Inspire the next generation of SLTs with the NHS ambassadors programme

By volunteering just one hour per year to speak to students about your job, you can play a vital part in encouraging young people to join our profession and gain skills that will benefit you in your own career.

This is a great way to inspire local young people to begin their journey to a career in speech and language therapy. With the NHS facing many workforce challenges following the COVID-19 pandemic, recruiting the next generation is essential in combating speech and language therapy being declared a shortage profession.

Being an NHS ambassador is an important part of ensuring the future of the NHS is skilled and diverse. It also gives volunteers a chance to further their careers, develop their confidence and network with other NHS staff.

A report into the impact of NHS ambassadors (PDF) revealed that they have helped nearly 400,000 students learn about their career options.

It quotes a student who attended an NHS ambassadors event, who said:

“I learnt that there are loads of jobs that we haven’t even heard about and we should search for them.”

Get involved

Watch Health Education England’s (HEE) short animation to learn more about this exciting programme.

This comes as part of National Volunteers Week at the beginning of June. Find out more about NHS ambassadors at an online webinar on Monday 6 June.

To get involved, register as a volunteer on the Inspiring the Future website.