Job summary
We are seeking an enthusiastic Dietitian with an interest in paediatrics to join our team of 15 dietitians, nurse, and admin who work across the acute and community setting.

If successful, you will be responsible for sharing a caseload of children with complex feeding difficulties, alongside the paediatric dietetic team lead and working closely with other members of the dysphagia MDT and the general paediatric team.

We are a friendly department, offering excellent support for personal development and engagement in student training in which you will play an active role.

PLEASE NOTE, WE MAY CLOSE THIS VACANCY EARLY IF WE RECEIVE HIGH NUMBERS OF APPLICATIONS.

Main duties of the job

• Manage a caseload of children with complex feeding difficulties, carrying out clinics in special schools, child development centre and home visits
• Evaluate oral intake and feeding behaviours.
• Create tailored nutrition and feeding plans based on the child's needs.
• Ensure nutritional requirements are met while supporting developmental progress.
• Recommend suitable textures, food fortification, supplements, or specialist feeds where required.
• Monitor tolerance, growth outcomes, hydration, and nutritional adequacy.
• Support transitions between tube feeding and oral feeding when appropriate.

About us
Walsall Healthcare NHS Trust is an integrated Trust and the only provider of NHS acute care in Walsall, serving a population of 284,300. It provides inpatient and outpatient services at the Manor Hospital as well as a wide range of services in the community. Walsall Manor houses the full range of district general hospital services under one roof. The £170 million development was completed in 2010, and ongoing upgrades ensure the Trust now has state-of-the-art facilities, including a Critical Care Unit, Neonatal Unit, Obstetric Theatre, and Integrated Assessment Unit. A new Urgent and Emergency Care Centre, opened in March 2023, has significantly improved emergency care facilities and capacity, providing almost 5,000 square metres of additional clinical space.

Job responsibilities

• Provide a nutrition and dietetic service to Paediatric patients with complex feeding difficulties
• Plan and prioritise own workload as an autonomous practitioner
• Be responsible for collection and analysis of relevant data followed by planning and recommendation of dietetic care within the case load as an autonomous practitioner
• Translate and communicate information about disease states and diet to patients and carers so that it is understandable and empowering. This will require developed counselling, motivational and negotiation skills.
• Be responsible for ensuring communication of patient management to all relevant health professionals and carers.
• Work as part of the multidisciplinary team, liaising with other professionals as required and attending meetings and case conferences as appropriate.
• Maintain the service to meet department standards in accordance with the available evidence.
• Undertake additional training as required to meet the needs of the post
• Have an active involvement in student training
• Deliver services in a flexible manner with regard to working hours and locations

Person Specification
Qualifications
Essential

• BSc or MSc Dietetics or equivalent qualification.
• Health Professions Council Registration

Desirable

• BDA Paediatric Module

Knowledge and Experience
Essential

• Evidence of post registration dietetic work, preferably with paediatric experience
• Ability to work within teams
• Awareness of clinical governance and the ability to use in practice

Desirable

• Experience of training Dietetic Students
• Experience of running patient group sessions

Key Competencies
Essential

• Knowledge of nutritional needs of paediatric patients such as faltering growth, Allergy, Enteral feeding, Coeliac Disease, ARFID

Desirable

• Good computer knowledge

Skills and Aptitudes
Essential

• Awareness of Safeguarding standards & procedures
• Well-developed written and oral communication skills to people from a variety of backgrounds
• Able to organise and effectively time manage own work

Flexibility
Essential

• Ability to be flexible; adapting approaches to suit different settings and patients

Disclosure and Barring Service Check
This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.

Certificate of Sponsorship
Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).

From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).

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

Walsall Healthcare NHS Trust is an equal opportunities employer and welcomes applications from all sections of the community.