Speech and language therapy services
Where to get help if you have concerns
Most children can successfully develop their speech and language skills without needing specialist support from a speech therapist.
Good progress can usually be made by:
- Doing activities at home
- Getting support and advice from Norfolk NHS healthy child programme team
- Getting expert help from your child's nursery, preschool, or school staff
Norfolk NHS healthy child programme team
The NHS healthy child programme team provides health services to support all families with children aged 0-19-years-old. An understanding health professional will be able to give you advice. They may refer you to a health team in your local area. If your child is 0-5-years-old they might also refer you to the early childhood and family service.
Available 8am-6pm Monday-Friday and 9am-1pm Saturday.
2-year-old review
All two-year-olds in Norfolk get a 2-year-old health review by a health visitor from the healthy child programme team. The team will contact you to arrange the meeting. You will be asked to complete a questionnaire about your child's communication skills before the meeting. Do not be worried about this, it is not a test! You can discuss any concerns you might have at the review. The health visitor will help you get more support if needed.
Support at your child's place of learning
If your child is at nursery, preschool, or school, you should speak to their keyworker or class teacher. They are trained professionals who can help develop speech and language skills on a day-to-day basis. They can assess your child's speech and language skills, and start a support process to help your child.
Your child's nursery, preschool, or school will use speech and language tools and strategies. It might take time to see progress.
It is important that you are involved in the support process, and the nursery, preschool, or school explains what is happening. You might be asked to come in and watch how your child is being supported.
Your child's place of learning should let you know how long they will use a specific tool or strategy. It will depend on your child's level of need. The process might need to be repeated several times. You should ask to speak to the special educational needs coordinator (SENCO) if you have concerns.
Continuing to support your child at home, doing activities and exercises, is just as important as the support at your child's place of learning.
Your child will have the best outcomes if everyone works together.
Keep records
The nursery, preschool, or school should keep records of everything they are doing to help your child. It is also helpful to keep a record of what you are doing at home.