Lead Speech & Language Therapist

Location: Hybrid working from home and within a 30-mile radius of Mildenhall

Job type: Full-time Permanent

Salary: £60 – 65K per annum

Reports To: Head of Operations – Charlotte Clark

Job Purpose

ABAEL is a well-established, family-run company, based in Norfolk and founded in 2012. We specialise in providing evidence-based Speech and Language Therapy (SLT) and Applied Behaviour Analysis (ABA) therapy to support children with speech, language and communication differences, and their families.

We’re proud to serve the vibrant US Air Force community living in and around RAF Lakenheath, RAF Feltwell and RAF Mildenhall. Our experienced and passionate multidisciplinary team includes both Speech and Language Therapists (SLTs) and Board Certified Behaviour Analysts (BCBAs) who deliver therapy in the context of fun and motivating play-based sessions.

The SLT Clinical Lead is responsible for providing day-to-day clinical leadership and support to ABAEL’s Speech and Language Therapy team, promoting high-quality, evidence-based and ethical SLT services across the organisation.

The role combines a direct clinical caseload with protected clinical lead responsibilities. The postholder will provide a minimum of 8 billable clinical hours per week, to include direct assessment, therapy and parent training. In addition, the postholder will undertake clinical leadership, supervision, quality assurance, mentoring, report review and service-development responsibilities.

The SLT Clinical Lead will work closely with the Head of Operations who retains overall clinical oversight and formal line-management responsibility for ABAEL staff.

Responsibilities

Direct Clinical Practice

• Maintain an appropriate clinical caseload and deliver a minimum of 8 billable clinical hours per week.
• Deliver high-quality SLT services within their professional competence, including direct therapy, parent/caregiver training and assessment.
• Design, implement, monitor and modify individualized SLT treatment plans based upon beneficiary progress and objective clinical data.
• Maintain high-quality and timely clinical documentation, including session notes, assessment reports and risk assessments.
• Work collaboratively with families, SLTs, BCBAs, and other professionals to support coherent and coordinated service delivery.

Clinical Leadership and Supervision

• Monitor the clinical quality and progress of SLT services across the SLT caseload.
• Provide clinical supervision, mentoring and coaching to ABAEL SLTs as required.
• Lead and chair monthly ABAEL SLT employee therapist team meetings.
• Support SLTs in clinical decision making and discharge.
• Review cases where progress is limited, clinical complexity has increased or additional clinical input has been requested.
• Provide additional clinical support where beneficiaries present with complex needs or where progress is limited.
• Ensure beneficiary team meetings are taking place at appropriate intervals and audit their occurrence and quality.
• Support SLTs to identify and resolve clinical challenger at an early stage, providing clinical guidance and support.
• Undertake observations, shadowing and competency assessments where additional clinical support or development has been identified.
• Identify clinical performance concerns and provide appropriate supervision, coaching and support, escalating repeated or serious concerns to the Head of Operations.
• Conduct or coordinate competency assessments for new clinical staff in accordance with ABAEL’s clinical induction processes.
• Work within the boundaries of the role, recognizing that formal line management, performance appraisal and formal performance management remain the responsibility of the Head of Operations.
• Escalate significant clinical risks, quality concerns or other matters requiring organisation-level oversight to the Head of Operations.

Clinical Documentation and Quality Assurance

• Review SLT assessment, reassessment and treatment plan reports prior to submission as required by ABAEL processes.
• Provide constructive feedback to SLTs and ensure required amendments are completed within.
• Conduct routine audits of clinical documentation and clinical practice.
• Monitor compliance with ABAEL clinical standards, policies, procedures and documentation requirements.
• Identify patterns or themes arising from clinical audits and communicate these to the Head of Operations.
• Support the Head of Operations with organisation-wide clinical quality assurance processes.
• Facilitate sample auditing by the Head of Operations and implement actions arising from those audits.

Clinical Governance and Service Development

• Support the Head of Operations in implementing ABAEL’s clinical governance and quality assurance frameworks.
• Contribute professional expertise to the development and review of SLT clinical policies, procedures and the SLT clinical handbook.
• Ensure agreed clinical policies and procedures are implemented consistently within the SLT team.
• Identify opportunities to improve the quality, efficiency and consistency of SLT services.
• Contribute to organization-wide clinical projects and service development.
• Provide the Head of Operations with feedback regarding emerging clinical themes, risks, training needs and service-development priorities.
• Support effective interdisciplinary working between Speech and Language Therapy and ABA Therapy.

Recruitment and Professional Standards

• Support recruitment and clinical onboarding of SLTs where requested.
• Represent ABAEL professionally and appropriately to beneficiaries, families, colleagues, professionals and payors.
• Maintain all required professional registrations, certifications and credentials.
• Maintain confidentiality, GDPR compliance and safeguarding responsibilities.
• Comply with all ABAEL policies and procedures.

Person Specification

Qualifications and Professional Requirements

• Recognised Speech and Language Therapy Degree Qualification or equivalent

Full registration (and in good standing) with the Health and Care Professions

• Registered member of Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists
• Minimum of 6 years’ post-certification experience as an SLT
• Willing and able to undertake an Enhanced DBS check and meet all ABAEL pre-employment/credentialling requirements

• Full driving license
• Access to own vehicle for work
• Ability and willingness to work in a hybrid role, but at home and within 30 mile radius of Mildenhall

Clinical Experience and Knowledge

• Substantial paediatric Speech and Language Therapy experience
• Broad knowledge and significant experience of paediatric speech, language and communication assessment and intervention
• Experience working with neurodivergent children
• Experience assessing and supporting children who use or may benefit from AAC
• Experience of parent/caregiver training and supporting implementation of interventions across natural environments
• Experience developing individualised treatment plans based upon comprehensive clinical assessment
• Strong understanding of evidence-based and professionally compliant Speech and Language Therapy practice
• Experience working effectively as part of a multidisciplinary team (MDT)
• Experience working collaboratively with ABA/behaviour analytic services
• Experience handling complex clinical cases
• Previous experience working within the TRICARE system

Clinical Leadership and Supervision

• Experience providing clinical supervision to other SLTs
• Experience providing clinical mentoring, coaching and constructive feedback to other clinicians
• Ability to identify strengths and areas for clinical development in other
• Ability to conduct clinical observations and competency reviews and develop appropriate actions for improvement
• Ability to provide constructive and, where necessary, challenging feedback professionally and effectively
• Ability to recognise when a clinical concern requires escalation to senior management
• Ability to maintain appropriate professional boundaries between clinical supervision and formal line/performance management
• Previous experience in a formal clinical lead, senior clinical or management position

Quality Assurance and Service Development

• Ability to critically review clinical reports, treatment plans and other clinical documentation
• Ability to identify whether clinical recommendations and interventions are supported by assessment findings and clinical data
• Ability to maintain and promote high standards of clinical documentation
• Experience undertaking clinical audits and/or quality assurance activities
• Experience contributing to development or review of clinical policies, procedures or service-improvement projects

Skills and Personal Attributes

• Confident in clinical judgement and able to make appropriate clinical decisions within scope of competence.
• Organised, with the ability to manage both a clinical caseload and clinical lead responsibilities.
• Collaborative, with the ability to work effectively with SLTs, BCBAs, management, families and external professionals.
• Able to give constructive and appropriately challenging feedback while maintaining positive professional relationships.
• An effective clinical coach and supervisor who can support others to develop their own clinical reasoning rather than simply providing solutions.
• Able to communicate clearly and professionally, both verbally and in writing.
• Able to work independently while recognising when consultation or escalation is appropriate.
• Able to maintain confidentiality and demonstrate high standards of professional conduct.

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