Band 7 Speech and Language Therapist Dysphagia & Complex Needs
The closing date is 02 August 2026

Job summary
Band 7 Speech and Language Therapist Dysphagia & Complex Needs

The post is being offered as 1 WTE

37.5 Hours Per Week

We have an exciting opportunity for an enthusiastic and motivated band 7 Speech and Language Therapist in Barnet Children's Integrated Therapies Complex Needs and Dysphagia team in our early years complex needs and dysphagia team. The post is being offered as 1 WTE to join our wonderful team.

Main duties of the job
The postholder will be based within the Barnet Complex Needs and Dysphagia SLT Team which delivers services to children aged 0 - 5 years in their homes, health clinics and in early years settings.

The postholder will hold a clinical caseload of complex children including babies / young children with dysphagia and provide both assessment and intervention. This will involve a high level of MDT working and regular liaison with specialist and tertiary services. You will work alongside SLT colleagues who carry similar caseloads and work closely together. The post holder will be expected to support the communication development and where necessary the swallowing /feeding needs of children on their caseload.

Working as a specialist in early years, the post holder will also provide training, second opinions and supervision to other therapists within the team and the wider workforce.

About us
Whittington Health serves a richly diverse population and works hard to ensure that all our services are fair and equally accessible to everyone. Nowhere is this more obvious than in the way we look after our staff. We aim to employ a workforce which is as representative as possible of this population, so we are open to the value of differences in age, disability, gender, marital status, pregnancy and maternity, race, sexual orientation, and religion or belief. The Trustbelieves that as a public sector organisation we have an obligation to have recruitment, training, promotion and other formal employment policies and procedures that are sensitive to these differences. We think that by doing so, we are better able to treat our patients as well as being a better place to work.

Details
Date posted: 09 July 2026
Pay scheme: Agenda for change
Band: Band 7
Salary: £55,524 to £62,652 a year Per Annum (Pro Rata) Including HCAS
Contract: Permanent
Working pattern: Full-time, Part-time, Job share, Flexible working, Compressed hours, Annualised hours
Reference number: 220-WHT-4075
Job locations: Barnet Children's Integrated Therapies, 1st Floor Northgate House, Edgware Community Hospital, London HA8 0AD, United Kingdom

Job responsibilities

• 1. To carry a personal clinical caseload to a high level of professional competence and demonstrate clinical expertise.
• 2. To assess, differentially diagnose, plan and implement therapy for children with dysphagia and speech, language and/or communication difficulties on own caseload and supervise others to do so.
• 3. To work effectively with clients, carers, and colleagues around individual case management; providing advice, guidance and support as necessary and involving them in the planning and prioritisation of care wherever possible
• 4. To provide second opinions in your field of clinical expertise to Whittington Health clinical staff on children with dysphagia/complex communication disorders.
• 5. To reflect on clinical practice; adequately identifying strengths & needs of clients, reviewing their response to therapy and providing evidence of sound clinical judgement.
• 6. To monitor and review the progress of children on caseload and facilitate the development or modification of packages of care / targets as appropriate using evaluation/outcome measurement tools as a key part of the MDT
• 7. To adapt practice to meet individual client/carers circumstances, taking into account cultural and linguistic backgrounds.
• 8. To produce accurate, & detailed reports, therapy programmes, advice and information as necessary in a timely manner.
• 9. To respond to the requirements of the Children and Families Act 2014 completing written advice (EHCP) for children/young people who may have Special Educational Needs.
• 10. To refer children/young people to other Health, Education or Social Services professionals as necessary.
• 11. To undertake home visits, as necessary, in compliance with the local Home Visiting Safety Policy.

Person Specification
Qualifications
Essential

• NVQ level 2 or equivalent standard of literacy and numeracy
• Degree or equivalent and Licence to Practice
• Membership of the Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists and HCPC
• Further study to master's or equivalent level in clinical field, including completion of short courses
• Member of relevant clinical excellence network

Experience
Essential

• oWork with babies and children with a wide range of speech, language and communication difficulties including those associated with complex needs and/ or feeding difficulties
• oCollaborative work with parents and other professionals, across settings
• oTraining others, supervising and/or supporting others
• oKnowledge of the evidence base of area of speciality (feeding difficulties of babies and children)
• oExperience of working in the community
• oWork with the Clinical team lead in the day to day management of other team members including annual leave, and sickness monitoring and carrying out appraisals.
• oExperience of clinical governance framework to monitor and improve patient care
• oExperience of organising and implement training programmes for colleagues and other professionals
• oUse of outcome measures
• o Involvement in audit and research

Desirable

• Clinical educator training
• Minimum 5 yrs post Postgraduate experience of working with children in a paediatric setting
• Dysphagia experience at the highly specialist level including a minimum of 2 years experience working with babies and infants with complex needs

Knowledge/skills
Essential

• An awareness of NHS Plan, NSF and clinical governance
• Sound understanding of confidentiality
• Health needs in a diverse cultural and socio- economic community
• oNormal Child Development of Speech & Language and general developmental milestones
• oAdvanced knowledge of appropriate range of assessments and interventions for education and in field of complex physical and cognitive disabilities, utilising a range of approaches and an ability to compare and contrast relative benefits to individual children.
• oReligious, Cultural and Linguistic issues impacting upon caseload management principles and models of Adult-Child Interaction
• oIn-depth knowledge of national policies and procedures (especially Code of Practice), Education Practice and Policy and Foundation Curriculum
• oUnderstanding of the roles of other professionals (relevant to the client group) especially within MDT
• oKnowledge of professional standards of record keeping
• oHolistic view of communication and philosophy to back this
• oAwareness of adapting communication styles with different people
• oAwareness of the need to gain support from supervising clinician
• oKnowledge of the evidence base of area of speciality (feeding difficulties of babies and children)

Desirable

• Previous NHS experience
• Current issues in the delivery of community based services Health needs in a diverse cultural and socio- economic community

Skills & Abilities
Essential

• Good organisational skills
• Good verbal communication
• Good written communication
• Good listening skills
• Good problem-solving skills
• Manual dexterity required for Makaton signing and working with a child with physical disabilities including moving and handling
• Excellent organisational and prioritisation skills
• Good auditory discrimination skills
• Demonstrates ability to be a good team member and assume leadership
• IT literate and able to use a range of specialist programmes including word processing and use of email
• Able to independently manage own and others' clinical caseload and prioritise as required
• Clear, concise verbal and written reporting skills and excellent presentation skills of complex information
• Ability to reflect and adapt practice to suit individuals' needs
• Ability to deal with and resolve conflict demonstrating highly developed negotiation and Problem-solving Skills
• Sensitivity to others' differing needs
• Demonstrates excellent analytical and reflection skills
• Well-developed concentration skills

Other
Essential

• oTo be able to travel efficiently throughout the area
• oCommitment to equal opportunities
• oProfessional manner
• oUses initiative
• oCommitment to Continuing Professional Development
• oAble to respond to pressure appropriately

Desirable

• Car driver

Personal qualities
Essential

• Flexibility
• Able to take the initiative
• Awareness of and Demonstration of the Trust values

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).

Employer details
Employer name: Whittington Hospital NHS Trust
Address: Barnet Children's Integrated Therapies, 1st Floor Northgate House, Edgware Community Hospital, London HA8 0AD, United Kingdom
Employer's website: https://www.whittington.nhs.uk/

Employer contact details
For questions about the job, contact:
Clinical Team Lead: Claire Turner
Email: claireturner3@nhs.net
Telephone: 02033168900

Supporting documents
Privacy notice: Whittington Hospital NHS Trust's privacy notice (opens in a new tab)