Glossary

Glossary

These are listed alphabetically.  

Allied Health Professional: This term is used to represent the 13 different professions working in the NHS, social care, local authority, education, the justice system and in private practice, supporting clients of all ages who need support with health and care. 

Clinically based practice-based learning: This relates to practice-based learning opportunities with competencies supported and assessed by a registered SLT, in a formal placement period, in a range of professional settings. This can include any elements that are part of an SLT’s role. 

Degree Apprentice: A degree apprentice in SLT is an employee who is studying towards an undergraduate or postgraduate degree in SLT and is registered on an SLT apprenticeship programme. 

Experts with lived experience: A broad term to refer to those who access (or have accessed) the services of SLTs (directly or indirectly), and those who have a caring responsibility for people who access (or have accessed) the services of SLT; sometimes also referred to as ‘service users’. This term may include the family and carers of the service user, or other multidisciplinary colleagues, in some contexts. Different settings use different terms to refer to the service user e.g. in schools, the service user is usually known as ‘the child’; in hospitals, it is usually ‘the patient’; and, in some settings ‘the client’. 

Formal placement period: This refers to the times when learners are completing clinically based assessed learning within a professional practice setting or completing observation placements (non-clinically based). The time spent and competencies developed or learning outcomes met, on formal placement periods are recorded by the learner, practice educator and the HEI. 

Indirectly supervised practice-based learning: This refers to supervision of the learner in a clinically based formal placement period, where the SLT practice educator does not work in the setting where the practice placement is provided. There is usually a non-SLT mentor in the setting. The SLT practice educator will regularly plan and debrief with the learner to support their development. The student will carry out sessions and activities independently. Practice placements using this model of supervision may also be referred to as role-emerging placements.  

Lead practice educator: where a learner has more than one educator on a practice placement, a lead practice educator should be appointed, and should take the lead for the practice placement. They should co-ordinate the timetable for the learner, collate feedback from all educators and discussed the grade / placement outcome with the learner. 

Learner: the term learner is used throughout this guidance to represent all learners on pre-registration SLT programmes and apprentices. Pre-registration students include those on traditional bachelor’s or master’s degree programmes. 

Link lecturer: This role is provided by an academic or clinical tutor from the HEI, who is the named person who links with the service or Trust supporting practice educators and learners on practice placements.  

Non-clinically based practice-based learning:  This relates to practice-based learning opportunities with learning outcomes supported and assessed by SLTs and / or by other professionals. This includes observation sessions, as part of formal placements, in contexts where an SLT is not present e.g. nursery / school / care homes, where staff in the setting will support SLT learners. This term also includes HEI based clinical workshops that are not part of a formal placement period.  

Placement provider: The term ‘placement provider’ refers to the staff in a clinical setting who are providing the practice-based learning opportunity. It may be used to refer to an organisational level (where appropriate) and can include the differentiated roles of the practice educator, the placement co-ordinator and the service manager (where appropriate), or it may refer to a sole practitioner. This guidance acknowledges that in sole practitioner independent settings, the multiple roles (placement co-ordinator, practice educator and service manager) may all be carried out by one individual. 

Practice educator (PE): A practice educator is a registered SLT who supports student SLTs in clinical learning environments. They facilitate practice education alongside clinical and academic colleagues. In addition, the practice educator holds responsibility for signing off competency and assessment criteria, based upon the standards produced by the education provider and relevant professional body. It is recognised that local models of delivery and assessment will apply. It is the practice educator who holds responsibility for ensuring that the contributing elements of a practice placement cover the relevant learning outcomes necessary for the learner, where possible. The terms placement educator, clinical teacher, clinician may all be used to refer to the practice educator. It is the responsibility of the HEI to ensure that students have the opportunity to work towards all learning outcomes on the variety of practice placements provided, across the duration of the pre-registration programme. They may take a lead role and co-ordinate the support from a team of clinicians who support, teach and scaffold the learner, and as such might be described as the ‘lead practice educator’. 

Practice learning facilitator (PLF) or Practice Education Facilitator (PEF) / Practice Education Leads (PELS): These are roles usually funded by the NHS, to support practice-based learning, and to enhance liaison between HEIs and practice placement settings. 

Practice placement: This is the period of study undertaken by learners as a formal element of their speech and language therapy pre-registration training, based within a working and learning environment (including HEI based clinics, as well as those outside of the academic institution). During practice placements, learners are assessed against learning outcomes set by the HEI for the practice placement. To pass the practice placement, they must reach the competency level required for their level of learning, in line with the HCPC Standards of Proficiency 2023. 

Practice placement co-ordinator: this is a role appointed by a service or Trust and the individual will be the main link between the service / Trust and the HEI. The role involves distributing placement allocations, supporting clinical colleagues to attend practice educator training, engaging with the HEI to audit the practice placement, amongst other practice placement related tasks.  

Practice-based learning: this term relates to clinical education in a variety of settings which enables learners to develop, practice and apply their knowledge and skills in a structured and safe context. The term ‘practice-based learning’ is used interchangeably with ‘practice placement’ and refers to times when learners (pre-registration students and apprentices) are completing assessed learning within a professional practice setting.  

Role-emerging placements: These are practice placements where an SLT does not work in the setting but supports a student on practice placement there. There is usually a non-SLT mentor in the setting. The SLT, as practice educator, plans and debriefs with the student regularly and will observe some sessions to provide feedback to the student. This model may provide evidence for the need for SLT provision in the setting and may lead to the development of a business case to support the commissioning of SLT provision. For more information please visit: HEE Role Emerging Placements  

Service user: A broad term to refer to those who access (or have accessed) the services of SLTs (directly or indirectly), and those who have a caring responsibility for people who access (or have accessed) the services of SLT; sometimes also known as ‘experts with lived experience’. This term may include the family and carers of the service user, or other multidisciplinary colleagues, in some contexts. Different settings use different terms to refer to the service user e.g. in schools, the service user is usually known as ‘the child’; in hospitals, it is usually ‘the patient’; and, in some settings ‘the client’. 

Student: This is a learner, registered with an HEI on an SLT pre-registration degree programme. This may be at Bachelor or Masters’ level. 

Telehealth practice placements: This refers to placements where the service and / or the practice placement is provided remotely by telehealth. The educator and student may not be onsite in the same clinical setting at the same time, they may work from a clinical site, from a university location or from home. The practice educator and student can plan and debrief together, via technology, and the student may or may not carry out sessions and activities independently. They are also referred to as remote, virtual, online or digital practice placements. This will usually be part of clinically based practice-based learning opportunities.