Specialist Speech and Language TherapistNHS

Job summary

re you an enthusiastic Band 6 Specialist Speech and Language Therapist (SLT) who is passionate about helping children and young people achieve their potential?

As part of the exciting new Experts at Hand initiative, we are looking for 2 wte Band 6 Speech and Language Therapists to work across Warrington and Halton.

You'll have the opportunity to make a real difference through delivering whole-school training and targeted interventions, modelling effective approaches and working collaboratively with education staff to create communication-friendly environments. A key part of the role will be building the confidence and skills of school staff to support children and young people with speech, language and communication needs within their everyday environments.

In our team, you'll benefit from a supportive team culture. We are proud of our approachable and experienced leadership team, who prioritise staff wellbeing, work-life balance and professional growth. We offer agile working, high-quality clinical supervision and excellent development opportunities.

If you're motivated, innovative and excited by the opportunity to help shape a new initiative, develop your skills and influence practice at a whole-school level, we'd love to welcome you to our team.

Main duties of the job

As a Band 6 Specialist Speech and Language Therapist within the innovative Experts at Hand service, you will play a key role in helping schools develop the knowledge, skills and confidence to support children and young people with speech, language and communication needs.

You will build the knowledge, skills and confidence of education staff through the delivery of engaging whole-school training, as well as training education staff to deliver targeted and evidence-based group interventions.

You will provide drop-in sessions within schools, helping staff to identify needs early, consider appropriate next steps and navigate referral pathways, ensuring children receive support from the most appropriate service at a universal, targeted or specialist level. Working collaboratively with education staff, you will promote communication-friendly approaches, embed practical strategies into everyday practice and contribute to the development of sustainable support within schools.

You will also provide clinical supervision, support and guidance to Band 5 colleagues working within the service, helping to ensure high-quality, evidence-based practice. In addition, you will support the evaluation of the service by measuring outcomes, monitoring impact and demonstrating how the Experts at Hand model is improving confidence, practice and outcomes for children and young people.

Job description

Job Purpose:

The Speech and Language Therapist within Experts at Hand provides early, preventative and responsive support that strengthens inclusion, builds staff skills within educational settings, and helps children and young people participate fully in learning and school life. The role combines direct therapeutic expertise with coaching, consultation, and workforce development to achieve sustainable outcomes across whole educational communities

This role will also involve some work within the core SLT service to provide assessment, diagnosis and treatment of children with communication disorders, including those with special needs in community settings, mainstream schools and special schools.

Duties and Responsibilities

Clinical Skills

To assess and diagnose children with communication disorders, including those

with special needs. Will be required to take a lead role in the day to day running of a community caseload and/or mainstream school/special school caseload

To develop and implement Speech and Language Therapy programmes for school staff to implement and to evaluate outcomes

To take clinical responsibility for a varied paediatric caseload of differing complexities and to organise this effectively with regard to clinical priorities and use of time.

To ensure that clients are involved in the planning and prioritisation of their treatment plans wherever possible.

To provide advice and coaching to others regarding the management and care of clients with communication difficulties

To demonstrate clinical effectiveness by use of evidence based practice and outcome measures

To produce reports regarding clients needs and summarising proposed treatment plans

To contribute to legal documents such as Education Health & Care Plans, Individual Education Plans and Annual Reviews

To adapt practice to meet individual clients circumstances, including due regard for cultural and linguistic differences

To maintain up to date and accurate case notes in line with RCSLT professional standards and local trust policies

To share information with clients, carers and other professionals, observing data protection guidelines

To contribute to multi and uni-disciplinary teams to ensure a client focused approach to treatment

To communicate complex information from assessment and treatment to clients, carers and other professionals

To communicate effectively with the child or young person and their carers to maximise treatment potential and ensure understanding of their condition. Addressing physical, psychological and emotional barriers to effective communication will be regularly required.

To work closely with clients, carers and other professionals to negotiate and agree client management

To demonstrate empathy with clients, carers and colleagues, ensuring that effective communication is achieved, particularly where significant barriers to understanding exist

To respond sensitively at all times particularly when imparting potentially distressing information regarding the nature of the clinical difficulties and their implications

To demonstrate skills in motivating clients, carers and other professionals to engage in the therapeutic process

To demonstrate negotiation skills in the management of conflict across a range of situations

To deal with initial complaints sensitively, avoiding escalation where possible, in line with North Cheshire and Mersey (NCM) Trust policy

To foster productive relationships with others who have challenging communication difficulties and may be under stress

To employ excellent communication skills

To identify appropriate strategies to facilitate and enhance the effectiveness of communication, both verbal, non- verbal and environmental

To assess and advise on optimising the clients communicative environment, taking into consideration the communication skills of carers and other professionals

To assess the capacity of the child or young person to give valid, informed consent. To be able to work within a legal framework with children and parents for consent to treatment.

Please see Full Job Description attached.

About us

Flexible working will be considered for all roles.

North Cheshire and Mersey NHS Foundation Trust (NCM) serves more than one million residents across the Halton and Warrington boroughs and the wider North West region.

Bringing together community and out-of-hospital services (formerly provided by Bridgewater Community Healthcare) with inpatient and elective care (formerly Warrington and Halton Teaching Hospitals) we provide services at two hospital sites and more than 70 community hubs and facilities.

Our mission, vision and values are at the heart of North Cheshire and Mersey NHS Foundation Trust (NCM).

They underpin everything we do and everything we aspire to be as an organisation.

Our mission

We will be exceptional for our patients, our communities and each other

Our vision

We will be a great organisation providing excellent healthcare and opportunities to work and learn

Our values

• Kind: We are caring, supportive and respectful to everyone
• Open: We are honest, transparent and open to new ways of working
• Fair: We listen, value our differences and are inclusive to all
• One team: We work well together and with our communities