Speech and Language Therapy (SaLT) Advanced Practitioner SEND Reform

Job summary

NHS Coventry and Warwickshire ICB & NHS Herefordshire and Worcestershire ICB are looking for an enthusiastic self-motivated Speech and Language Therapy Advanced Practitioner to support both ICBs in meeting their responsibilities for children and young people with SEND aged 0-25 years leading to improved outcomes for children and young people within our local areas.

This role is an exciting opportunity to develop and implement a new nationally directed role as part of the recently announced SEND reforms and will form part of a dynamic team committed to strategic health commissioning and service transformation for children and young people.

The successful candidates will be a Speech and Language Therapist with extensive knowledge of SEND and schools-based service delivery.

Working strategically across the local SEND partnerships and with local universities, the postholder will provide strategic clinical leadership, influence local service delivery and support the development of a sustainable SaLT workforce for the future.

It is important the successful candidates can work independently and with initiative. Relationship building and negotiation skills across agencies are essential to facilitate partnership working and promote a whole system approach to meeting the needs of children and young people with SEND.

We recognise and value the skills, experience and dedication of the armed forces community and welcome applications.

Main duties of the job

Working across the Local Area Partnership with the LA, health providers, education settings, universities and wider partners, this role is key to delivering the anticipated outcomes of SEND reforms.

The SaLT Advanced Practitioner will provide strategic clinical leadership and expertise to develop the speech and language therapy workforce for education settings, strengthen mainstream inclusivity, and improve earlier identification and support for speech, language and communication needs to improve pupil outcomes and educational participation.

Working with local universities and training providers, the successful candidate will develop a strategic approach to increasing speech and language therapy student placements and support workforce growth in education.

Developing and maintaining stakeholder relationships is essential to the success of the role. The ICB is committed to co-production with children, young people and parent carers to ensure health services are effective and meet local needs.

The SaLT Advanced Practitioner will remain up to date and respond flexibly to changing government SEND requirements and frameworks, with a commitment to tackling health inequalities. They will work with partners to improve education participation, quality of life, school attendance, mental and physical health, personal autonomy, further education and employment, independent living and community inclusion.

About us

The NHS is a world-renowned institution and exciting place to work, full of opportunity. We are a dynamic, forward-looking organisation, working with health and social care partners to deliver integrated, seamless services and a high-quality patient experience. We build strong relationships with patients, communities, partners and providers.

NHS Coventry and Warwickshire ICB and NHS Herefordshire and Worcestershire ICB are committed to improving the lives of children, young people and families. The Children and Young People team supports work relating to:

• Improving outcomes in population and healthcare
• Integrating care and collaboration
• Oversight, quality and safety assurance
• Tackling inequalities and reducing variation in outcomes, experience and access

We offer a supportive, collaborative environment with opportunities to reach your potential and develop a rewarding career in an evolving setting. We support a positive work-life balance through workplace attendance and regular home working. Joining our inclusive, innovative team comes with benefits including:

• Employee Assistance programmes and online health and wellbeing support
• Competitive NHS Pension Scheme
• Opportunities to learn new skills and develop your career in a caring, inclusive environment
• Generous holiday entitlement, increasing with service, plus the option to purchase additional leave
• Flexible working patterns to support work-life balance

Please note we operate a 3-month probationary period for new appointments.

Details

• Date posted: 18 August 2026
• Pay scheme: Agenda for change
• Band: Band 8b
• Salary: £66,582 to £77,368 a year
• Contract: Permanent
• Working pattern: Full-time, Flexible working
• Reference number: D9105-0826-010
• Job locations: Kirkham House, John Comyn Drive, Worcester, WR3 7NS, United Kingdom, Shire Hall, Warwick, CV34 4RL, United Kingdom, 25-27A St. Owen Street, Hereford, HR1 2JB, United Kingdom

Job responsibilities

Education, Training and Workforce Development

• Provide innovative strategic clinical leadership and influence for education and workforce development across the system, working with Higher Education Institutions (HEIs), providers and partners to strengthen SaLT workforce supply, capability and sustainability in mainstream education settings
• Collaborate with HEIs and system partners to secure and optimise high-quality clinical placements across education settings and age ranges (025)
• Safe and effective deployment of students within emerging delivery models
• Lead the development and support of placement supervision/mentor models, including innovative approaches (e.g. arms length supervision), ensuring alignment with HCPC standards and promoting a culture of learning and continuous improvement
• Act as an educator, supervisor, coach and mentor, building capability, confidence and professional identity across students and supervisors
• Facilitate evaluation and continuous improvement of placement quality, using feedback and outcomes to enhance clinical competence and learner experience
• Support growth of SaLT degree apprenticeships, providing expert guidance to employers and partners on clinical and academic requirements, ensuring equitable, high-quality learning experiences
• Build capability across the wider workforce through practice-based and multiprofessional learning, supporting translation of learning into improved practice within education settings
• Advocate for the safe, effective and appropriate use of support roles, aligned to national guidance and service need
• Work with system leaders to develop sustainable workforce pipeline solutions, increasing the flow of therapists into education-based and population-level roles, as opposed to 1-2-1 clinical provision
• Lead and champion inclusive education practice for children with speech, language and communication needs (SLCN), implementation guidance and self-assessment approaches, supporting mainstream education settings to provide high-quality communication and learning environments, impact measures and trainee experiences
• Build and sustain strong partnerships with HEIs, professional bodies (including Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists) and system colleagues, contributing to national and regional guidance, shared learning and communities of practice
• Promote a culture of continuous learning, innovation and workforce development, supporting current and future workforce to meet changing population health needs

