Detailed job description and main responsibilities

• To provide specialist assessments and interventions for the neurodiverse population who have a variety of complex communication needs. Neurodiversity includes Autism, ADHD, Learning Disability, Acquired Brain Injury and Dementia.
• To independently manage own caseload, accessing clinical and managerial supervision on a regular basis.
• To champion the SLT profession.
• To act as part of a multi-disciplinary team and represent the Speech and Language Therapy Service at Team/Directorate meetings/working parties.
• To provide specialist advice to prison officers, other speech and language therapists, professionals, and stakeholders within and outside of the Prison/Trust with regards to their specialist area, ensuring carers and family are involved in care where appropriate/possible.
• To provide compassionate, non-judgemental care that is based on empathy, kindness, respect, and dignity.

Management responsibilities

• To induct, train, review work performance and clinically supervise/appraise colleagues, as identified.
• To contribute to the development of Speech and Language Therapy Service policies and procedures, including participation in projects and quality improvement initiatives.
• To contribute to the service development through relevant meetings and working groups.
• To plan and deliver training courses for the prison, education and healthcare staff.
• Communicate regularly through team meetings, Business meetings, clinical forums and individually with team members providing an opportunity for two-way feedback.
• Ensure that service users and carers’ opinions and experiences are being responded to at a team level.
• Clinical record keeping is of a consistent high standard and meets trust policy and practice guidance.

Clinical-

• Deliver evidence-based practice regarding specialist speech and language therapy assessment, goal setting, intervention and evaluation.
• Monitor specialised packages of care including direct therapy, advice, and training. To have knowledge of specialist approaches used with this client group, for example, Talking Mats.
• To contribute to specialist multi-disciplinary assessment,  preparing communication passports and accessible information
• To contribute to and carry out Capacity to Consent Assessments in accordance with the Mental Capacity Act, as well providing assessment and advice related to issues of consent, capacity and best interests.
• To participate in professionals’ meetings both within the healthcare department as well as wider prison.
• To monitor clinical effectiveness and clinical outcome measures
• To have a working knowledge of relevant procedures and policy including The Mental Health Act, Valuing People, The Mental Capacity Act, Liberty Protection Safeguards, Safeguarding Adults and other legal frameworks.

• To follow Health and Safety guidelines regarding unpleasant working conditions, e.g., Hepatitis, lone visits, exposure to bodily fluids.

Research-

• To contribute to regular and ongoing audits of Speech and Language Therapy Service work in order to contribute to knowledge of clinical effectiveness and outcomes.
• To develop own skills through training, support, supervision, and study. In order to promote evidence-based practice.

Communication-

• To demonstrate well-developed communication and presentation skills.
• To provide and receive complex, sensitive, or contentious information where there may be significant barriers to understanding or acceptance possibly within emotive, distressing and/or antagonistic atmospheres.
• To adapt spoken and written information to suit the communication needs of the listener/audience
• To demonstrate well-developed motivation, kindness, negotiation, empathy, and reassurance
• To liaise with other members of the Multi-Disciplinary Teams, this may include prison discipline staff, support staff, other healthcare disciplines, and commissioners.
• To work closely with SLTs from other areas of the trust and in other services.
• To develop and deliver specialist presentations and training to a range of audiences including Service Users, operational staff eg prison and non-operational eg healthcare and education, in both small and large groups.
• To provide letters, care plans and reports as necessary.
• To provide accurate and contemporaneous statistical information in accordance with local standards
• To use basic word processing skills and specialist software packages to develop communication aids and accessible information

IMPORTANT INFORMATION, PLEASE READ:

All applicants must be willing to undertake National Security Vetting in order to work in a Prison Setting. This will be completed as part of the pre-employment checks through Oxleas and the prison vetting team.  

You will need to provide:

• Proof of right to work documentation
• Proof of ID, needs to include 1 photographic ID
• Proof of address documentation
• Non-UK passport holders will need to have correct documentation (right to work in the UK) and a Home office Share code. 

Address History: 

5 years address history will be needed.  

Applicants that are not UK Passport holders who provide less than 5 years UK address history will need to provide a Police Certificate which must be in English from where they resided previously. 

Applicants who are UK Passport holders who have lived abroad for a period of more than six months during the last three years will need to provide a certificate of good conduct or an overseas police check in English from the countries resided in or visited.

 In order to assist you in obtaining a Police Certificate, guidance can be sought from:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/criminal-records-checks-for-overseas-applicants

If the country you have resided in is not listed here, you can obtain the necessary information by contacting the relevant Embassy or High Commission for that Country. Their contact details can be found on the Foreign & Commonwealth Office website (http://www.fco.gov.uk/en).