Senior Speech & Language Therapy Assistant

Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust; City Of London; On-site; GBP 25,000 - 35,000; Full time

Job summary

An NHS Trust in London is seeking a Senior Speech and Language Therapy Assistant to manage a team and support children with communication needs. The role involves both administrative responsibilities and direct clinical work in schools, providing essential support to children and families. Ideal candidates will have strong organizational skills and experience working with young children. A Level or equivalent qualification is required.

Benefits

Professional development opportunities

Supportive work environment

Qualifications

• Computer literate with experience of administrative tasks.
• Experience working with young children and families.
• Experience using health data systems is desirable.

Responsibilities

• Manage a small team of assistants providing support.
• Coordinate the administration for Central Training.
• Assist SLTs with statistical information and documentation.

Skills

Strong organisational ability

Creative in preparing therapy materials

Excellent communication with children and parents

Good writing skills

Education

A Level standard or equivalent

Tools

Word

Excel

PowerPoint

Job description

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Overview

Job summary

Do you want to be part of a forward thinking, innovative team? Do you want to work for a service that is committed to Equality Diversity and Inclusion and Staff Wellbeing?

The Ealing Speech and Language Therapy department is a friendly, motivated team who strive to provide services of high quality to the diverse population of the London Borough of Ealing.

We have an exciting opportunity for a Senior Speech and Language Therapy Assistant to join our Mainstream Team.

Main duties of the job

Band 4 - Paediatric Senior Speech and Language Therapy Assistant

We are looking for a Senior Speech and Language Therapy Assistant within our Mainstream Schools Team. The successful candidate must have a passion for working with children and families and have excellent communication skills, proven administration and IT skills and be an effective team worker.

• Manage a small team of assistants, providing support and supervision
• Be responsible for timetabling the assistant time into schools
• Manage the day-to-day questions that arise from the SLTA team
• Lead the administrative side of the Schools Buy-in service
• Coordinate the administration for Central Training for schools
• Maintain spreadsheets used to record therapeutic activity and collate data required by commissioners
• General administration duties, e.g. filing, sending out appointment letters, answering phone calls

In addition to this, the post holder will be involved in some direct clinical work which will include:

• Working in schools with children who have speech, language and communication needs
• Supporting Teaching Assistants in schools to run clinical groups and modelling intervention packages
• Creating materials to be used in therapy
• Supporting and being involved in summer groups
• Contributing to audits

About us

We're thrilled that you are thinking of joining us. With the new Elizabeth line, our trust is well-connected to East and Central London and as far out as Reading, making it easier to progress your career with us.

Click on these links to meet the team and get a flavour of the work we do. (Facebook and YouTube references are kept in text form only.)

Our vision: Keeping children and young people's education, health and well-being at the centre of decision making to achieve the best possible outcomes.

We are committed to continual professional development and offer a wide range of CPD opportunities, including shadowing, peer support groups, supervision, journal clubs, specialism groups, and whole department training days. The department is dedicated to inclusive care and anti-racism, with an active equality, diversity and inclusion group. We strive for our team to reflect the communities we serve and to be allies with LGBTQ+ colleagues and families, as well as neurodivergent colleagues and families.

Job description

Job responsibilities

• Develop and maintain data spreadsheets related to schools buy in and SEN services
• Distribute and monitor the return of school contracts and liaise with the contracts team at CNWL
• Assist and support SLTs in day-to-day admin tasks as requested, including:
• Support with System 1 and discharge processes, archiving
• Type reports, minutes of meetings, etc., when required
• Collect and input statistical information as required
• Manage administration under the guidance of Team Leaders, including training (Makaton), Core Service, and communications with Education/health settings and parents
• Admin for Schools buy-in contracts and other related service needs
• Cover duties of absent assistants as directed by Team Leaders
• Monitor stock levels of equipment, maintain small storerooms, and ensure documentation is kept
• Order equipment via eProcurement
• Prepare equipment for individual speech and language programmes as directed by the SLT
• Assist in setting up sessions and recording notes for therapists during clinical 1:1, paired or group sessions
• Ensure patient-related documentation meets professional body standards and partner trust note-keeping standards
• Own CPD responsibilities, attending in-service training days, team meetings, care-group or other clinical meetings
• Maintain up-to-date information governance knowledge and participate in mandatory training
• Support SLTs in placements of SLT Students (induction, co-running groups, feedback)
• Assist and support the Speech & Language Therapy Team in delivering an effective and efficient service
• Contribute to overall management of the service and maintain good communication within the community and with external agencies
• Provide a positive image of the S&LT service and the Trust
• Observe confidentiality and data protection policies and procedures
• Work with SLTs, SLTAs and the Clinical Service leads for Mainstream Schools
• Ensure health and safety of self and clients; comply with organisational policies
• Participate in audit activities and tidy treatment/admin/resource areas
• Carry out other duties as directed by qualified therapists in agreement with the Team Leader

The successful applicant may have contact with patients or service users. As an NHS Trust, vaccination is encouraged and supported as a precaution to protect staff, patients and service users in healthcare settings.

Person Specification

Education/Qualifications

Essential

• A Level standard or equivalent

Knowledge & Experience

Essential

• Computer literate with experience of Word, Excel, PowerPoint
• Experience carrying out administrative tasks effectively and efficiently
• Experience with young children and families

Desirable

• Experience using health data systems (e.g., System 1)
• Previous experience as an SLTA working with children with communication difficulties

Skills, Abilities and Attributes

Essential

• Strong organisational ability
• Ability to prioritise and use initiative
• Creative and neat in preparing therapy materials
• Excellent communication skills with children, parents and school staff
• Good telephone manner and writing skills
• Ability to adapt to different locations and therapists
• Strong computer skills and time management
• Good observational skills and team working ability

Disclosure and Sponsorship

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and requires a disclosure check with the Disclosure and Barring Service. Applications from job seekers requiring current Skilled Worker sponsorship will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information, please refer to the employer’s guidance.

Employer details

Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust

Address: Carmelita House, 21-22 The Mall, Ealing, W5 2PJ

Employer's website: (details as provided by the employer)