Job summary
- Main area
- SLT
- Grade
- NHS AfC: Band 6
- Contract
- Permanent
- Hours
- Full time
- Part time
- Job ref
- 388-7772280-FC&I
- Employer
- Torbay and South Devon NHS Foundation Trust
- Employer type
- NHS
- Site
- Ashburton& Buckfastleigh Health & Well-being centre
- Town
- Ashburton
- Salary
- £38,682 - £46,580 pa pro rata
- Salary period
- Yearly
- Closing
- 13/03/2026 23:59
Employer heading
Specialist Speech & Language Therapist - Community
NHS AfC: Band 6
Job overview
The Adult Community Speech & Language Therapy Team have an exciting opportunity for a dynamic and experienced band 6 Therapist to join our friendly and supportive team in a permanent position, based in beautiful South Devon, with easy access to beautiful beaches and moors. The position is up to full-time (37.5 hours/wk) though part-time applications will be considered.
We are an innovative and motivated team within a supportive and collaborative environment that offers:
- An opportunity to work with a varied caseload, including Parkinson’s Disease, dementia, stroke and MND.
- Access to instrumental swallowing assessment - in particular our well-developed Fees service.
- 1:1 regular management supervision.
- Access to clinical supervision 1:1 and in peer groups.
- Joint working and second opinions with our clinical specialists.
- Regular opportunities for CPD
- A car owner/driver and current driving licence is essential or full access to a car for work purposes (unless you have a disability as defined by the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 and 2005).
Main duties of the job
· To be responsible for triaging referrals to the Speech and Language Therapy Community Adult service alongside SLT colleagues
· To independently manage a caseload of community patients with highly complex speech, language, communication and swallowing (dysphagia) difficulties with reference to theory, published research and evidence, and agreed best practice
· To prioritise and respond to referrals, allocating to less experienced colleagues and exercising professional judgement based on extended clinical experience
· Provide a service as appropriate to hospitals, nursing, residential homes and patients own homes, using own car to travel between relevant locations for clinic visits, meetings etc.
· To function as part of a multi-disciplinary team including doctors, nurses, physiotherapists, occupational therapists, social services personnel, social care, and dietitians
· Weekend working and home working may be required in order to provide a service model that meets future requirements
Working for our organisation
· We are a small, friendly team of dynamic and enthusiastic therapists and support workers.
· We work as part of an integrated care organisation, the first in the UK, serving rural and urban communities in South Devon. The demography has a high elderly population
· We provide well led acute, community and specialist services, to people from the local area, and were one of the first to run therapist led FEES clinics in the UK
· Our vision is to deliver top-quality patient care, excellent education and support for our clinicians
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
· To independently manage a caseload of community patients with highly complex speech, language, communication and swallowing (dysphagia) difficulties with reference to theory, published research and evidence, and agreed best practice
· To be responsible for triaging referrals to the Speech and Language Therapy Community Adult service alongside SLT colleagues
· To prioritise and respond to referrals, allocating to less experienced colleagues and exercising professional judgement based on extended clinical experience
· To provide appropriate and timely information to all relevant members of the healthcare team regarding patients’ speech and language therapy requirements and changes in progress
· To identify patient priorities and choices and plan intervention to accurately incorporate these wishes
· To explore the use of remote therapy and be able to flex into this form of therapy if service need dictates
· To submit regular data about activity levels as required
· To work in close collaboration with other members of the multidisciplinary team through joint working and effective communication regarding treatment aims, progress and discharge planning (providing written reports and referrals as appropriate)
Full vacancy details can be found on the attached Job Description/Person Specification.
Please refer to your suitability to the post in your supporting information from the role requirements or person specification.
Person specification
Qualifications and training
Essential criteria
- Degree or equivalent in speech and language therapy
- HCPC Registration
- RCSLT Registration
- Post-graduate qualification in dysphagia management or sign off of all dysphagia competencies at foundation level
- Evidence of on-going education and professional development
Desirable criteria
- Membership of relevant Clinical Excellence Network
- Advanced Clinical Educator
knowledge and experience
Essential criteria
- Specialist knowledge of aphasia and dysarthria assessment, diagnosis and management
- Experience of the assessment, diagnosis and management of clients with cognitive-communication disorder
- Experience of the assessment and management of clients with progressive neurological conditions
- Demonstrate an understanding of multi-disciplinary team working and individual roles
- Highly developed communication and interpersonal skills, and ability to communicate highly complex information to meet a range of levels of in understanding of clients and carers
- Ability to negotiate and explain complex case related information about speech & language development and disorders to a range of audiences
- Independent clinical management of complex caseload with access to regular support from senior staff
- able to undertake and adapt wide range of formal and informal assessments to meet patient need based on extended clinical experience beyond graduate level
- able to identify, collect, analyse, and interpret complex case related information
- able to make a differential diagnosis on the basis of assimilated evidence from assessments – some of which may be conflicting
- able to recognise own clinical competencies and the need for onward referral for more specialist advice
- Ability to reflect on practice to identify own strengths and development needs
- Able to demonstrate effective team working
- Highly developed IT skills to support use of high-tech communication aids
- Minimum 2 years post graduate experience in adult neurological rehabilitation
Desirable criteria
- Experience in applying research to practice
- Leadership qualities
- Innovative
- able to implement and adapt specialised treatment programmes from a range of options based on extended clinical experience
- able to implement and adapt specialised treatment programmes from a range of options based on extended clinical experience
- Knowledge and experience of clinical governance
- Additional experience in other fields of adult SLT
- Experience managing tracheotomised clients
- Experience of working with an adult neuro caseload in a community setting
- Supervision of SLT assistants and less experienced therapists
- Experience of waiting list management
- Experience of working with staff from other agencies
- Experienced clinical educator of students
- Experience of audit projects
- Experience of teaching
Specific Skills
Essential criteria
- Able to maintain sensitivity at all times to patients, carers and families, especially when imparting distressing information about the nature and implications of profound, long-term communication and swallowing disorders
- Able to work as an integral part of a team
- Able to recognise conflict between patients and their carers/relatives and facilitate resolution
Employer certification / accreditation badges
Applicant requirements
You must have appropriate UK professional registration.
This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service.
Documents to download
Further details / informal visits contact
- Name
- Amanda Harris
- Job title
- Head of Speech & Language Therapy
- Email address
- [email protected]
- Telephone number
- 07919 547361
- Additional information
Alternative contact:
Sarah Cassidy
Community Team Lead
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