Speech and Language Therapy Assistant

Come and join our friendly team in Greenwich, working with children attending Special Schools with speech, language and communication needs (SLCN) associated with Learning Difficulties, Developmental Language Disorder, complex medical needs and social communication difficulties including Autism.
We are a well-established team of Speech and Language Therapists and Assistants that can offer fantastic support and opportunities to develop your career. We are looking for an enthusiastic and motivated individual with experience and interest in working with school aged children and young people with SLCN.
The Greenwich Children's Speech and Language Therapy Special School Service offers a range of services including to all primary and secondary Special schools within Greenwich. We have a broad range of specialisms within the team such as: Autism, Deafness, Developmental Language Disorder, Dysfluency and SEMH. We work closely across Early Years and Mainstream School teams to provide clinical support. The Speech and Language Therapy Service is part of the wider Greenwich Children's Integrated Therapies Service and work alongside Occupational Therapists and Physiotherapists.
We have a robust CPD offer in-line with Health Education England's 'AHP Support Worker Competency, Education and Career Development Framework'. This includes training, shadowing, peers support groups., + To provide support and assistance to therapists working with children in the Royal Borough of Greenwich
+ To carry out specific therapy and communication intervention programmes with children and young people with speech, language, communication needs (SLCN), Learning Difficulties, complex medical needs.
+ To support students as they learn to use personalised Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) systems including power based and paper based systems
+ To support Teachers, Learning Support Assistants and Parents/carers to enable children to fulfil their developmental potential
+ To travel to and work across a number of different sites within a week
+ To deliver training to parent/carers and other professionals
+ To assist with administration duties as required including electronic case records, paper records, typing reports, therapy programmes, preparing and making therapy resources, photocopying, sending appointments, filing and data collection, + To implement individual and group interventions as recommended by the Speech and Language Therapists, making modifications using own initiative as necessary to suit child's needs and environment
+ To decide on appropriate activities to meet the aims of individual or group interventions. To modify and use supports as necessary for the child or group.
+ To work independently giving advice about therapy programmes to parents and education staff
+ To record activity within sessions in case notes, written and electronic.
+ To provide advice to others regarding the intervention plan of children with developmental difficulties, within your boundaries of competence
+ To contribute to discussion about the effectiveness of provision by using outcome measures
+ To contribute to reports and programme planning taking into account child strengths and needs
+ To adapt practice to meet individual child and education circumstances, including due regard for cultural and linguistic differences and mode of communication including signs and symbols
+ To ensure that child and/or their families views are communicated to the therapist /Advisory teacher for consideration in future management plans
+ To participate in intensive therapy courses as required
Policy/service development/implementation
+ To be aware of and adhere to service and team plans and policies
+ To comment on proposed service/policy developments as appropriate
+ To attend Team meetings and any relevant meetings as directed by supervising therapist/advisory teacher
Financial and physical resources
+ To monitor stock levels in own service area and discuss with the Therapists requests for new equipment as appropriate
+ To be responsible for the security, care and maintenance of equipment ensuring standards of infection control and safety are maintained - including equipment loaned to clients
+ To make resources to support intervention for individual children and settings they attend
Human resources
+ To guide the work of less experienced Assistants working with clients with therapeutic needs on a day to day basis through demonstration of activities, observation, advice/support and training as appropriate
+ To participate in student placements for Therapists and other professions as appropriate
+ To explain the role of Therapy Assistants to visitors, students and volunteers
+ To participate in the induction of new Paediatric Therapists and Assistants
Information resources
+ To contribute to up to date and accurate case notes in line with professional standards and local trust policies
+ To observe data protection guidelines in sharing information with others
+ To gather activity data accurately and regularly, ensuring the provision of such information promptly within local Trust guidelines as requested
Research and development
+ To participate in departmental research and clinical governance/audit projects
+ To collect and provide research data as required
Freedom to act
+ To work within a management plan guided by a Therapist/Advisory teacher making modifications using own initiative to suit client's needs and circumstances
+ To work within defined departmental and national protocols/policies and professional code of conduct
+ To work under the supervision of a Therapist accessing appraisal within a Personal and Professional Development Review Framework at pre-determined intervals
Communication and relationship skills
+ To contribute to multi disciplinary and uni disciplinary teams by discussing own input around clients needs
+ To communicate communication related information to clients, carers, families and members of the multi-disciplinary team/other professions through the implementation of a management plan devised by a Therapist
+ To work with other professionals within health, education and the voluntary sector contributing to the National and Local objectives
+ To work closely with clients, carers/families and other professionals, contributing to decision making/target setting relevant to the patient/client management
+ To attend case conferences/discussions/educational reviews and other multi-disciplinary meetings to provide information related to the implementation of the management plan devised by a Therapist/Advisory teacher
