Core Speech Language Therapist, Child Development Team - Kidz First

Full time, permanent role

Remuneration as per the PSA Allied Health MECA guidelines

Health New Zealand | Te Whatu Ora is firmly grounded in the principles of Te Tiriti o Waitangi and is committed to building a health system that serves all New Zealanders.

The Opportunity:

Kidz First Child Development Team (CDT) are looking for an enthusiastic, highly motivated and confident Speech therapist to join our Speech Therapy team. The ideal candidate will have a passion to work with babies 0-3 years to support with feeding and communication and a desire to make a difference in our community.

The speech language therapist forms part of a wider multi-disciplinary team supporting children with disabilities within the community. The team is based at Kidz First Community Health in Manukau, South Auckland. In this role you will be supported by an amazing team of Speech Language Therapists, a Professional Leader, Clinical Leader and a Team Leader. The team environment is fun, yet goal orientated. Our team support a high Maaori and Pacifica population and would welcome applicants from these communities as well.

Within this role you will work in partnership with the patient, whaanau and other health care providers in order to assess, plan, deliver and evaluate outcomes of care for children 0-3 years predominately. This role provides you with the opportunity to support children with a range of feeding, swallowing and communication difficulties within a community setting. You will assess, diagnose and treat patients accordingly. You will have the opportunity to be upskilled and involved in carrying out Videofluoroscopic Swallow Studies alongside team members and the inpatient SLT. Our range of services delivery is flexible from individual face to face sessions, tele health and running groups. Another component of this role is the opportunity to work alongside the Paediatricians and Psychologists in a multidisciplinary clinic to assess complex children, particularly those who potentially have Autism Spectrum Disorder, Foetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder or Global Developmental Delay.

The preferred candidate will be someone who is an excellent communicator whilst honouring cultural diversity. An ability to effectively organise your caseload, whilst prioritising tasks, would be imperative in order to be successful in this role.

Essential:

• Registration with the New Zealand Speech-Language Therapists’ Association and current APC
• A passion for working with tamariki and advocating for their specific needs
• Full, clean motor vehicle driver’s licence

Preferred:

• Knowledge and experience in the case management of tamariki (birth-3 years) with a range of feeding, swallowing and communication difficulties, across community settings
• Experience working within a health setting
• Experience working within a multi-disciplinary setting and as part of a team
• Experience in paediatric dysphagia

Benefits:

• Refund of annual practising certificate cost
• Free parking
• Discounted services as part of our work perks

Working at Health New Zealand

Health New Zealand | Te Whatu Ora is dedicated to ensuring excellent healthcare for the people of New Zealand. We embrace a workforce that is diverse and inclusive so that we are better positioned to understand and service our community. We welcome applications from our diverse Māori, Pacific, disabled, and rainbow communities.

How to Apply

All applications must be submitted through our online careers’ portal by 22 October 2026. To apply please click “apply now.” To view the job description, please click here.

For more information, please contact Amy on amy.lin@TeWhatuOra.govt.nz

We will review applications as received and may proceed with the recruitment process, before the closing date of this advert.

At Counties Manukau Health people and their lives matter to us. We are a values based and inclusive organisation that is committed to delivering the best health outcomes for our community. To help us achieve this we need a workforce that reflects the population we serve. We strongly encourage applications from all backgrounds who share our values and have a passion to work in our community and would greatly value seeing applicants from our Maaori and Pacific communities. We are also committed to our Disability Strategy, which focuses on people with disabilities; they are our patients, whaanau, community and our staff - all carefully considered in our action plan. Together we will improve the accessibility needs for everyone who has a disability. Our values are Valuing Everyone- Whakawhanaungatanga , Kind –Manaakitanga, Together –Kotahitanga, Excellent- Rangatiratanga. If these are your values too, then join us today.

Job Details

Job Description: This position is a Core Children's worker under the Children's Act & requires full safety checks completed before any new employee starts

Job Posting: Ongoing

Organization: Hospital & Specialist Services

Primary Location: New Zealand

Job: Speech Language Therapist, Full-time, Monday - Friday

Recruiter: Amy Lin