Specialist Speech and Language Therapist-Schools

In this post you will be an autonomous practitioner providing a Specialist Speech and Language Therapy Service to a designated caseload of children requiring early intervention as well as children with a range of speech, language and communication and eating/drinking difficulties and Special Educational Needs (SEN).
This post is within the schools Speech and Language therapy team. The post holder will be an autonomous practitioner providing a specialist speech and language therapy service to a designated caseload of children and young people (CYP) with a range of speech, language and communication needs (SLCN) attending mainstream primary and secondary schools. This will include CYP with severe language disorders and complex communication difficulties. A significant proportion of these children will have English as an additional language (EAL). He/she will be expected to manage their own caseload, travelling between schools and working along side teaching staff to ensure specialist therapy programmes and education plans are in place for the children under their care. He/she will be expected to work collaboratively with children/young people (CYP), parents/ carers and with colleagues in Health, Education and Social Services., Providing a specialist speech and language therapy service to a designated caseload of children attending mainstream schools. A significant proportion of these children will be bilingual. He/she will be expected to manage their own caseload, travel between schools and clinics and work alongside health and education staff to ensure specialist therapy programmes and education plans are in place for the children under their care.
He/she will be expected to work collaboratively with children/young people (CYP), parents/ carers and with colleagues in Health, Education and Social Services in planning and delivery of services.

Working for our organisation
We are:
+ A large supportive, sociable and friendly MDT team of 60+therapists
+ Committed to the well-being of our staff
+ Easily accessible via public transport from central London and neighbouring counties
We can provide:
+ Flexible working
+ Time to ensure access to regular and ongoing CPD
+ Opportunities for shadowing in a range of settings
+ Clearly structured caseloads and prioritisation system
+ Highly structured induction
+ Access to clinical specialists in all areas
In joining you will receive:
+ Regular and ongoing developing therapist training as well as peer supervision
+ A consistent caseload to see through assessment, ongoing therapy and up to discharge
+ Opportunities to take a lead in projects and working groups linked to specialist areas of interest
You will be joining and welcomed into a diverse therapy team who actively promote and advocate for equality and diversity.
The successful applicant may have contact with patients or service users. As an NHS Trust we strongly encourage and support vaccination as this remains the best way to protect yourself, your family, your colleagues and of course patients and service users when working on our healthcare settings., + To communicate complex patient related information effectively to ensure collaborative working with multidisciplinary team members across health, education and social services and the voluntary sector. In particular to work with teaching staff to ensure the delivery of a well-coordinated care/ individual education plan which facilitates the development of speech, language and communication skills.
+ To work collaboratively with the school staff in designated schools to support access to and differentiation of the Foundation Stage and National Curriculum for children/young people (CYP) with SLCN and SEN
+ To share information with others, observing confidentiality and data protection guidelines and having due regard for local guidance on sharing information with colleagues in education, social services and voluntary sector.
+ To communicate complex condition related information (both verbally and in the written form) from assessment to CYP, Parents/carers, and members of the multi-disciplinary team/other professions. This includes child specific information as well as training packages to parents, teachers and other professionals around the management of speech, language, communication and eating /drinking difficulties.
+ To have due regard for the cultural and linguistic differences of children/families concerned
+ To work closely with CYP, carers and families, involving them in decision making regarding intervention approaches demonstrating and ensuring that effective communication is achieved, particularly where barriers to understanding exist (i.e. hearing loss, communication difficulties, English as an additional language and learning difficulties).
+ To employ excellent communication skills such as persuasion, motivation and explanations to encourage/reassure clients and carers to undertake treatment programmes.
+ To demonstrate negotiation skills in the management of conflict across a range of situations
+ To deal with initial complaints sensitively, avoiding escalation where possible and report to senior staff.
+ To form productive relationships with others in particular parents/carers who may be under stress and/or have challenging communication difficulties.
+ To provide specialist clinical reports as per departmental standards, including reports for Annual Review meetings and EHCP's .
+ To provide written advice for statutory assessment of special educational needs describing the impact of speech, language and communication difficulties within the child's learning environment.
CNWL (Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust) has almost 8,000 staff providing integrated healthcare to a third of London's population, Milton Keynes and areas beyond. We involve service users, carers, the public, staff and partner organisations in the way that we are run.
Our catchment area spans diverse communities, with over 100 first languages spoken. It contains areas of great affluence as well as areas of much deprivation. We are committed to providing services that meet the needs of the people who use them, and we actively encourage involvement from local people who can help make a difference. We're proud of our diversity and we continue to undertake new initiatives to advance equality for LGBT+, BME and people with disabilities to promote good relations and understanding between our staff.
We are recognised locally, nationally and internationally for providing high quality, innovative healthcare. We aim to employ only the best people, and our experts are frequently called upon to contribute to national health strategy and policy, and many models of our care have been adapted for use in other countries.

We offer a generous relocation package (subject to eligibility assessment) and flexible working options, including bank assignments for most roles. See attached Staff Reward and Wellbeing Handbook detailing our benefits, discounts and wellbeing initiatives for staff.
Become part of our team. We care for you as much as you care for others.
CNWL NHS Foundation Trust are committed to safeguarding all children and vulnerable adults and expect all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. We follow safe recruitment practices to protect children and vulnerable adults.
Due to the high response levels we receive for some vacancies, we may expire any of them prior to the advertised closing date and advise you to submit your application as soon as possible.
Our Agenda for Change employment contracts are subject to a contractual 13 week probationary period.
If you are offered a job, information will be transferred into the national NHS Electronic Staff Records system.