Speech and Language Therapist Assistants

Leicestershire County Council; North West Leicestershire; On-site; GBP 26,000 - 29,000; Full time

Job summary

A local educational authority in the UK is seeking an individual to provide support to children with speech and language difficulties. The role involves delivering assessments, training staff, and working collaboratively with educational settings to promote inclusive practices. Ideal candidates will have experience in education and a commitment to diversity. Competitive salary offered with options for flexible working.

Benefits

Unique learning environment

Professional development opportunities

Supportive team

Flexible working options

Qualifications

• Experience working in an educational setting.
• Understanding of, and commitment to, equality, diversity, and inclusion.

Responsibilities

• Deliver screening assessments and provide training to staff.
• Collaborate with agencies for administrative and clinical work.
• Support the smooth running of the team.
• Use effective communication tools with children facing barriers.
• Promote inclusion and ensure staff feel valued.

Skills

Experience supporting children with speech and language difficulties

Excellent communication skills

Familiarity with alternative communication systems

Ability to engage with children and young people

Understanding of developmental trauma

Job description

Organisation: Leicestershire County Council

Work Location: Oakfield Short Stay School South - Belle Vue Rd, Earl Shilton, Leicester LE9 7PA & Oakfield North (Shepshed) Forest Street, Shepshed, Loughborough LE12 9DB

Worker Category: Field Based Worker

Salary: £26,832 - £28,146 Per annum (Pro rata for part time)

Working Hours: 37 hrs Per week (42 weeks per year)

Contract Type: Permanent

Closing Date: 16th November 2025

Interview Date(s): TBC

About the Role

Oakfield Short Stay School is Leicestershire’s provision for school aged children who have been permanently excluded or are at risk of permanent exclusion from school. We have expanded the age range of Oakfield School and as a result we are recruiting staff. Our Secondary Inclusion Partnership staff who did put provisions in place for secondary aged children and young people who have been excluded from school, or who are at risk of this, have recently joined the team. Therefore, you will be part of a vital team in an exciting period of development, working with us to meet the needs of children and young people between the ages of 5 and 16 who struggle to manage in mainstream and need a different offer of education to secure their successful next steps.

Role Overview

You will work collaboratively within a multi-agency Advisory team under the direction of the Head of Therapeutic Inreach and Outreach to provide support to education settings to best meet the needs of children and young people referred to Oakfield. Your role will be crucial in the delivery of high-quality training to professionals and families. Delivering programmes of intervention and group work / support for children at home and in school / Early Years setting, you will provide advice and support under the instruction of qualified Speech and Language Therapists. Many of our young people present with challenging behaviour, and we are looking for someone who can demonstrate strong empathy and ability to intrinsically connect with pupils with complex SEMH needs and lead in delivering a service that enables pupils to receive the therapeutic interventions that they require.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead and Inspire: Deliver screening assessments and provide training and coaching to staff in School settings. This includes training staff on how to carry out screening assessments and deliver targeted interventions. Work closely with teachers, teaching assistants, and other allied health professionals to support implementation. Regularly report on progress and share updates with senior Speech and Language Therapists
• Collaborate with Agencies: To help the team with both administrative, and clinical work, thereby supporting the smooth running of the team.
• Accountability: To use effective communication tools, verbal and non-verbal, to communicate with children who may have barriers to communicating or understanding.
• Promote Inclusion: Demonstrate a commitment to inclusion, ensuring all pupils and staff members feel valued and supported.

What We Offer

• Unique Learning Environment: Experience a diverse and dynamic workplace where every day is different.
• Professional Development: Access opportunities for professional growth and bespoke training.
• Supportive Team: Join a highly skilled and supportive team of practitioners.
• Make a Difference: Play a crucial role in transforming the lives of young people.
• Flexibility: Options for part-time or full-time work to suit your lifestyle.

A DBS enhanced check for a regulated activity is required for this post.

For information on our approach to the recruitment of ex-offenders, please see our policy statement.

About You

To apply for this post, you must:

• Experience supporting children with speech and language difficulties
• Familiarity with alternative communication systems
• Knowledge and understanding of how children/young people make attachments and the impact of developmental trauma on development
• Ability to engage with children, young people, their families and carers and a wide range of partners and professionals
• Excellent communication skills, including understanding the effects of nonverbal communication and the ability to communicate clearly and concisely in the most appropriate way, engage children/young people, their families and carers in situations of high stress and communicate difficult information in a manner which enables it to be heard and understood
• Experience of working in an educational setting.

u must also have an understanding of, and commitment to, equality, diversity and inclusion.

In addition, we also expect you to share our commitment to our values and will ask you to evidence when you have demonstrated them as part of the selection process.

Reasonable adjustments will be considered for applicants with a disability.

Interested in Flexible Working?

We are keen to support employees to balance their working life with other commitments. Therefore, wherever possible, we will consider working arrangements that suit an individual's personal circumstances whilst still meeting the needs of the Council. If you would like to discuss the possible flexible working options that might be applicable to this role, please contact the person named below. This may include requests for term-time working, part-time hours, compressed hours, flexible start and finish times, home/remote working, etc.

Every role within the Council has a defined working style which determines where they can work. The worker category applicable to this post is detailed in the above advert. You can find out more about our worker categories in the Our Working Styles page on our career site.

For more information or an informal discussion,

Vicky Edwards

Telephone: [phone]

Email: [e-mail]

How to Apply

Leicestershire County Council is an inclusive organisation which is on a journey to embed and celebrate equality, diversity and inclusion at every level. We warmly welcome and encourage applications from people of all backgrounds, as having a diverse workforce with different perspectives and ideas is fundamental to our values and enriches the services we offer our communities. We particularly welcome applicants from Ethnically Diverse and LGBTQ+ communities and people with disabilities to create a balanced workforce and one that reflects the communities we serve. Applicants with a disability who meet the criteria listed in the 'About You' section above will be offered an interview under the Disability Confident Employer Scheme.

To apply for this job, please click on the apply button. You will need to upload a supporting statement as part of your application which explains how you meet the criteria listed in the 'About You' section above. For more information, see the How to Apply section on our career site.

We reserve the right to close this vacancy early if we receive sufficient applications for the role. Therefore, if you are interested, please submit your application as early as possible.

If you have any technical issues when trying to apply for this post or you want to request an application pack in an alternative format, please contact our Employee Service Centre by telephoning 0300 3030222 (select option 2) or raising a ticket via our online portal: https://emss.org.uk/support.

By applying for this post, you agree to our Terms and Conditions.