Professional Leadership

• Operate as a system leader across education, health and care, working in partnership with local authorities, ICBs, NHS and independent providers, education settings (025 years) and parent carer forums to enable inclusive, collaborative working and clarity of roles across the system
• Provide strategic leadership aligned to national SEND reforms, role modelling organisational values and a person-centred, outcome-focused approach to service design, delivery and continuous improvement
• Work in partnership with commissioners and local SEND partnerships to strengthen understanding of SaLT provision across education settings, supporting evidence-informed commissioning, service planning and system oversight, including contribution to local area SEND inspections
• Collaborate with system leaders and providers to strengthen SaLT delivery across education settings, applying advanced clinical expertise in a consultative and facilitative capacity to reduce unwarranted variation and support the adoption of best practice
• Lead and influence system-wide improvement through commissioning support, education and shared innovation
• Work collaboratively with system leaders to enable co-production with children, young people, families, carers and partners, ensuring lived experience informs service improvement, pathway development and system transformation
• Provide visible professional leadership as an advanced practitioner, modelling inclusive behaviours, collaborative leadership and the value of senior AHP clinical roles in driving system change and improving outcomes
• Lead the strategic commissioning of a designated portfolio, including developing commissioning intentions, developing strategic plans and demonstrating health outcomes and value for money
• Contribute towards identifying opportunities for improvement in population health outcomes, including addressing areas of under performance. This will include work with senior colleagues to drive these through to achieve the required standards and evidence best use of resource
• Apply exemplary communications skills to deal appropriately with very sensitive information about commissioning arrangements, performance and change
• Engage patient representatives, patient groups and other stakeholders to secure beneficial change and the most effective outcome for patients
• Maximise engagement of stakeholders in the development and delivery of programmes, contributing to effective Cluster programme board arrangements.
• Personal and professional support including development mentorship to colleagues within the team
• Deputise for Deputy Directors and Associate Directors, as required
• Operate effectively in a flexible and demanding environment and proactively engage with stakeholders
• Proactively build good working relationships and provide information and advice to a wide range of internal and external stakeholders on a range of business sensitive issues
• Deliver reporting requirements including system reporting, improvement plans and highlight reports
• Participate and inform the organisational and system-wide prioritisation processes
• Provide and receive highly complex, sensitive and contentious information, including presenting information about projects and dependencies to a wide range of internal and external stakeholders in formal settings
• Manage potentially aggressive and/or antagonistic situations with stakeholders within change programmes for successful outcomes
• Deal with complex and conflicting day-to-day workload including workshops, meetings, one to one communications and events
• Employ effective communication, negotiation and influencing skills to enable stakeholder relationships to deliver objectives
• Develop effective service specifications and liaise with colleagues in contracting and finance to ensure that these are effectively commissioned and monitored
• Undertake engagement events and opportunities with patient representatives, patient groups and other stakeholders to ensure that lived experience and front-line practitioners experience inform the scope, delivery and decision-making of projects
• Plan and develop business plans and funding applications
• Contribute towards procurement panels and supplier engagement
• Contribute towards contract management of ICB commissioned services, and where appropriate in jointly commissioned services with other commissioners

Expert Clinical Practice

• Provide senior clinical expertise and system-level clinical leadership in SLCN, supporting clinical reasoning and decision-making across universal, targeted and specialist population cohorts
• Act as clinical expert and advisor to commissioners, education, health and local authority partners, ensuring AHP expertise informs system design, commissioning decisions and service development
• Support commissioner understanding of the advanced practice role, articulating its impact on population health outcomes in education settings, workforce optimisation and early intervention models
• Contribute specialist clinical expertise to local SEND partnerships, including development of the Experts at Hand (EAH) offer, aligning practice with best evidence and system priorities
• Lead and influence the application of evidence-based practice and supervision within education settings, with a focus on early identification, intervention and inclusive mainstream practice
• Work collaboratively across system partners to drive workforce capability in early identification and intervention, referencing evidence-based practice and population health principles in education settings
• Apply advanced clinical judgement across multi-agency systems, advising on workforce models, clinical risk and service effectiveness, and supporting system-level mitigation where required
• Champion population-informed, responsive approaches, using linked and shared data to identify risk factors, comorbidities and socio-environmental determinants impacting SLCN outcomes
• Improve equitable access to SaLT expertise in mainstream education through workforce optimisation, supervision and the development of and oversight of innovative delivery models
• Drive improvement in transition planning for young people, aligning with SEND Code of Practice and preparation for adulthood pathways
• Maintain oversight of emerging evidence, policy and system developments, ensuring services continuously adapt to changing population health needs and national priorities within education settings
• Undertake one day per month in clinical practice within an education setting
• Act as part of the supervisory/mentor infrastructure for SaLT clinicians
• Apply evidence-based practice around population health management, personalisation and prevention with specific attention to reducing health inequalities across the system

Research, Audit and Improvement

• Provide strategic leadership for evaluation, audit and quality improvement, strengthening and building on the evidence base for SaLT expertise within education settings and informing workforce planning, commissioning and service delivery
• Lead and apply evidence informed approaches across the system, synthesising data, research and practice intelligence to improve decision making, identify gaps and enable adoption of best practice
• Establish and embed robust governance, outcomes frameworks and data systems to demonstrate impact, drive continuous improvement and inform population level outcomes

Please refer to the Job Description for further information.

UK Registration

Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).