Specialist Speech and Language Feeding Therapist inBirmingham inBirmingham PUBLISHED TUE 29 OCT 2024

Part Time- 22.5 hours per week

We have a rare and exciting opportunity for a Dysphagia trained Speech & Language Therapist (SLT) to join our award-winning, friendly, supportive and welcoming charity.

This role will require travel to local clinics, hospitals and other areas of business need.

Speech and Language Therapists (SLTs) work with children who have communication and feeding difficulties. The SLT can help a child learn to eat and drink safely, whilst supporting positive communication and interaction at mealtimes.

SLTs provide assessment and treatment for children with feeding difficulties, looking primarily at the oro-motor skills needed for chewing and swallowing food and drink safely.

At The Feeding Trust, our SLTs assess the structure and function of the swallowing process, alongside evaluating any potential issues relating to your childs feeding. This could include any impact on their nutrition and hydration, plus their ability to take part in family meals at home and meals at nursery, school and in the community.

SLTs are also involved in assessing and advising on many factors that can affect a childs eating, such as communication around mealtimes, food preferences and the familys strategies for supporting their childs difficulties.

Alongside your clinical role, you will be involved in project work to support the charities mission, including training, research, fundraising and advocacy.

The successful candidate will be supported by an experienced, friendly and welcoming team and will receive robust clinical and managerial supervision, alongside monthly full CPD days and learning through peer supervision within the team. Additional training and supervision will be provided to SLTs interested in this role as a development opportunity.

At The Feeding Trust, our SLTs work as part of the trans-disciplinary team to provide collaborative treatment and advice on how to:

Support safe and adequate nutrition and hydration

Support the optimum feeding methods and techniques needed to eat and drink safely

Achieve age developmental level appropriate eating and drinking skills

Minimise the risks to the childs overall health caused by their swallowing difficulties

Support parents and caregivers by helping them implement strategies that support their childs eating and drinking

This is a unique opportunity to work with the only charity in the UK, dedicated to children and young people with PFD. We are a dynamic, innovative, therapist-led service, with robust governance provided by our Board of Trustees.

About us

We are looking for a therapist who:

• A special interest in feeding development and paediatric feeding disorders
• Ideally at least 3 years experience post qualification of working with children and young people with a range of feeding and swallowing challenges and those with neuro-diverse backgrounds
• Post graduate dysphagia training
• Experience of working within a multi-disciplinary framework

We are looking for someone passionate about working in an innovative, team-orientated and flexible way, who recognises the value of the therapeutic relationship and the power of direct therapy, as well as the need to empower those working with the people we support. We are a small, friendly neuro-diversity affirming team, where work-life balance matters and is encouraged.