Speech & Language Therapist / Communication Specialist
Orchard Manor School, Dawlish, Devon, EX7 9SF30 days remaining to apply
Start date details
ASAP
Closing date
19 June 2026 at 4pm
Date listed
20 May 2026
Job details
Job role
- Teacher
Visa sponsorship
- Visas cannot be sponsored
Working pattern
- Full time
Contract type
- Permanent
Full-time equivalent salary
- £29,797.00 Annually (Actual)
Speech & Language Therapist / Communication Specialist job summary
About us:
Orchard Manor School, Dawlish (EX7) | Part of the Special Partnership Trust
Welcome to Orchard Manor School
At Orchard Manor School, we are proud to be a truly inclusive community where every pupil is known, valued and supported to belong. Our work is grounded in our core values of respect, relationships, kindness, community, and health & happiness, which are lived through daily interactions across our school.
We are a specialist school with an outstanding residential provision, supporting pupils aged 4-19 with autism and communication and interaction needs, alongside learning needs.
We place the child firmly at the centre of everything we do. Through strong relationships with pupils, families and professionals, we create a safe, nurturing environment where pupils feel respected, understood and able to thrive.
A significant proportion of our curriculum is dedicated to Communication, Language & Literature, underpinned by a Total Communication approach. Communication is central to wellbeing — supporting pupils’ health & happiness, enabling them to connect, express themselves, and participate fully in their community.
The Role:
We are seeking a passionate and skilled professional to lead communication practice across the school.
This is a key role in helping us:
Deliver the highest-quality universal communication offer across all classrooms and environments
Build consistent, confident practice rooted in respect and kindness
Provide high-quality targeted intervention for pupils with identified speech, language and communication needs
You will play a central role in ensuring that communication is not an add-on, but something that shapes every interaction, every relationship, and every learning experience.
You will lead communication provision across our pathway model (Explore, Discovery and Investigate), ensuring that approaches reflect individual need while enabling pupils to build independence and develop their voice within the school community.
This post is open to candidates who are either:
- a qualified Speech & Language Therapist, or
- a specialist practitioner with expert knowledge in Total Communication and exceptional AAC practice, with a proven ability to influence and develop others
Key Responsibilities:
Leading Whole-School Communication
Lead and embed a consistent Total Communication approach across the school
Ensure AAC systems are used effectively and consistently across environments
Promote a culture where pupils are listened to, respected and actively supported to communicate
Speech, Language and Communication Planning
Assess pupils’ needs and develop clear, practical communication plans
Ensure plans are implemented consistently and reviewed for impact
Align provision with EHCP outcomes and wider developmental goals
Universal Offer and Targeted Intervention
Strengthen the school’s universal communication offer, ensuring high-quality provision for all
Deliver or oversee targeted interventions where more specialist support is required
Ensure a clear link between need, provision and impact
Workforce Development & Line Management
Train, coach and support staff to develop confident, consistent communication practice
Line manage a specialist Teaching Assistant, ensuring strong delivery of interventions and strategies
Build staff capability so that communication approaches are embedded across the school community
Family Partnership & AAC Funding
Work closely with families, recognising their essential role within our community
Support families to access funding for AAC devices, offering advice and contributing to applications and reviews
Ensure communication strategies support consistency between school, home and wider environments
Collaboration & Impact
Work in partnership with external professionals and services
Contribute to EHCP processes, reviews and multi-agency planning
Monitor and evaluate impact, ensuring a strong focus on pupil outcomes and wellbeing
Our Total Reward Offer:
The Special Partnership Trust recognises the importance of developing a properly implemented People Strategy to underpin the overall strategic aims of the Trust.
Our People Strategy is designed to help us attract prospective high calibre candidates, as well as drive engagement, productivity and retention of our high performing and high potential employees. It reflects our belief in putting our people first. This does not mean putting our learners second. It is based on the philosophy that if we create a positive and rewarding work environment, if our staff feel motivated, well managed and well supported, they in turn will provide the best possible outcome for our learners.
We recognise that our total reward offer, has got to consist of more than just money. We seek to provide our staff with a diverse range of benefits that support their day to day needs both at work and outside of work. These include generous leave entitlements and pension scheme as well as access to health/wellbeing tools, training & development, career pathways and opportunities to ensure they feel valued.
Please visit the Special Partnership website, www.specialpartnership.org for further information about our Trust, or to learn more about our People Strategy and Benefits click here.
If you need the application form or any part of the recruitment process in a different format, please contact us directly at kbuckle-cooper@orchard-manor.org and we will make the necessary adjustments.
Are you ready to make a lasting impact? Join us today.
Safeguarding:
The Special Partnership Trust is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. All offers of employment are subject to the satisfactory completion of checks and references, including an Enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check. In accordance with guidance in Keeping Children Safe in Education; the Trust will undertake an online search of all shortlisted candidates.
Further information about the job
Commitment to safeguarding
Our organisation is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults. We expect all staff, volunteers and trustees to share this commitment.
Our recruitment process follows the keeping children safe in education guidance.
Offers of employment may be subject to the following checks (where relevant):
childcare disqualification
Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS)
medical
online and social media
prohibition from teaching
right to work
satisfactory references
suitability to work with children
You must tell us about any unspent conviction, cautions, reprimands or warnings under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975.
Applying for the job
This school accepts applications through their own website, where you may also find more information about this job.
CVs will not be accepted for this application.
View advert on external website (opens in new tab)About Orchard Manor School
- School type
- Academies, Does not apply, ages 3 to 19
- School size
- 219 pupils enrolled
- Age range
- 3 to 19
- Ofsted report
- View Ofsted report
- School website
- Orchard Manor School website
School location
Similar jobs nearby
Get a job alert when similar jobs are listed
Find more school jobs in Devon, Plymouth and Torbay