Speech and language therapy
Speech, language and communication are crucial to every child’s ability to access and get the most out of education and everyday life.
10% of children will have a long-term speech, language and communication needs (SLCN) – that’s 3 children in every classroom.
Children with SLCN are among the most vulnerable:
- 2/3 of children who are at risk of exclusion from school have SLCN
- 60% of those people accessing the youth justice service have SLCN
- 81% of children with emotional/ behavior disorders have unidentified SLCN
- Children with good spoken language skills by age 5 predicts later academic success.
They are most in need of effective support to reach their potential.
Speech and language therapy referral
Schools should seek the permission from the child’s parents before making a referral. You can download the speech and language therapy referral form here:
- Primary school referral form speech and language therapy (doc)
- High school referral form speech and language therapy (doc)
Speech and language therapy 'buy in service' for schools
Ealing schools can buy in speech and language therapy (SLT) time on a range of packages, giving them access to a wealth of knowledge, expertise and resources.
Here are some examples of activities a SLT can do during a buy-in session, across the different levels:
- Universal (for all children)
- A SLT can provide training for school staff, parent coffee mornings, show how different therapy approaches can be used in class and make communication friendly suggestions to a class and/or school environment
- Targeted (for children who need some support)
- A SLT can set up and review therapy groups running by TAs/LSAs
- Specialist (for children who need specific SLT support)
- A SLT can provide assessments, reports and therapy programmes for children with speech, language and communication needs.
Find out more about our buy-in service in your school by contacting our speech and language therapy administrator on 0300 12345 44
Access training run by a speech and language therapist
You can access training run by a speech and language therapist:
Central training - Free training for SENCOs, teachers, TAs and LSAs. Some trainings are suitable for parents also. SENCos will be sent available training dates twice yearly, in autumn and Spring term.
For bespoke training in schools, please contact us to arrange this wlm-tr.sltuniversalservices@nhs.net .
Ealing speech and language therapy in early years foundation stage
You can access training run by a speech and language therapist. Free online trainings for parents and/or practitioners aimed at supporting children under 5, which can be accessed via facebook and/or Ealing CPD.
Dates are sent via email directly to children’s centres, nurseries, childminders and health visiting teams.
Groups to support children aged 0-5
There is no referral needed to access these:
- Makaton Sign time- a group for parents and children aged 0-5 run by the SLT Team in children’s centres and online. Parents and children can come and learn around 140 Makaton Signs!
- Talk and Play - a play based group run by children’s centre staff, supported by the SLT team, for parents and children aged 18 months-3 years who would benefit from support with their language development.
- Fun and Learn - a play based group run by children’s centre staff, supported by the SLT team, for parents and children aged 0-5 with social communication needs - especially attention and social interaction difficulties.
Speech and language communication needs (SLCN)
You can access further information and resources are available to support children's SLCN needs:
From Ealing speech and language therapy service
For advice about a child’s (0-18 years) communication or general questions about speech and language:
- Follow Ealing speech and language therapy Facebook page
- Call our advice line
- to speak with a Speech and Language Therapist
- Open Monday – Friday 1-4pm
- on 07512 716 478
- this is for parents and professionals
- Email: ealing.sltadvice@nhs.net
- Monitored by a Speech and Language Therapist, Monday-Friday
- this is for parents and professionals
- Access our Youtube channel for workshops, school assembly videos and awareness content. Upcoming content will include more of the above plus bite-size clips on Speech and Language Therapy strategies.Visit our website: http://www.westlondon.nhs.uk/slt
Promoting a communication friendly environment in the classroom
A collaborative evaluation of the communication environment in the classroom to enhance the participation of children with speech, language and communication needs. The checklist should be used jointly by a speech and language therapist, class teacher and SENCo/senior staff member. Use to identify areas or specific strategies to be developed in the classroom to support childrens needs as specified in their statement of special educational needs:
