Job summary
We are seeking
an enthusiastic senior therapy assistant to join our friendly and supportive
team. You will need to have experience of working in education settings with
children/ young people with special educational needs and a relevant
qualification related to speech and language or occupational therapy will be
expected.
Location:
Based atCantium House, Railway Approach,
Wallington, SM6 0DZ but required to work at
various settings around the borough.
Own transport an advantage but not essential.
If you are interested and would like to be
considered for this role, please apply to recruitment@cognus.org.uk with
the completed application form downloaded from https://www.cognus.org.uk/work-with-us/current-vacancies/cognus-application-form/, outlining your suitability. The deadline
for receipt is 11:59pm on Wednesday 31st July 2024. Candidates are requested to be available
for interview in August 2024.
For an
informal conversation about the role, please contact either Alex Benjamin, Head of Therapies on 0204 582 0843 or by email: alex.benjamin@cognus.org.uk or Tamara Rainsley, Principal Speech and
Language Therapist at tamara.rainsley@cognus.org.uk.
Main duties of the job
Working within a multidisciplinary team
of speech and language therapists and occupational therapists, the post holder
will have the opportunity to work in local schools and/or specialist bases
attached to local schools across the 4 years to 25 years age range or with a
smaller age range within this.
Supporting staff/ parents with children
and young people with Speech, Language & Communication Needs (SLCN) and/or
Occupational Therapy (OT) under the supervision of a Therapist.
Managing a
caseload to ensure that intended outcomes are delivered within agreed service
standards, under the supervision of a Therapist.
All offers of employment are subject to successful completion of recruitment formalities which includes an enhanced DBS check. These checks must have been completed prior to commencement of employment. We expect our staff to have due regard for safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and to follow the child protection procedures adopted by the Company and the Local Safeguarding Childrens Board.
About us
Cognus
Therapies is a multidisciplinary team of occupational therapists, speech and
language therapists, teachers, practitioners and therapy assistants who support
pupils in LB Sutton schools and bases at primary, secondary and Post-16
level.
You will give
us great commitment and in return we offer an excellent package including:
i)
Salary from £31,399.12 to £34,661.85
per annum (Cognus Band 2)
ii)
Workplace pension scheme 4% to 8%
matched contributions
iii)
28 days annual leave pro rata
(plus Bank Holidays)
iv)
Regular manager support and
supervision
v)
Hybrid and flexible working
vi)
Staff benefits package, currently
including Employee Assistance Programme, Perkbox and (upon completion of
probation) Sovereign Healthcare Cashback plans
vii)
Staff Council, Staff EDI group and Mental Health First
Aiders to support wellbeing and inclusion
viii)
Cognus Coaching Programmes
ix)
An ambitious culture with friendly and supportive
colleagues
Job description
Job responsibilities
To personally undertake a case load of referrals to include:
Under the supervision of the therapist, be
responsible for maintaining a caseload of children, following their SaLT / OT
assessment and to devise treatment activities based on therapy goals set by the
therapist, in line with appropriate developmental stages.
To complete appropriate informal assessments/ questionnaires under
the direction of a therapist with individual children/ young people
Under supervision from a therapist, writing
and reviewing therapy targets for the caseload sharing this with families and
staff
Under supervision from a therapist, to
support staff with therapy advice and therapy demonstrations within the
classroom
To participate in the training of staff/ parents to deliver
therapy programmes
Implement and evaluate delegated therapy interventions for
children/ young people feeding back to the therapist.
Independently organise the SaLTA/OTA therapy
timetable with school staff within the setting
Maintain
childrens/ young peoples files to a high standard in line with Cognus
therapies standard operating procedures
To
have responsibility for devising and producing high quality Augmentative and
Alternative Communication (AAC) resources using specialist applications such as
Boardmaker
Where
appropriate to monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of OT equipment
prescribed by the therapist and ensure that such equipment is in good working
order and clean for use
To
keep up to date with clinical developments by attending regular training and
CPD.
-
Specific Duties:
To advise and support school staff on the education
of children and young people with therapy needs regarding:
Appropriate
differentiation of and access to the curriculum.
Promotion
of effective inclusion of children and young people into all aspects of the
school curriculum.
Specialist
strategies and approaches to support access to learning and social and
emotional development.
To
collaborate with school staff to develop an Individual Education Plan/Provision
Map where appropriate.
To
participate in the planning, delivery and evaluation of training sessions for
schools and educational providers as appropriate.
To maintain effective liaison with
all partners e.g. parents, professionals in Education, Health, Social Care and
other Services with particular regard to Safeguarding and best practice:
To
attend team meetings as required.
To
liaise with SALT/OT (NHS clinic) as required.
To
attend clinical and managerial supervision sessions.
To
track and monitor data to provide evidence of the impact of intervention and
use this to plan further programmes of intervention.
To
liaise with parents/ carers and schools and attend multi-agency meetings as
required.
