Once we receive a referral, we use the information provided on the referral form to decide the next steps.

For pre-school children

If your child is not yet in school, someone from our team will call you to book an appointment. This will be at a clinic. Some teams will visit you at your home. We’ll send you a text with the date and time.

At the first appointment, we’ll give you some ideas and tips to try with your child at home. If your child goes to nursery or childcare, we’ll also share advice with the staff to help support your child there. We may offer another appointment if it’s needed.

For school-aged children

If your child is seen at school, we will arrange the appointment with the staff there. Please let the school or the Children’s Speech and Language Therapy team know if you want to attend the appointment.

Appointments usually last about an hour. During the visit, a speech and language therapist (SLT) will talk to your child’s teacher and check how your child is doing with things like speaking, understanding, communication, and swallowing (if needed).

For adults

When we receive your referral, we will contact you to book your first appointment. This might be at a clinic or home, but we may offer a phone or video call first to gather some information. We’ll send you a text or email to confirm the date and time.

At your first appointment, we will talk with you about your concerns and assess your needs. A speech and language therapist will carry out the assessment.

After the assessment, we will create a plan together with clear, achievable goals. We may offer one-to-one sessions, group sessions, or give you advice and strategies to use at home or in daily life.

The following people may be at your appointment:

• Speech and Language Therapist (SLT): A trained SLT will take care of your child. All our SLTs are registered with Health Care Professions Council and Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists.
• Speech and language therapy assistant: Sometimes, a SLT assistant will help with your child’s care, but they work under the SLT’s supervision.
• SLT students: Students training to be SLTs might work with your child while being watched by the SLT. If you don’t want a student involved, please tell the SLT.

The speech and language therapist (SLT) will talk with you and school staff about the different types of help we can offer, such as:

• Workshops for parents
• Training for nursery, school, or education staff
• One to one support
• Group sessions
• A set of strategies and activities for you to use regularly
• Sometimes we send you a text with links to helpful websites or videos.
• We may ask for your consent to refer to other services.

The SLT will write a report with the results of the assessment and a support plan. This report will explain what we found and what we recommend, and we will share it with you.

A Speech and Language Therapy Support Plan is a simple, personalised guide that explains how we’ll help your child develop their communication skills.

It includes:

• What your child needs help with, like talking, understanding words, using sentences, or social interaction.
• What support will be put in place, this could be fun games, structured activities, or strategies used at home and school.
• Who will help, usually a speech and language therapist working closely with you, your child’s teacher, and any other professionals involved.
• Clear goals, small, achievable steps we want your child to work toward (for example, using more words, asking for help, following instructions)

A Feeding Plan is an important, personalised guide that explains the accommodations to make when the child or young person is eating, drinking or swallowing.

When your time with us ends, we’ll give you a plan to help you carry on at home. It will include tips and advice. It will also explain how to come back to us if you need more help later.

Make sure to go to all your appointments and workshops to get the most from the support available.

Follow the advice and activities the SLT suggests in your support plan regularly. Communication happens all day, every day, and everyday routines are excellent opportunities to try the ideas you’ve been given.

The therapist might talk to you about referring you or your child to other services, like audiology (hearing tests). They may also want to talk to other people. Such as teachers or support staff, to see how communication is going in different places. They will always talk to you first and get your permission before contacting anyone else.

Please tell us if your contact details change, like your address, phone number, or GP.

We offer support through episodes of care, which means we provide therapy at the times it’s most helpful for your child’s development. Each episode focuses on a specific goal or need. After that, we may pause therapy to give your child time to practise new skills at home or in school.

We know some parents would like more frequent sessions, but our service is designed to give the right support at the right time, rather than ongoing weekly therapy. This approach helps your child make progress while making the best use of the service for all families.

If you feel your child needs more regular support, you can still use the activities and advice we’ve shared, and we’ll always be here to review things or start a new episode of care when needed. Some families also choose to look into private therapy alongside our support, if you’re interested, we can guide you to trusted sources.

Some families choose to see a speech and language therapist (SLT) privately, either alongside or instead of NHS support. If you’re considering this option, it’s important to find a qualified and registered therapist. You can search for independent SLTs in your area using the Association of Speech and Language Therapists in Independent Practice (ASLTIP) website. All therapists listed there are fully qualified and members of recognised professional bodies.

We will only share information with your consent and where it is appropriate to the care we are providing.
We use this safe computer system to keep all the information about those who attend speech therapy. It helps us track progress and changes and share important information with others involved in the care. This way, everyone works together to give the best care.

Contact the service by phone or email if you are unable to attend. Please give as much notice as possible.

If you do not come to an appointment and don’t tell us before, you may have to be re-referred to receive another appointment.

“The course was delivered by a very knowledgeable trainer who had personal experience of raising a child who needed to use communication aids. This helped as she had real life experience and was very relatable. The course covered enough content without feeling overwhelmed and gave practical advice for what to do if the strategy wasn’t working.”

“My son has been looked after by the Feeding and Swallow team for around 4 years. The care she showed my son and me was outstanding. We couldn’t have asked for anything more from the care or service received. I can’t thank Liz enough for everything she has done to help us on this journey.”

“I felt like my concerns were taken seriously and thoroughly investigated, everything was explained clearly in a friendly non-patronising way”

If you have a complaint, concern, comment, or compliment, please let us know by speaking to a member of staff. We learn from your feedback and use the information you provide to improve and develop our services.

You can tell us about the care you have received by filling out the Friends and Family Test for our trust.