Specialist Speech and Language Therapist
Job overview
Are you passionate about supporting children with complex needs and learning difficulties? We have an exciting opportunity for a dynamic, enthusiastic, and creative Band 6 Speech and Language Therapist (SLT) to join our friendly, well-established team based at Peace Children’s Centre in Watford.This full-time post offers access to specialist support and opportunities to develop your clinical expertise.
In this role, you’ll work up to 4 days per week at Breakspeare School in Watford, supporting children and young people with severe learning difficulties. The rest of the week will be spent working with preschool children across a range of community settings.You will collaborate with other professionals to deliver assessment and therapy tailored to the needs of children and young people with complex needs. You’ll also have the chance to develop your specialist clinical skills, including dysphagia competencies, and play a key role in supporting and guiding the wider SLT team.
Hertfordshire Community NHS Trust provides Speech and Language Therapy, Occupational Therapy, and Physiotherapy to families across the county. Our integrated Children and Young People’s Therapies (CYPT) service promotes collaborative working, joint training, and shared learning across disciplines.Jointly commissioned by health and education, CYPT delivers a seamless, high-quality pathway of care from early years through to school and specialist settings.
Main duties of the job
You will have the opportunity to work as part of an MDT within Breakspeare School in Abbots Langley, working with the wider CYP Team and teaching staff. You will access support from the established local special school team, who meet regularly to discuss collaborative working and support development of specialist skills.You will also use your specialist skills to support pre-school children within community and home settings.
You will be joining an innovative and agile Children and Young People's Therapies (CYPT) service committed to delivering high quality care and transforming lives.
We offer:
- Regular group supervision, managerial supervision and a well-established appraisal system
- CPD opportunities such as Bitesize tutorials, peer review and locally hosted CENs for DLD and ASD
- Opportunities to develop leadership skills and to supervise less experienced members of staff
- Opportunities to work alongside other therapists/assistants to deliver evidence based episodes of care to children/young people requiring specialist support
- A 2 week induction period where you will have the opportunity to observe and shadow your team, including access to a buddy
Working for our organisation
A big thank you for considering joining us at Hertfordshire Community NHS Trust
You’ll find it a great place to work with many benefits offered to you as a member of our staff
We put our patients, their families and carers at the centre of our vision - Outstanding Services and Healthier Communities
Our staff are proud to be Innovative, Caring and Agile in their work to help achieve the Trust vision
We welcome diversity in our workforce and are interested in applicants from all backgrounds and ages
We don’t want you to miss out so we’d like you to know that if we have a high level of interest in this role, the vacancy may close prior to the advertised closing date, so please make your application as soon as possible - Apply now
You’ve made a great decision to apply to join to HCT - we’re looking forward to taking the next steps of the journey with you.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
Please see Job Description attached, which details the responsibilities within this post.
Successful candidates will need to be enthusiastic and motivated. Good communication, clinical reasoning and organisational skills are essential. You must be a team player but be able to work autonomously and have the ability to champion the needs of your patients.
We pride ourselves on the support we offer within our service. Please see comments made by a member of the team:
“I love working in CYPT/HCT - everyone in the team is super dedicated. There is strong management support, but also space for being flexible and creative to meet children’s needs; innovation & good practice is valued and encouraged. I enjoy & appreciate the robust supervision structures, training in supervision & coaching, and the many opportunities for personal development and learning, including for example in-house training days and tutorials.I have worked in many teams across Hertfordshire, all without exception friendly and welcoming. There is an ethos of peer support and encouragement & sharing learning; everyone works hard but there is a sense of belonging and always time for a quick chat… and plenty of laughs.
I feel valued here and I value my lovely colleagues and the fabulous children & young people we work with.”
If you would like to know more about our service and about this particular role, please do get in touch.
Applicants wanting to work full time or part time will be considered. A full valid driving licence and access to a car to use regularly for business purposes is essential (unless you have a disability as defined by the Equality Act 2010).
In addition to the basic salary, this post attracts a High Cost Area Supplement of 5% of basic salary subject to a minimum payment of £1,258 and a maximum payment of £2,122 per annum pro rata (pro rata where applicable and dependent on base location).
Whilst it is not a legal requirement, Hertfordshire Community NHS Trust encourages and supports all staff to be vaccinated as this remains the best line of defence against COVID-19
Person specification
Qualifications and Training
Essential criteria- Recognised SLT degree qualification or equivalent (Post Graduate Diploma or MSc in Speech and Language Therapy leading to registration with HCPC)
- HCPC Licence to Practice
- Fully Registered member of RCSLT
- Post graduate training in area of work, internal or external
- Member of relevant CEN
Experience and Knowledge
Essential criteria- Well established knowledge of assessments and interventions for client group
- Familiar with policies and procedures relating to Child Protection
- Knowledge of NHS, Education and Social Care policy and directives where these impact on area of specialism or service delivery
- Experience of managing own caseload
Skills and Abilities
Essential criteria- Excellent communication and interpersonal skills with parents, carers and other professionals
- Experience of providing training and support to SLT students, SLTAs, professionals and carers
- Ability to assess, analyse, interpret and compare complex information and make decisions on appropriate course of action
- Work with a wide range of diagnosis groups, including learning disability, physical and neurological impairment
- Highly developed auditory and perceptual skills for specialist assessment, differential diagnosis and treatment of clients
- Ability to act swiftly to react to the needs and actions of all age ranges e.g. challenging behaviours.
- Able to switch between different techniques and models of service delivery within a short time frame.
- Able to contribute specialist knowledge as part of legal proceedings involved in child protection and educational tribunals when required.
Other
Essential criteria- Hold a full, valid, UK driving licence and have access to a car to use for business purposes (unless you have a disability as defined by the Equality Act 2010)