Employer NELFT NHS Foundation Trust Employer type NHS Site Goodmayes Hospital Town Ilford Salary £47,810 - £54,710 pa (plus HCAS) pro rata Salary period Yearly Closing 21/11/2025 23:59
Speech and Language Therapist
NHS AfC: Band 7
Job overview
As a Band 7 Speech and Language Therapist in the Intensive Support Team, you will play a key role in providing specialized speech and language therapy services to individuals with learning disabilities and or autism who are experiencing crisis situations. Your primary responsibility will be to deliver intensive community-based support, aiming to prevent unnecessary hospital admissions and facilitate the individual's well‑being and recovery within their familiar environment.
Conduct comprehensive assessments of individuals' communication abilities, including speech, language, and social communication skills. This involves gathering relevant information, such as case history, previous assessments, medical records, and input from other professionals and individuals' families or caregivers.
Utilize standardized assessment tools and clinical observations to identify specific areas of difficulty and provide accurate diagnosis. The postholder is expected to be able to select and administer appropriate assessments based on the individual's age, developmental stage, and specific communication concerns.
Main duties of the job
* Assessing Swallowing and Feeding Skills: In some cases, the post holder will also assess swallowing and feeding abilities. This involves evaluating an individual's oral motor skills, swallowing coordination, and safety during eating and drinking. Various clinical tools, observations, and, if necessary, instrumental assessments like video fluoroscopy may be used. The postholder will be expected to train and develop in assessment competencies should this be required for effective service delivery.
* Providing Diagnostic Reports: The postholder will be responsible for documenting and communicating and swallowing assessment results in clear and concise diagnostic reports. These reports outline the individual's communication and swallowing strengths, areas of difficulty, diagnosis or classification, and recommendations for intervention or further assessment as needed.
* Collaborating and Sharing Findings: The postholder will collaborate with other professionals involved in the individual's care, such as GPs, Consultants, nurses, psychologists, educators, or occupational therapists - sharing assessment findings and contributing to multidisciplinary discussions to ensure a comprehensive understanding of the individual's needs and facilitate appropriate intervention planning, initiating referrals as required.
Working for our organisation
Our Values 2025 - 2030
Working with our colleagues, patients and carers we have co‑produced three new values that we aim to embed within our culture here at NELFT.
They are:
* We are kind.
* We are respectful.
* We work together with our communities.
These three values help us to strive to provide the best care by the best people.
Probationary Period
This post will be subject to a probationary period.
Starting with Us
NELFT places great importance on new starters being properly welcomed into the Trust. All new starters will join the Trust on the first Monday of each month and undertake a comprehensive induction of up to two weeks, including mandatory training, systems training and the allocation of equipment. As part of the process, new starters will also have the opportunity to meet the executive team, senior managers, and attend several drop‑in sessions focusing on engagement, health and wellbeing, and key processes. The induction will be held at our head office in Rainham, Essex.
High Cost Area Supplement - Outer London
This post also attracts payment for High Cost Area Supplement of 15% of the basic salary (with a minimum of £4,714 to a maximum of £5,941 p.a. pro rata for part time).
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
* Ensuring Ethical and Cultural Considerations: Throughout the assessment process, the postholder will adhere to professional ethics and consider cultural factors that may influence an individual's communication. The postholder is expected to respect individuals' rights, maintain confidentiality, and ensure assessments are culturally sensitive and appropriate for diverse populations.
Please see the attached job description and person specification for more information about this role and working at North East London NHS Foundation Trust. We encourage you to refer to this when completing your application.
We welcome your application even if you do not meet all the criteria listed in the person specification. Please apply as soon as possible as some posts close early to limit the number of applications.
Person specification
Qualifications
* NVQ level 2 or equivalent standard of literacy and numeracy
* Recognised Speech and Language Therapy degree qualification or equivalent
* Registration with the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC)
* Evidence of successful completion of relevant specialist Post Graduate courses e.g. Management of Dysphagia
* Demonstrate full adherence to nationally agreed competencies and experience in assessment and management of Dysphagia
Experience
* An ability to communicate difficult information with sensitivity, empathy and reassurance.
* Experience in the usage of a range of AAC and communication approaches including visual and non‑verbal systems
* Experience of providing training and/or making presentations to other professionals
* Experience of working with adults with Learning Disabilities including a wide range of complex communication needs and Dysphagia since qualification.
* Ability to assess and manage crisis situations, employing appropriate therapeutic techniques and behavioural management strategies.
* Strong collaboration and communication skills to work effectively within a multidisciplinary team and engage with individuals, families, and support networks.
Knowledge
* Knowledge of learning disability populations including autism presentations, inpatient/acute SLT and of evidence based SLT treatments
* Knowledge of Safeguarding Adults procedures and processes
* An awareness of NHS Plan, NSF and clinical governance priorities
* Knowledge of national policies and procedures relevant to the specialist client group
* Familiarity with NELFT services and borough‑specific pathways
* Knowledge of person‑centred care principles and the ability to develop and implement individualized care plans.
We believe in bringing your authentic and best self to work, in order to deliver the best care to our patients. We are committed to supporting our employees holistically. Here is a snapshot of what is on offer at NELFT:
* A long‑standing and award‑winning approach to equality and diversity with supportive networks for ethnic minority staff, staff with disabilities or long‑term/chronic conditions and LGBT staff.
* A commitment to supporting colleagues to achieve a work‑life balance, through flexible working opportunities and our effortsto support our working parents and carers. This has resulted in us being recognised as a ‘Top 10 Family Friendly Employer’ from the Working Families Charity.
* Proactive health and wellbeing support, including access to our employee assistance programme, staff psychological support, individual wellbeing conversations and a network of health and wellbeing ambassadors.
* Detailed information about our wellbeing and benefits offer can be found in this link .
As a flexible working friendly organisation, we want to be sure that you can work in a way that is best for us and for our patients, and for you. Speak to us about how we might be able to accommodate a flexible working arrangement whether that’s a job share, part time hours or another flexible pattern.
We recognise the valuable contribution that the Armed Forces community make to our organisation. We have signed the Armed Forces Covenant and achieved Gold Award under the Armed Forces Employer Recognition Scheme. We have supportive policies, guaranteed interview schemes for veterans. reservists and military spouses and give additional leave to our Reservists so that they can attend their annual camp.
Equal opportunities employer
We are committed to equal opportunities and diversity and positively encourage applications from all sections of the community regardless of any protected characteristic.
We are a Disability Confident employer and have made the pledge to commit to employing more people with disabilities. If you require this application in another format i.e. Braille or audio tape please contact the recruitment team on 0300 300 1530 or email recruitment@nelft.nhs.uk.
Correspondence with us
You are advised to regularly check your emails (including any junk mail/spam folders) for correspondence related to this post.
As part of our recruitment process, we may be required to share information you provide on the application form with NHS Counter Fraud Authority (NHSCFA) and/or other organisations for the purpose of the prevention, detection, investigation and prosecution of fraud or any other unlawful activity affecting the NHS. We also use third party providers to check and verify your qualifications who may be contacting you on our behalf to verify the same.
Employer certification / accreditation badges
You must have appropriate UK professional registration.
This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service.
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