Highly Specialist Speech and Language Therapist

Oxleas NHS Foundation Trust; London; On-site; GBP 51,000 - 59,000; Full time

Job summary

Oxleas NHS Foundation Trust is offering an exciting opportunity for a Highly Specialist Speech and Language Therapist role located in Woolwich. This full-time position involves working across community and inpatient forensic services, providing specialist assessment and interventions for individuals with complex needs and ensuring their reintegration into the community. The ideal applicant will have a recognized degree in Speech and Language Therapy and a minimum of four years’ post-graduate experience, with a strong focus on forensic mental health.

Qualifications

• Minimum of 4 years’ post-graduate experience, 2 in specialist area.
• Experience in Forensics and multi-disciplinary working.
• Knowledge of Dysphagia and ASD/LD.

Responsibilities

• Provide specialist assessment and intervention for individuals with complex communication needs.
• Support service users in the least restrictive environments.
• Contribute to risk assessments, care planning, and discharge preparations.

Skills

Excellent interpersonal skills

In-depth knowledge of specialist clinical area

Education

Recognised Speech and Language Therapy Degree Qualification

Health Professions Council – Licence to Practice

Registered Member of Royal College of Speech and Language Therapist

Completion of Post-Basic Dysphagia Competencies (Level C and above)

Job description

Highly Specialist Speech and Language Therapist

Band 7

Main area Forensic services Grade Band 7 Contract Permanent Hours Full time - 37.5 hours per week Job ref 277-7224031-FOR

Site Memorial Town Woolwich Salary £51,883 - £58,544 pa inc Salary period Yearly Closing 23/06/2025 23:59

Job overview

Exciting Opportunity in Forensic Neurodevelopmental Services

We are pleased to offer an exciting full-time position that spans two closely integrated services: the Oxleas Forensic Intellectual and Neurodevelopmental Disability (FIND) Community Team and the inpatient forensic service at the Bracton Centre. This role is equally divided between the two services, with 18.75 hours per week dedicated to each.

About the FIND Community Team

The Oxleas FIND Team plays a pivotal role in supporting individuals transitioning from inpatient forensic settings back into the community.

The team delivers specialist assessment, treatment, and consultation to support the safe and clinically appropriate reintegration of individuals with complex needs.. The primary aim is to ensure a well-coordinated, person-centred pathway from secure care to community living.

About the Bracton Centre Inpatient Forensic Service

Located in Kent, the Bracton Centre offers a comprehensive range of specialist forensic mental health services for adults aged 18–65. The serviceprovides high-quality, multidisciplinary care to individuals with significant mental health needs within a secure environment.

This dual-service role offers a rich opportunity to contribute to both community-based and inpatient forensic mental health services, while also being part of a forward-thinking partnership driving innovation in mental health care across South London.

Main duties of the job

In this role, the postholder will provide specialist assessment, intervention, and consultation for individuals with intellectual and/or neurodevelopmental disabilities who are involved in the criminal justice system or present with forensic risk. These individuals may present with complex communication needs, co-occurring mental health difficulties, and challenging behaviours that require tailored and collaborative therapeutic input.

The community arm of the role, within the Oxleas FIND team, involves working proactively with multi-disciplinary colleagues to support service users in the least restrictive environments possible, with a focus on risk reduction, communication accessibility, and support for meaningful engagement in community life. The inpatient component at Bracton Centre involves supporting individuals through their rehabilitation and recovery pathways, contributing to risk assessments, care planning, and discharge preparations.

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 Listen
• We Care

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Please see attached Job Description and Person Specification for further detailed information relating to this post

Person specification

Qualifications and Registration

• Recognised Speech and Language Therapy Degree Qualification
• Health Professions Council – Licence to Practice
• Registered Member of Royal College of Speech and Language Therapist
• Completion of Post-Basic Dysphagia Competencies (Level C and above)

Experience

• Minimum of 4 years’ post-graduate experience, 2 of which are within area of specialism.
• Experience in Forensics
• Experience of multi-disciplinary and inter agency working.
• Experience in contributing to policy, planning and service development.
• Experience of providing a range of therapeutic interventions necessary for client group
• Evidence of management skills obtained through experience.
• Experience in ASD/LD
• Experience of Dysphagia

Skills and knowledge

• In-depth knowledge of specialist clinical area
• Understanding of the roles of other professionals and the principles of partnership working with key stakeholders in the service area.
• Excellent interpersonal skills – including observation, listening and empathy skills

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.

We encourage applicants to contact the hiring manager before their interview, if they have any questions about the role or the process. This is a great way to get clarity and prepare effectively for the interview.

Please note that the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) is prohibited during the interview process. We also discourage overuse of AI during the application process because this can negatively impact the quality of your application and may hinder your chances of being shortlisted. Thank you.

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.

Application numbers

This vacancy may close early if it receives a high volume of applications. Please complete and submit your application in good time to avoid disappointment.