To promote robust Transition arrangements for pupils
with therapy needs including:
Collaboration
with a range of partner agencies to create effective Transition support for
specific children and young people.
To contribute to collaborative working between all
specialist SEN teams by:
Effective
liaison with the Team Manager and lead therapist.
Job description
Job responsibilities
To personally undertake a case load of referrals to include:
Under the supervision of the therapist, be
responsible for maintaining a caseload of children, following their SaLT / OT
assessment and to devise treatment activities based on therapy goals set by the
therapist, in line with appropriate developmental stages.
To complete appropriate informal assessments/ questionnaires under
the direction of a therapist with individual children/ young people
Under supervision from a therapist, writing
and reviewing therapy targets for the caseload sharing this with families and
staff
Under supervision from a therapist, to
support staff with therapy advice and therapy demonstrations within the
classroom
To participate in the training of staff/ parents to deliver
therapy programmes
Implement and evaluate delegated therapy interventions for
children/ young people feeding back to the therapist.
Independently organise the SaLTA/OTA therapy
timetable with school staff within the setting
Maintain
childrens/ young peoples files to a high standard in line with Cognus
therapies standard operating procedures
To
have responsibility for devising and producing high quality Augmentative and
Alternative Communication (AAC) resources using specialist applications such as
Boardmaker
Where
appropriate to monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of OT equipment
prescribed by the therapist and ensure that such equipment is in good working
order and clean for use
To
keep up to date with clinical developments by attending regular training and
CPD.
-
Specific Duties:
To advise and support school staff on the education
of children and young people with therapy needs regarding:
Appropriate
differentiation of and access to the curriculum.
Promotion
of effective inclusion of children and young people into all aspects of the
school curriculum.
Specialist
strategies and approaches to support access to learning and social and
emotional development.
To
collaborate with school staff to develop an Individual Education Plan/Provision
Map where appropriate.
To
participate in the planning, delivery and evaluation of training sessions for
schools and educational providers as appropriate.
To maintain effective liaison with
all partners e.g. parents, professionals in Education, Health, Social Care and
other Services with particular regard to Safeguarding and best practice:
To
attend team meetings as required.
To
liaise with SALT/OT (NHS clinic) as required.
To
attend clinical and managerial supervision sessions.
To
track and monitor data to provide evidence of the impact of intervention and
use this to plan further programmes of intervention.
To
liaise with parents/ carers and schools and attend multi-agency meetings as
required.
To promote robust Transition arrangements for pupils
with therapy needs including:
Collaboration
with a range of partner agencies to create effective Transition support for
specific children and young people.
To contribute to collaborative working between all
specialist SEN teams by:
Effective
liaison with the Team Manager and lead therapist.
Person Specification
Qualifications
Essential
- Educated to GCSE level or above with good written and spoken English as well as good basic numeracy.
- NVQ in childcare or health level 3 or appropriate experience of working in a similar position.
- Evidence of additional training relevant to the post e.g. ELKLAN accreditation/ introduction to sensory integration/ relevant speech, language and communication needs or occupational therapy training.
Experience
Essential
- Knowledge and experience of working in educational settings with children and young people with special needs.
Desirable
- Experience of multi-agency and multi-disciplinary working.
Knowledge and skills
Essential
- Ability to prioritise and deliver results to high standards.
- Excellent organisational skills including good IT skills with word processing/ email/ internet.
- Excellent communication skills.
- Leads others by setting a positive example in line with company values and acts as a role model.
- Adherence to RCSLT/ RCOT and HCPC policies and procedures.
- Is decisive with problem-solving skills.
- Is committed to safeguarding and protection of children.
- Honours and upholds the Companys Equal Opportunity Policy, Dignity at Work Policy, Safeguarding and Protection of Children, Health and Safety and Data Protection Policy at all times.
Person Specification
Qualifications
Essential
- Educated to GCSE level or above with good written and spoken English as well as good basic numeracy.
- NVQ in childcare or health level 3 or appropriate experience of working in a similar position.
- Evidence of additional training relevant to the post e.g. ELKLAN accreditation/ introduction to sensory integration/ relevant speech, language and communication needs or occupational therapy training.
Experience
Essential
- Knowledge and experience of working in educational settings with children and young people with special needs.
Desirable
- Experience of multi-agency and multi-disciplinary working.
Knowledge and skills
Essential
- Ability to prioritise and deliver results to high standards.
- Excellent organisational skills including good IT skills with word processing/ email/ internet.
- Excellent communication skills.
- Leads others by setting a positive example in line with company values and acts as a role model.
- Adherence to RCSLT/ RCOT and HCPC policies and procedures.
- Is decisive with problem-solving skills.
- Is committed to safeguarding and protection of children.
- Honours and upholds the Companys Equal Opportunity Policy, Dignity at Work Policy, Safeguarding and Protection of Children, Health and Safety and Data Protection Policy at all times.
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.
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).
Additional information
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.
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).
