Faculty of Allied Health Professionals
The Faculty of Allied Health Professionals (AHP) focuses on the development, inclusion, diversity and welfare of professionals working in the Health sector.
We recognise excellence for education, research and innovation and opportunities for learning, qualifications and clinical academic career pathways. This faculty is dedicated to key recruitment and resourcing to ensure sustainability and growth.
Faculty Aim:
To support its professionals by creating a good working environment, build and strengthen leadership and influence, retain and develop career pathways for staff in the future.
Faculty Vision:
To ‘grow our own’ supply of AHPs, ensuring robust deployment and development of staff, whilst placing a focus on the retention, diversity & inclusion of the workforce, to ensure Bucks ICP has the right workforce with the right skills in the right place to deliver high quality care by 2024.
Melissa Martin
Allied Health Professionals Faculty Lead
Professional and Practice Development Therapist, CYP Integrated Therapy Service, Buckinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust
Melissa qualified as a Speech and Language Therapist in 2001 from University College London. As a Speech and Language Therapist she has worked across a variety of community and education settings to support early years and school-aged children’s speech, language and communication development. Specialising in Early Years, Melissa worked as part of the Sure Start/Children’s Centre programme, within a multi-disciplinary team, delivering community-based health promotion campaigns and early intervention.
Following a career break, due to a move to Philadelphia for 3 years, she completed the Return to Practice programme and took up a clinical Speech and Language Therapy position in 2015, within the Children and Young People’s Integrated Therapies service in Buckinghamshire NHS Trust. Melissa started her current role as Practice Development Therapist in this team in 2018.
As a Practice Development Therapist Melissa’s focus is on workforce development ensuring all colleagues within the team are accessing regular clinical supervision and continual professional development opportunities to support quality service delivery. Melissa also supports the preceptorship of newly qualified therapists within the team, co-ordinates and supports student clinical and work experience placements and, as a Career Ambassador, regularly attends career events to speak to students about considering a career as an Allied Health Professional.
Occupational Therapy Connect and Celebrate Event
(08/11/24)
For the first time ever, this BHSCA in-person event brought together the Occupational Therapy community from across Buckinghamshire (health, social care, VCSE and education). Chaired by Elizabeth Evans, AHP Workforce Programme Fellow (Occupational Therapist), the interactive programme consisted of inspiring speakers:
- Kalimah Ibrahiim, OT Programme Lead, BNU
- Gemma Donnelly, Chief AHP at BOB ICB
- Geraldine Conway, AHP Project Manager at BOB ICB
- MP Laura Kyrke-Smith
Speakers explored Occupational Therapy workforce challenges, SEND and health inequalities, in the context of strategic planning and allocation of resources to manage health, education, housing and care needs. Recognising the value of connectivity and embodying belonging, there was plentiful opportunity for professional networking, shared learning, and celebrating innovation, fostered by the collaborative environment of the Buckinghamshire Community Wellbeing Hub as a venue.
With around 40 attendees, representing all levels and stages of careers, including learners and apprentices, greater awareness and opportunities for joined-up working and collective action to best position, and amplify the value of Occupational Therapy for our communities we serve were highlighted. Reflections, and actions to take forward for CPD were shared, to harness our potential, expand our influence and optimise our workforce to benefit our residents and population outcomes in Bucks were at the forefront.
Feedback was overwhelmingly positive; respondents were energised, valued connecting with this community, and 100% were likely to recommend the event to others, rating it either 4 or 5 stars!
Link Therapy Workers
Successful recruitment of band 3 roles within the Children and Young People’s Integrated Therapy Service in BHT (Speech and Language Therapy, Physiotherapy, Occupational Therapy)
A joint induction is provided across BHT and Buckinghamshire Council to:
- Provide support to education & nursery settings and family centres in Bucks to coordinate therapy assessments, embed interventions and promote wider workforce training to support children with SEND
- Work closely with the aforementioned stakeholders to support children's needs using the Graduated Approach, empowering staff and co-ordinating and signposting to activities.
BHSCA have been working in collaboration with NHS England South East and Springpod to evaluate and re-design the
'Allied Health Professionals with NHS England' virtual work experience resource.
