Job overview

The post holder will be responsible for professional leadership of the HDFT Adult and Paediatric Speech and Language Therapy (SLT) Service.

The post holder will ensure coordinated and effective provision of speech and language therapy, with the application of best available evidence, protocols, pathways, and clinical policies that reflect national and local priorities and legislation. 

The post holder will lead on the analysis and audit of the speech and language therapy service and develop a culture that is responsive to changing need in collaboration with Team Leads.  He/ she will lead on innovative service delivery and integrate developments in evidence-based practice.

Main duties of the job

Clinical

• To provide advice to others regarding the management and care of clients with speech, language, and communication difficulties.
• To demonstrate clinical effectiveness by use of evidence-based practice and outcome measures.  To use highly specialist knowledge to deal with complex issues, to inform clinical judgement in order to generate appropriate strategies for caseload management.
• To provide advice to non-specialist and other specialist professionals within the clinical field of speech, language and communication difficulties.

Leadership

• To provide strong leadership, setting direction and delivering excellent service results, acting as a role model for Team Leads and providing them with support in the day-to-day management of their services.
• To be responsible for proposing or implementing departmental and Trust policies, guidelines or protocols to enable the delivery of safe, quality evidence-based practice.
• To work with team leads ensuring that robust Clinical Governance arrangements are in place to support audit, research and service quality promotion within the department.
• To lead the development of a strategic plan for SLT considering requirements from the Trusts Clinical services Strategy and AHP workforce plans.
• To be accountable for on-going quality improvements of the SLT Service, supporting service managers with business cases needed for further investment, redesigning pathways and workforce to meet the changing health and economic climate

Working for our organisation

Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust (HDFT) cares for the population in Harrogate and the local area, as well as across North Yorkshire, Leeds and parts of the North East. 

At HDFT we provide outstanding care to both our patients and our staff and we value Kindness, Integrity, Teamwork and Equality. If you’re looking for an interesting and rewarding career in the NHS, where you can make a real difference to patients’ lives, HDFT could be the place for you! 

We offer colleagues:

• A supportive culture so colleagues can bring their whole selves to work.
• Staff Recognition - as well as regular appraisals, we recognise achievements with our Making a Difference & Team of the Month Awards, along with annual Colleague Recognition Awards.
• Employee Support and wellbeing – we offer a wide range of staff benefits including an Employee Assistance Programme, counselling service and a fast-track Physiotherapy service. 

Please note:

• Due to high levels of interest, posts may close early if we reach a sufficient number of applications
• Visa sponsorship is only available for certain roles. Please ensure the role you are interested in meets the criteria for a visa before submitting your application. 
• Please also be aware that the Trust does not offer relocation packages for Agenda for Change roles.  
• All job offers are subject to satisfactory pre-employment checks.