The SLC is designed to put both parents and children at ease in a relaxed homely environment. We strive to obtain a holistic view of each individual child and develop a profile of their strengths and weaknesses to facilitate individualised sessions tailored to meet their personal needs.

The first part of the assessment is a parent/carer-only meeting to discuss your concerns and allow us to take a case history. The purpose of the case history is to get a clear picture of the child and their development and how they function within the context of their environment. This is an informal discussion with the parent to obtain all relevant information regarding the child’s medical and developmental history. We will take this opportunity to discuss any speech and language difficulties your child may be experiencing.

During the second session, an assessment of your child’s speech, language and communication skills will be completed. Assessment is usually a combination of informal play based assessment and more formal assessment depending on your child’s age and stage of development. The purpose of assessment is to determine your child’s strengths and weaknesses and create a profile of how your child functions within the context of their environment. The parent or carer is welcome to remain in the room, we recognise that parents know their child best and can provide valuable information about the child’s ability.

At the end of the second session, we will provide you with verbal feedback, a written summary and hold a discussion about our clinical recommendations.

Following assessment your child will either be; seen for therapy sessions, advised that they will be seen for review in an agreed period of time or discharged if there are no significant difficulties. Direct intervention is not always required; the parent may be given advice/activities to do at home and the child will be reviewed again in an agreed period of time. In a lot of instances individual children benefit from a home programme which would complement the work being done during the SLT sessions. We ask parents to cooperate and assist their child in completing this home programme as appropriate. This may only take a few minutes per day but must be done frequently and consistently in order for it to be effective. We will also work in collaboration with the child’s teacher.

If therapy sessions are indicated, these are arranged in blocks of 6 sessions. At the end of a therapy block, you will be advised to continue the home programme with your child and they will be reviewed after an agreed period of time, typically 6 weeks. This time allows your child to consolidate their new skills and generalise what they have learned. A decision will then be made to decide if further therapy sessions are required.

Waiting times for private speech and language therapy are usually shorter in comparison to the public services. At the SLC we aim to provide speech and language services at a rate and frequency according to clinical need within a short time frame, rather than offering therapy based upon the availability of resources.

If you have any concerns about your child’s speech and language skills, you can talk to your GP, public health nurse, nursery / school teacher, or you can call us at the SLC for an informal discussion. Early intervention is an important part in helping a child’s communication development. Evidence based research demonstrates that early intervention is an effective method of treating children with communication difficulties. We would advise all parents who have concerns about their child’s speech and language skills to contact us at the SLC.

Every child is different and the development of speech and language skills can vary considerably from one child to another. However, the following are some general guidelines to observe for in your child’s speech and language development:

• By 6—12 months: Babbles and vocalises, giggles and laughs, can vocalise excitement and displeasure. Uses gesture to communicate for e.g. puts up hands to be picked up or points to obtain something. Responds appropriately to his/her name other peoples tones, turns head and looks in the direction of sounds.
• By 12—15 months: Uses one or more words with meaning, saying more words every month.  Understand and respond to simple instructions especially if vocal or physical cues are given. Let you know they want something by pointing to it.
• By 15—18 months: Says approximately 5-20 words and the vocabulary is made up mostly of nouns. Appears to understand more words than he/she uses. Puts two words together for e.g.  “more juice” and “bye bye”.
• By 18—24 months: Can name a number of common objects within his/her environment. Uses some prepositions for e.g in/on/under. Uses a range of short phrases e.g. “mama gone”, “more milk”. My and mine are starting to emerge. Follows simple commands such as ‘show me your eyes’. Understand much of what you say. Asks for food/drink when hungry/thirsty.
• By 2—3 years: Speech is understood by unfamiliar listeners most of the time. Uses three or four words together in a sentence to talk about or ask for things. Uses k, g, f, t, d, and n sounds. Know colours. Directs attention or asks for things by name. There is evidence of the use of prepositions (in/on/under), pronouns (he/she), regular plurals (cat/cats) and other grammatical structures. Understands the differences between “big-small”, “in-on” or “up-down”. Follows two step commands, e.g. “get your book and put it in the car”. Listens to and enjoys stories.
• By 3—4 years: Talks about things that are not here and now, eg talks about friends at school or about something they did earlier or plan to do later. Unfamiliar listeners usually understand your child’s speech. Ask a lot of why questions and uses sentence with four or more words.  Grammar improves with some errors remaining. Usually talks easily without repeating syllables or words. Answers simple “Who?” “What?” “When”  “Where?” and “Why?” questions. Often indulges in make believe.
• By 4—5 years: Use complex sentences e.g. “I ate all my dinner before I had desert”. Use more advanced grammar and uses sentences that provide lots of detail. Can say most sounds correctly except a few like l, s, r, v, z, ch, sh, th. Speech has only a few errors. Recognise some letters/words in simple books/signs. Pays attention and can answer questions about a story. hears and understands what is said at home and in school.

All children develop differently and at different times. As a parent, you know your child best and if s/he is struggling to communicate in comparison with other children his age, it may be appropriate for him to have a speech and language therapy assessment.

Before you attend your first appointment we ask you to recall your child’s developmental history. Below are a number of questions that we may ask you during the case history:

• When did your child start making sounds (babbling)?
• When did they use their first words? Use two words together?
• When did they first crawl? Take their first steps?
• When did they independently dress/feed themselves/use the toilet?

Whether you attend public or private SLT is up to you and your/your child’s individual needs. The SLT’s at the SLC can work in collaboration with other SLT’s in other services to ensure that you are receiving the most appropriate service for your needs. It is in your own/your child’s best interest to inform the SLT if you are receiving any other therapy which may be relevant to you/your child’s progress.

Yes, you can claim tax back at the lowest tax band rate. We will provide you with a printed receipt which you should retain and apply for tax back through the MED 1 form.  The MED 1 form is available from your local tax office.

Yes, we are all fully qualified Speech and Language Therapist registered with CORU (www.coru.ie). Joanna has a BA in Psychology and MSc in Speech and Language Therapy from the University of Limerick. Anne-Marie has a BSc in Nursing and a BSc in Clinical Speech and Language Studies from Trinty College Dublin. We are all registered with the Irish Association of Speech and Language Therapists. As health care professionals we are dedicated to evidence based research and continuing professional development.