It’s estimated that in 2023, one in every five primary and secondary school aged children have speech, language and communication needs (SLCN). There are many different conditions a child could experience, from speech sound disorders to language processing disorders, stammering to autism spectrum disorders (ASD); their challenges are not always visible or obvious.
- Development Language Disorder (DLD) is common yet many people know little about this SLCN. DLD affects children’s understanding and use of language and left untreated, increases the risk of a range of negative impacts on education, social and emotional problems.
- Selective Mutism (SM) is an anxiety disorder of which we have seen an increase in cases since the pandemic. It is most common for girls and can begin at any age.
- Current statistics show that 1 in every 100 UK children have a diagnosis of autism (ASD) although it is predicted the actual figure is far higher. Latest government reports state NHS waiting times for autism diagnostic pathways are currently a minimum of 13 weeks.
Children with undiagnosed SLCN may struggle to keep up with their peers in the classroom leading to feelings of frustration or inadequacy due to their struggles with communication. They could be disengaged or lack concentration, struggle to make friends or control their emotions, be hyperactive or disruptive, or they could display obsessive behaviour – in all cases though, without diagnosis and intervention, their academic achievement and overall development can be significantly impacted. However this doesn’t have to be the case.
At Chatterbug, we continuously seek ways in which we can make a significant difference to children with communication difficulties and have built a reputation for delivering high quality, evidence-based services that provide real results.
A proud social enterprise, we offer intervention without long waiting times for children with SLCN, either as a private client or via our education services (in schools/nurseries). Early identification of SLCN allows for timely intervention, but a child of any age, with any level of SLCN will benefit enormously from intervention, both academically and in personal development.
All of our services are expertly delivered by our qualified, registered and highly experienced Speech and Language Therapists (SLTs) alongside our highly skilled Communication and Language Specialists (CALS)
- Education services
- Range of packages for schools and nurseries including our Intervention First™ model, assessments and specialist therapy.
- Private Clinics
- Assessments and therapy delivered in-person, online or hybrid via our clinics.
- Autism Pre-screening
- Accessible online – affordable pre-screening evaluated by qualified SLTs to identify whether a child requires a full in-person ASD assessment.
- Autism Assessment Panel
- Individual child autism assessments delivered by an expert multidisciplinary team, consisting of multiple healthcare professionals.
- Training
- Range of online training videos to assist schools and parents deliver SLCN activities
If have any concerns regarding your child’s communication abilities, work in education and have a query about our schools/nurseries educational packages or have any queries regarding the support Chatterbug offer, please contact us via email office@chatter-bug.com or call our Leeds head office on 0113 240 8510
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