Speech and Language Therapy Assistant

This is an exciting opportunity work as a Technical Instructor within the Cardiff and Vale University Health Board for Cardiff Flying Start Speech and Language Team.

The successful applicant will be well supported, working under the supervision of the team’s Speech and Language Therapists. They will work as part of a dynamic team of SLTs and Speech and Language Therapy Technical Instructors. The post holder will be delivering home based interventions for Flying Start families across Cardiff. The Flying Start SLT team focuses on early identification and prevention of speech, language and communication difficulties. The successful applicant will be working with identified families empowering them to encourage their child’s speech and language development. The post holder will be working with children with a wide variety of communication needs, across the Flying Start age range (0-3;11). This role will continue to develop as Flying Start expands and will include working alongside our Flying Start childcare settings, supporting the delivery of training, engaging in community based events and developing our social media presence.

The post holder will facilitate and empower parents and carers to promote the development of children's communication in close collaboration with other Flying Start team members, actively involving parents in all aspects of their child's communication development, promoting parenting skills and supporting families to access to other support networks.

The role will include
- undertaking and reporting on specific child observations
- Maintaining confidential written and contemporaneous speech and language therapy records of work undertaken which should include client responses and observations. Case notes will be maintained in line with service policies.
- Provide information on progress within the programme to therapist and to others involved as agreed with the supervising Speech and Language Therapist.
- Initiate calls and set up own appointments with clients and other therapists as requested
- Prepare resources for implementation of specific programmes following aims given by the supervising Speech and Language Therapist
- Contribute to the design and evaluation of specific projects

Cardiff and Vale University Health Board is one of the largest Integrated Health Boards in the UK, employing over 15,000 staff, providing over 100 specialist services. Working across 6 hospital sites, we have a diverse range of career opportunities to offer. Serving around 500,000 people living in Cardiff and the Vale of Glamorgan, we are focussed on the health and care needs of our local population whilst working with our partners to develop regional services.

Our mission is “Caring for People, Keeping People Well”, and our vision is that every person’s chance of leading a healthy life should be equal. As an organisation we are unashamedly ambitious for our population’s health, rising to the challenges of today and tomorrow through our 10-year strategy, Shaping our Future Wellbeing. We are contributing to a healthier Wales with great emphasis placed on innovation and improvement, learning from around the world and leading the way in clinical research. Partnership working is strong at Cardiff and Vale, and we work closely with our staff and our community.

Cardiff, the thriving Welsh capital, is a fantastic city to live and work in with an abundance of sports, arts and cultural attractions. Situated to the west of Cardiff, the Vale of Glamorgan offers a combination of beautiful Welsh countryside and a dramatic natural coastline. Whether city life or rural living, Cardiff and the Vale offers the best of both worlds.
1. Implementation of specific programmes for children with a range of speech, language and communication difficulties. The programmes may be undertaken on an individual or small group basis.
2. Delivery of the intervention programme according to agreed aims. The postholder will modify the level of intervention programmes if this is found to be inappropriate. The postholder will notify the supervising Speech and Language Therapist accordingly.
3. The postholder may run groups, developing group activities to meet defined intervention needs and provide feedback to the supervising Speech and Language Therapist.
4. Undertake and report on specific child observations within the environment seen in.
5. In the performance of the above the postholder will be required to undertake a recognised qualification relating to speech and language development/ disorders. In addition the postholder will be required to undertake specific training and develop certain skills for example:
- ELKLAN
- POPAT, Speech Link and Language Link
- Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS)
- Behaviour modification and the ability to manage children with challenging behaviour
- Taking of language samples
- Basic IT
- Handling and facilitation techniques
- Play skills
- Makaton signing

1. Maintain confidential w