Assessment
Why does my child need an assessment?
Does your child/young person have difficulties with:
Following instructions (may start to do something but then stops)
Remembering what you have said / asked them to do
Learning and recalling new words
Pronouncing sounds and words
Making friends or socialising with others
Getting their words out
Putting words together to make coherent sentences
Assessment is CRUCIAL to understanding the needs of your child in order to be able to provide appropriate advice and/or deliver targeted therapy.
What is a speech and language assessment?
A speech and language assessment will vary depending upon the needs of your child and their age. Before carrying out the assessment, I will ask you to complete a background form to help me to tailor my assessment to your child. The different types of assessment I can offer are;
Attention and listening
Pronunciation (unclear speech)
Language (understanding and using words and sentences)
Fluency (stammering)
Social communication
For some, assessment into one area only is needed, but for others it will be a combination of assessment areas. The background form and discussion with you will help guide me towards what is needed. I will always recommend and agree this prior to assessment, and will advise you within the assessment is more (or less) is required.
What happens?
Assessment can involve the following;
Discussion with parents/carers regarding your child’s areas of strength and concerns with a full background history.
Discussion with other relevant agencies/providers e.g. nursery / school staff (where appropriate and with parental consent).
One-to-one assessment with your child/young person with the parent/carer present. This can be through formal assessment (standardised assessments comparing your child/young person to what is expected in the rest of the population), or informal assessment (discussion, observations and checklists).
Observation of your child/young person interacting, playing or communicating with others in a “normal” non-testing situation!
A feedback meeting to staff/other agencies may be appropriate and will be discussed and agreed if required.
I provide a brief written summary from the session for you to take away.
I provide a full report unless otherwise requested with advice and general strategies and recommendations for therapy if indicated.
Where does it take place?
This can happen at home or within an educational setting; I liaise with you to find out what is most convenient for you. Wherever the location, it needs to be quiet and as distraction-free as possible (!).
When can it happen?
I work Mondays to Wednesdays within school day hours (9.30-2.30pm) term time only. I also have some Saturday appointments reserved for older primary aged and secondary students, or those who can access online sessions.
"Having tried many different speech therapists over many different stages of my son's life, we finally found the right one (and perhaps the right time) with Lida! It was lockdown so she worked remotely with my son to correct his lisp and when that was working she also worked on improving his general communication and annunciation. Lida was great and my son really liked her as did I. I think it's the best thing to have come out of lockdown for us that my son can go into his teenage years without a lisp! I wouldn't hesitate to recommend Lida."
