Speech and language service success highlighted

Nottingham Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust has been formally recognised for the success of its Children’s Centres Speech and Language Therapy Service.

The Bercow: Ten Years On report, researched and written by ICAN and the Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists, highlighted the Speech and Language Therapy Service as an example of best practice and praised it  for its Home Talk service, which provides a home visiting service offering support for parents of two year old children with early language delay.

Launched by the Speaker of the House of Commons, John Bercow, the report notes: ‘Nottinghamshire Children’s Services employ an evaluation lead, skilled in research, who supports the whole team to be involved in evaluation. They have communicated their evaluation of core programmes in one single ‘Year of Evaluation’ document. Evidence is used to inform improvements to services and to communicate a strong case for continued investment’.

The report emphasised how communication is crucial to children’s life chances, yet awareness of its importance among the public and decision makers is not sufficient, and that too many services are inaccessible and inequitable. Too often support for children’s speech, language and communication needs is planned and funded based on the available resources, rather than what is needed, leading to an unacceptable level of variation across the country.

Jane Young, Speech and Language Therapy Service Manager at the trust, said: “This was an incredibly moving experience. Hearing from a 15 year old young lady who had received good speech and language therapy support as a child, expressing her concerns that young children she knows are not getting the right support was very powerful. It is important that everyone in Nottinghamshire makes use of the findings of this review to do whatever they can to ensure Nottinghamshire’s children get enough early support.These needs are ten times more common than autism, yet so little is known about them in the population at large and amongst decision-makers.”