Specialist Speech and Language Therapist

North East London NHS; Barking; On-site; GBP 37,000 - 45,000; Full time

Job summary

Join a forward-thinking healthcare provider as a Paediatric Specialist Speech & Language Therapist. This role offers the chance to work within a supportive team, focusing on enhancing communication for children with complex needs. With a commitment to professional development and a strong culture of equality and diversity, you’ll be part of a dynamic environment that values your contributions. The position includes flexible working opportunities, ensuring a balance between your professional and personal life. If you’re passionate about making a difference in children's lives, this is an exciting opportunity to grow and thrive in your career.

Benefits

Flexible working

Compressed hours

Employee assistance programme

Health and wellbeing support

Qualifications

• Degree in Speech and Language Therapy required.
• Competency in Dysphagia Level A is essential.

Responsibilities

• Provide Speech and Language Therapy clinical care pathways.
• Develop evidence-based intervention programs tailored to client needs.
• Mentor colleagues and support multidisciplinary team working.

Skills

Excellent written and verbal presentation skills

Education

Degree in Speech and Language Therapy

Dysphagia competency Level A

Job description

Full time

Flexible working

Compressed hours

Job ref395-BD024-25EmployerNELFT NHS Foundation TrustEmployer typeNHSSiteChild and Family CentreTownBarkingSalary£37,338 - £44,962 plus HCAS per annumSalary periodYearlyClosing10/04/2025 23:59

Employer heading

NHS AfC: Band 6

Joining #TeamNELFT means you’ll become part of a welcoming and supportive working environment. We’re CQC rated Good, and we want you to join us on the journey towards an Outstanding rating. NELFT has sites across North East London, Essex, Kent and Medway. We provide community and mental healthcare services to adults and children within these areas.

The Trust has award-winning equality and diversity initiatives and staff health and wellbeing activities. We invest heavily in your development because when you are valued and supported, we provide the best care to our patients. We are a Level 3 Disability Confident Leader, have been featured in the Working Families Top 10 Employers benchmark for three consecutive years, and we have achieved a Carers UK Level 1 Accreditation. Along with our staff networks and training opportunities, we work hard to embed a just and compassionate culture here at NELFT.

Find out more about NELFT careers and what makes our Trust a great place to work, in this video

Job overview

Due to a promotion, we have a vacancy for a Paediatric Specialist Speech & Language Therapist in Barking and Dagenham at NELFT. This is an exciting opportunity to join a well-established, supportive, and experienced Speech & Language Therapy team that can develop your skills and interests. We are looking for enthusiastic and motivated individuals to be part of our team and contribute to the future of our service. We currently have opportunities to work with the following client groups:

Autistic children and young people

Children and young people with Complex Needs and Dysphagia

Main duties of the job

To contribute to the provision of Speech and Language Therapy clinical care pathways across Barking and Dagenham.

To independently organise, plan, and prioritise your workload, and that of more junior and assistant staff.

To deliver comprehensive formal and informal assessment as appropriate and make differential diagnoses based on assessment findings.

To develop evidence-based intervention programmes, adapt, and facilitate therapy according to client-centred needs.

To provide specialist knowledge, advice, training, and teaching to parents, carers, students, and the Speech and Language Therapy team.

To work closely with clients, carers, families, and school staff to embed inclusive speech, language, and communication practices across settings.

To provide mentoring of colleagues and peer support.

To contribute to multidisciplinary team working to ensure coordinated service provision.

To attend relevant training courses, meetings, and special interest groups related to your specialism to maintain skills and knowledge required of a Speech and Language Therapist working in paediatrics.

Working for our organisation

Starting with NELFT

Probationary Period

High Cost Area Supplement - London

This post attracts a payment for High Cost Area Supplement of 15% of the basic salary (minimum payment of £4,551 and a maximum payment of £5,735 per annum pro rata).

Certificates of Sponsorship

Although we are a registered sponsor organisation, we are unable to offer sponsorship for all roles. Please check your eligibility under the UKVI points-based system.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Please see the attached job description for further information on this vacancy.

Use of AI

Applications for this role should be written by the applicant. If artificial intelligence (AI) programmes are used, the application may be rejected due to this document being an important part of the assessment process. This does not prevent applicants seeking appropriate support with applications should they need to for the purposes of any declared disability.

Person specification

Qualifications

Degree in Speech and Language Therapy

Dysphagia competency Level A

Desirable criteria

Dysphagia competency Level B

Experience

Experience working with children with complex needs

Experience administering communication assessments

Experience delivering evidence-based therapy and intervention

Desirable criteria

Previous NHS experience

Skills

Excellent written and verbal presentation skills

Desirable criteria

ADOS-2 trained

Knowledge

Knowledge of NELFT Trust Values

Benefits

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 efforts to support 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 you can work in a way that is best for us, our patients, and for you. Speak to us about how we might accommodate a flexible working arrangement, whether that’s a job share, part-time hours, or another flexible pattern.

Supporting our Armed Forces

We recognise the valuable contribution that the Armed Forces community makes 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 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 pledged to employ more people with disabilities. If you require this application in another format (e.g., Braille or audio tape), please contact the recruitment team at 0300 300 1530 or email [email protected].

Correspondence with us

You are advised to regularly check your emails (including junk/spam folders) for correspondence related to this post.

As part of our recruitment process, we may need to share your information with NHS Counter Fraud Authority (NHSCFA) and other organisations for fraud prevention, detection, investigation, and prosecution. We also use third-party providers to verify your qualifications who may contact you to verify the same.

Employer certification / accreditation badges

Applicant requirements

You must have appropriate UK professional registration.

This role is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) Order 2020, and a Disclosure will be necessary via the Disclosure and Barring Service.