2024 → 2035
Baseline 46.7K workers (2024) · % change vs baseline
Peak 2035 +5%2035 +5%
Peak 20352024202620282030203220342035-6%+0%+6%+5%
Peak headcount
2035
+5% vs 2024
2035 endpoint
+5%
49.1K workers
Time to −10%
Never crosses in model
Total wage pool
£1.8B
pay × jobs
Where this role lives

UK employment share by region, SOC-joined to 2222.

South East
10.4K · 26.9%
London
9.1K · 23.6%
South West
5.4K · 14%
North West
5.1K · 13.2%
Scotland
5.1K · 13.2%
Yorkshire and The Humber
3.5K · 9.1%
Gender split

Majority-female role (88.6% women).

41.3K women · 89%5.3K men · 11%
slug: occupational-therapist · dataset 2026.03 · CC-BY-4.0