Assistant Speech and Language Therapist - NHS
Work in an organisation that supports its staff and focuses on staff experience as much as it does the experience of its patients? You can live and breathe in an area that has the cleanest air, cost effective living, great nightlife, some of the best schools with a wealth of history available on your doorstep.
Sound too good to be true? Well it isn’t, this is what you get when you work for Northumbria Healthcare and, this is…the Northumbria Way!
What the Northumbria Way means for you:
- Extensive staff health and well-being programme including access to our specialist Wellbeing Hub
- Support and connection through a variety of Staff Network groups
- A range of flexible working opportunities
- Generous annual leave and pension scheme
- Access to lease car and home electronics scheme (qualifying criteria applies)
- Opportunities to improve your professional development through our vast training programmes
- On-site nursery places via salary sacrifice
- Access to savings scheme via salary sacrifice with Northumberland Community Bank
Our teams deliver care from hospitals, a range of community venues and people’s homes. Our hospitals include a specialist emergency care hospital (the first of its kind in England), three general hospitals and community hospitals. In the community we deliver a wide range of community and public health services.
We lead in innovation and quality, having opened the Northumbria Healthcare Manufacturing and Innovation Hub during the Covid-19 pandemic and have recently launched our Community Promise – a pledge to make a real impact not just in healthcare but on the wider factors that affect people’s lives, such as education, employment and the economy.
If Northumbria Healthcare sounds like somewhere you could belong we would love to hear from you. Visit our website to catch up on our latest news.
Whilst Northumbria Healthcare are a highly innovative organisation, the use of Third Party Artificial Intelligence (AI) presents a risk to the integrity of our Recruitment & Selection processes. If you use AI, and it poses a risk to the integrity your individual recruitment process, we may withdraw your application at any stage of the process.
Job overview
We are offering an exciting opportunity to work within the Community Paediatric SLT service of Northumbria Healthcare NHS Trust on a permanent 0.8wte basis. This opportunity is aimed at those who are interested in developing their skills as an Assistant Speech and Language Therapist within our locality teams.You will be working with Speech and Language Therapists and other ASLTs to successfully deliver on our service vision, values and objectives.
This role will appeal to dynamic, motivated individuals who are committed to delivering the highest quality service for children and young people with a broad range of speech, language and communication needs. You will have a keen interest in continuing professional development and be passionate about improving the quality of specific intervention and support for children, their families and partner agents.
Excellent organisational and time management skills are essential along with developed interpersonal skills.
Please note we reserve the right to close this vacancy prior to the closing date once the required number of suitable applications have been received.
Main duties of the job
To assist Speech and Language Therapists to develop and improve communication skills of children and young people in a given location, through direct intervention, liaison and joint working with parents/carers and partners across agencies, to maximise their potential, reduce risk and enable their maximum participation and integration into society.
To implement and modify evidence based therapeutic approaches to meet the defined intervention needs of children within a variety of contexts.
To be accountable for own professional actions.
Working for our organisation
We manage three major locality hospitals at North Tyneside, Wansbeck and Hexham, plus a number of smaller community hospitals and clinics from Tynemouth to Berwick on Tweed, covering one of the largest geographical areas of any NHS trust in the country.Leading in innovation and quality – opening a state of the art Northumbria Specialist Emergency Care Hospital, the first of its kind in England. Do you want to work in one of the best performing NHS organisations in England? Work in an organisation that supports its staff and focuses on staff experience as much as it does the experience of its patients?
You can live and breathe in an area that has the cleanest air, cost effective living, great nightlife, some of the best schools with a wealth of history available on your doorstep. Sound too good to be true? Well it isn’t, this is what you get when you work for Northumbria Healthcare, this is the Northumbria Way!
Please read ‘applicant guidance notes’ before submitting your application.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
We can offer:
- a well-established network of support and supervision
- A personal approach to continued professional development
- Collaborative working with a team of highly skilled, dedicated Speech and Language Therapists and Assistant Speech and Language Therapists
- Successful partnership working with colleagues in Health, Education and Children's Services
We have a nationally recognised track record of innovation and clinical excellence. Teams are encouraged to explore new ways of implementing evidence into practice.
Essential Criteria:
- NVQ level 3 or equivalent experience in Health, Education and/or Social Care
- Good general level of education up to GCSE / O level
- IT literate
- Eligibility for associate membership of RCSLT
- Experience of working with children and young people with a range of communication needs
- Car driver
The post holder will be required to work at sites across the Trust. The post will be subject to a probationary period. Internal applicants are exempt from the probationary period (unless you are an internal applicant currently par way through a probationary period or currently a bank member of staff).
Person specification
Qualifications
Essential criteria- NVQ level 3 or equivalent in Health and/or Social Care
- Good general level of educational up to GCSE/ O level/ O grade
- Eligibility for associate membership of RCSLT.
Experience and Knowledge
Essential criteria- Knowledge of a range of communication difficulties and strategies
- Awareness of national policies and procedures relevant to client group/s
- Awareness of the roles of other professionals relevant to client group
- Knowledge of IT and relevant software packages
- Awareness of a range of therapy approaches for various client groups
Skills and Abilities
Essential criteria- Negotiation and problem solving skills
- Well-developed concentration skills
- Good presentation skills both written and verbal
- Good organisational skills
- Must be able to demonstrate the English language proficiency level required for this post
Other Requirements
Essential criteria- It is an essential requirement of the role that the post holder has a valid driving licence and is either a car owner and able to use the car for work purposes, or has a Trust personal lease vehicle which may be used for the role. However, the Trust would consider making reasonable Document version – 2017 10 adjustments to the role, if necessary, to enable a disabled person to undertake the role
Applicants who are members of the Armed Forces, and those who have a disability that requires support in the work place (two ticks pledge) and who meet the essential criteria will be interviewed under the Trust's interview guarantee scheme.
We recognise the positive value of diversity and inclusion and are committed to a workforce that is diverse, equal and inclusive. We welcome and encourage job applications from people of all backgrounds. We particularly welcome applications from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) candidates as BAME people are currently under-represented in our workforce as well as other under-represented groups such as LGBT+ and disabled candidates.We are proud to be a Disability Confident Employer, a Stonewall Diversity Champion, we have a Gold award from the Defense Recognition Scheme, and we are delighted to support Apprenticeships, Age Posi+ive and are a mindful employer.
If you require any reasonable adjustments to attend interview please make the recruitment team aware as soon as possible by calling our HR Recruitment Team on 0191 203 1415 option 2.
Applicants who meet the Fit and Proper Person Requirements (FPPR) will require additional pre-employment checks in line with CQC and NHS England statutory guidance.
Make sure to read the ‘applicant guidance notes’ before submitting your application and make sure you know everything there is to know before joining our fantastic trust!
Please note that it is a requirement of this Trust that all successful applicants pay for their own DBS certification if a DBS check is required for the post. The method of payment is a salary deduction from your first monthly pay.