Worried about your child’s speech and language development?

If you are concerned about your child’s speech and language development then there are lots of professionals and charities that can help you:

If your child is not yet at school, then you can contact the free NHS speech and language therapy service. You can book an online appointment by filling out the form here NHS referrals

If your child is at school

1. Talk to your child’s teachers.
2. They will be able to discuss your child’s communication in the classroom and with their friends. Sometimes this is different from how children communicate at home so it is useful to have all pieces of the puzzle.
3. Your school might try working on aspects of your child’s communication in school to help their skills develop
4. Your school might decide to refer to a speech and language therapist to get some more specialist advice
5. The NHS offers a free speech and language therapy service. Your child’s school will need to gather some information about your child’s communication and then send this information to the NHS. Your child’s school will ask you to sign a form to say that you’re happy with this. The NHS therapist will then decide whether your child needs further help from the speech and language therapy team.
6. Click here to find out more about what the NHS can offer NHS Speech and Language Therapy for Children in Peterborough
7. If you want to talk to someone else then the charity Speech and Language UK offer a free enquiry service for parents. You can book a free 30-minute phone appointment with a speech and language therapist to discuss your child here Speech and Language UK Enquiry Service
8. Some parents choose to hire an independent speech and language therapist to work with their child. If you would like to do this then you can use the ‘find an SLT’ search on the ASLTIP website Independent Speech and Language Therapists to find a speech and language therapist near you.

There are national charities which support families of children who have challenges with talking and understanding

Afasic

Speech and Language UK

RADLD (Developmental Language Disorder)

SMIRA (Situational/ Selective Mutism)

Makaton (communication using symbols, signs and words)

 

You can check how your child is doing using the Speech and Language UK Progress Checker