Speech and Language Therapy Assistant - Band 3/4

Job overview

We have an exciting 30 hour per week role for a friendly and confident individual to join our Paediatric Community SLT service as a Speech & Language Therapy Assistant (SaLTAs) Band 3/Band 4 depending on experience. In this role you will deliver therapy packages to preschool children in clinics and early years settings in Bury St Edmunds and surrounding locations. School settings may also be included. You will have excellent communication skills and experience of working with children including those with additional needs. You will be confident to work with therapy partners e.g. parents and carers and have a special interest in supporting communication skills.

Excellent organisational skills, being child friendly and working independently under instruction are key. Confident IT skills are needed for daily electronic record keeping, online learning, delivering our online training offer and to communicate with service users and colleagues.

Training and supervision are provided. Undertaking the NHS Care Certificate is a requirement of all assistant roles.

Based in West Suffolk, an ability to travel during the working day is essential. (Band 4 available for candidates with previous relevant SaLTA experience).

Please indicate if you are applying for a Band 3 or 4 role in your application. Interviews scheduled for 2nd July.

Main duties of the job

You will

• Deliver therapy packages to children and young people with speech, language and communication needs with the guidance and support of a speech and language therapist
• Be able to work independently as well as in a team
• Communicate therapy outcomes / next steps to relevant therapy partners and the therapy supervisor
• Communicate sensitive information to parents and carers, demonstrating an empathic approach.
• Recognise the boundaries of the role and your own experience and seek support and guidance from others where required.
• Organise therapy appointments.
• Assist with delivering training both face to face and virtually
• Offer support to the wider team as required by making resources for therapy sessions, organising toys and resources in bases, booking therapy groups and training sessions, gathering information and assisting in home visits
• Use SystmOne for daily record keeping (all clinical sessions and correspondence recorded)
• Use Outlook, Word, Teams to keep in touch with service users and colleagues, participate in training and to communicate within the team.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Please see the full job description for more information

The primary purpose of this role is to deliver speech, language and communication therapy programmes, devised by speech and language therapists, to individual or groups of children and young people (CYP). Supporting and training others (parents/carers, educational staff and less experienced colleagues) is a key component of this SLTA role. This community-based role involves working mainly in clinics but may include visits to  nurseries or homes, according to service need. The client group comprises of children with varied communication difficulties, children with Special Educational Needs including complex presentations. Therapy is typically delivered face to face but may also be via digital methods (e.g. via Microsoft Teams).