The newly updated version has a new focus on degree apprenticeships into AHP careers, features videos speaking to real professionals in a variety of AHP careers and at a variety of stages in those careers, as well as realistic activities to give learners a small taste of what being an AHP is like.
Completion of the work experience will give you, along with the invaluable experience and knowledge of what AHPs are and what they do, a certificate to include and greatly enhance your UCAS, job or apprenticeship applications!
Click the flyer or here to get to the resource on Springpod's platform.
Filmed as part of the 'Allied Health Professionals with NHS England' virtual work experience evaluation, the following videos show the experiences of three students currently gaining their respective AHP qualifications via degree apprenticeships.
Buckinghamshire New University's newly introduced AHP courses -
Diagnostic Radiography MSc programme
- starting in January 2025
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"Working in diagnostic radiography is fun, challenging and full of opportunities. No day is ever the same for a diagnostic radiographer, and you’ll be engaging a wide range of patients throughout your career."
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BNU's course is a fantastic opportunity for you to become registered with the HCPC and gain work experience in local trusts around BOB. You’ll master the latest equipment and learn from experienced radiography lecturers.
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Diagnostic Radiographer Integrated Degree Apprenticeship (Level 6) programme
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Download the full course flyer here and email course contact Aarthi Ramlaul here
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Occupational Therapy BSc (Hons) programme
- started September 2024
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As an occupational therapist, you will help people overcome difficulties carrying out day-to-day activities. It is a fulfilling role and a great way to give back to the community, and that’s why BNU's inspirational work placements are close to home in Buckinghamshire, Berkshire and Oxfordshire. With insightful teaching, amazing facilities and a friendly student community, there is no limit to where you can go with BNU.
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Buckinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust Allied Health Professionals at the 2024 Bucks Skills Show
Rosie and Yasmeen (Speech and Language Therapy Assistants), Paula (Occupational Therapy Assistant), Jamie (Radiographer) and our AHP Faculty Lead Melissa Martin (Speech and Language Therapist) were in attendance as part of the BHT team.
They spent time at the event speaking to hundreds of students from schools around Buckinghamshire, raising awareness of AHP roles and career paths!
Wanted:
AHP Career Ambassadors
What are AHP Career Ambassadors?
AHP Career Ambassadors are AHPs working in Bucks who are passionate and enthusiastic about their work and can help to increase others knowledge and understanding of AHP careers.
The project aims:
To identify AHPs in Bucks who would like to be/are already acting as career ambassadors.
The AHP Faculty are looking to expand the number and diversity of the AHP Career Ambassadors across Bucks!
If you would like to be involved in the work development group or are interested in finding out more about becoming an AHP Career Ambassador, contact the BOB AHP Faculty on their website.
NHS England (previously Health Education England (HEE)) has published an infographic to demonstrate to employers and workforce planners, how AHPs, the third-largest workforce in the NHS, can make a unique contribution to learning disability services. The information was co-designed with the AHP Mental Health and Learning Disability Observatory.
The BOB (Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire West) AHP Faculty
The latest BOB AHP Faculty newsletter edition: March 2025
Every Allied Health Profession has a governing body, and a regular day/week of celebration for the profession
Health Education England (now NHS England) Support Worker Framework
The HEE AHP Support Worker Competency, Education and Career Development Framework was developed o provide structured career progression for AHP Support Workers. It also helps maintain standardised competencies to help AHP Support Workers feel confident and competent in their roles.
Are you an AHP Support Worker working in Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire West (BOB)?
The BOB AHP Support Worker Network aims to improve learning and development opportunities, value and recognise AHP Support Workers and provide an opportunity for networking and feedback.
Bright futures @ BHT Career Chats: Allied Health Professionals
During February half-term 2024, Buckinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust welcomed 70+ young people on work experience, including their new 3-day Allied Health Professions taster, which gives insight into 8 AHP roles through talks, simulations and real-life clinical observations.
The professions were dietetics, occupational therapy, operating department practitioner (ODP), orthoptics, physiotherapy, podiatry, radiography and speech and language therapy (SLT). Some photos of the work experience can be found on BHT's X account here
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