+ To demonstrate empathy with clients, carers and families and colleagues, ensuring that effective communication is achieved, particularly where barriers to understanding exist using a range of augmentative communication eg signs and, symbols as appropriate
+ To develop skills in motivating clients and /or carers to engage in the therapeutic and developmental process
+ To develop negotiation skills in the management of conflict across a range of situations
+ To deal with complaints following the Trust's Complaints Process passing onto a Therapist
+ To form productive relationships with others who may be under stress and/or have challenging communication difficulties
+ To attend staff meetings, team meetings and other meetings within the Therapy Services/other teams as appropriate
+ To employ excellent communication skills
Knowledge, training and experience
+ To demonstrate an understanding of child development and apply to daily care of children
+ To demonstrate/develop knowledge of specific therapeutic techniques and develop skills to assist/carry out these techniques under the supervision of a therapist/Advisory teacher
+ To identify personal/professional development evidenced by Personal Development Plan developed within an appraisal framework
+ To attend relevant training and development in order to maintain skills and knowledge required of a Therapy Assistant working in the field of children with speech, language and communication needs
+ To participate in the development and delivery of training (formal and informal) to others with support from the Therapist
+ To keep up to date with new techniques and developments for the promotion and maintenance of good practice in the field of children with disabilities and additional needs
+ To attend relevant courses and meetings
+ To develop a working knowledge of relevant procedures including: Safeguarding Children, Special Educational Needs procedures
Analytical and judgmental skills
+ To develop the ability to reflect on relevant aspects of the child's development and to identify appropriate strategies to facilitate and enhance functional effectiveness using support from a Therapist as appropriate
+ To recognise potential breakdown and conflict when it occurs and take steps to resolve it, seeking advice from a Therapist when necessary.
+ To contribute to the development of clear care/management plans based on best practice
+ To demonstrate the ability to reflect on practice with peers/clinical supervisor
+ To contribute to the evaluation of training provided
Planning and organisational skills
+ To arrange appointments in order to maintain an effective service
+ To plan activities to meet the aims of the management plan devised by the Therapist making modifications using own initiative as appropriate
Physical skills
+ To demonstrate auditory, perceptual and physical skills related to individual client intervention making modifications using own initiative as appropriate
Physical effort
+ To have due regard for your own personal safety and that of children/carers, in particular to have regard to moving and handling regulations, restraining policies and ensure the safe positioning of self and others
Mental effort
+ To maintain concentration in all aspects of patient intervention for prolonged periods. In particular, to monitor auditory, visual and kinaesthetic aspects of client's development, adapting and facilitating according to perceived client needs including cultural and linguistic differences.
+ To be flexible to the demands of the environment including unpredictable work patterns and frequent interruptions
Emotional effort
+ To maintain sensitivity at all times to the emotional needs of the client and their carers in particular when discussing distressing information regarding the nature of the client's difficulties and implications of the same
+ To develop the ability to manage children with challenging behaviours including the application of appropriate management strategies
Working conditions
+ To work within infection control and health and safety guidelines in order to deal appropriately with unpleasant conditions related to client contact as they arise: for example exposure to body fluids, infectious conditions, encountered on a regular basis
+ To develop appropriate strategies to manage aggressive behaviour within the workplace
We are committed to creating an inclusive workplace that welcomes and supports individuals of all abilities. Remember, if you meet the minimum criteria for this role and you have a disability, you can be guaranteed an interview under the Disability Confident Scheme - Please ensure you select this on your application form. We would encourage you to be open about your needs so we can work with you to design a comfortable and accessible interview experience. Any information you provide regarding a disability or a need for adjustments will be treated in confidence and will only be shared with colleagues who are supporting this request.
If you require any adjustments to participate fully in the interview process, please let us know by adding the relevant details when scheduling your preferred interview date and time. Please feel free to contact the appointing manager to discuss your needs.

Working for our organisation
Oxleas offers a wide range of NHS healthcare services to people in community and secure environment settings. Our services include community health care such as district nursing and speech and language therapy, care for people with learning disabilities and mental health care such as psychiatry, nursing and therapies. Our multidisciplinary teams look after people of all ages and we work in close partnership with other parts of the NHS, local councils and the voluntary sector and through our new provider collaboratives. Our 4,300 members of staff work in many different settings including hospitals, clinics, prisons, secure hospitals, children's centres, schools and people's homes.
We have over 125 sites in a variety of locations in the South of England. In London we operate within the Boroughs of Bexley, Bromley Greenwich and into Kent. We manage hospital sites including Queen Mary's Hospital, Sidcup and Memorial Hospital, Woolwich, as well as the Bracton Centre, our medium secure unit for people with mental health needs. We are the largest NHS provider of prison health services providing healthcare to prisons within Devon, Dorset, Bristol, Wiltshire and Gloucestershire, Kent and South London. We are proud of the care we provide and our people.
Our purpose is to improve lives by providing the best possible care to our patients and their families. This is strengthened by our new values:
+ We're Kind
+ We're Fair
+ We Listen
+ We Care