....to ask you to sign this petition to get Government to implement changes to provision for children with Speech & Language Impairment

[SandunesAndRainclouds]

My ten year old daughter has Speech and Language Disorder. Her ability to communicate, understand and access education is severely impaired by her disability. There is currently no specialist provision for her going into secondary school within an hour of home. She cannot cope in mainstream school. We risk being one of the thousands of families with children with SEN being displaced from education. It’s terrifying.

Without significant intervention, children like my little girl are going to continue to be overlooked. They are going to be continued to be labelled as ‘difficult to assess’ and not given correct and appropriate diagnoses for their difficulties. This means they cannot access support and therapies to help them reach their potential and become an integrated member of their communities.

I’m 2012, The Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists shared a research paper undertaken in 2007 that showed over 60% of young offenders had difficulties with speech, language and communication.

Bercow: Ten Years On is a report on the state of provision for children’s speech, language and communication needs (SLCN) in England. The report has been published by I CAN , the children’s communication charity, and the Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists (RCSLT).

Through extensive evidence gathering, I CAN and the RCSLT collected the views of children and young people, parents and carers, speech and language therapists, education professionals, commissioners and many others about the reality of support for children and young people with speech, language and communication needs in 2018.

The report shows poor understanding of and insufficient resourcing for speech, language and communication needs. This means too many children and young people receive inadequate, ineffective and inequitable support, potentially impacting on their educational outcomes, their employability and their mental health.

We desperately need to highlight their cause, and this can be done so by signing this petition to get government to implement the recommended changes.

Please sign it. My little girl deserves so much better

petition.parliament.uk/petitions/215643

There is a lack of specialist provision, meaning children are expected to cope in a mainstream system not designed to meet their needs

SALT is cut to the bone or farmed out to Virgincare, with a recruitment crises and waiting list of 9 months.

It is a fucking shitshow

It is a total shitshow, that’s for sure. There’s no support, no knowledge, no groups for children like her to go and meet some people who are the same so she stands a chance of making a friend.

Hopefully this is a clicky link petition.parliament.uk/petitions/215643

And working in early years, i see more and more and more families struggling to get vital early support for their children.

Thank you hunt I forgot to do the extra bits to make it clicky.

DD was missed in the early years too. SaLT was intermittent and then they didn’t hand her over to school services. She was pretty much sat in silence for the whole of reception year, with me fighting in the background trying to get someone to do something.

She was fully diagnosed aged 10. 8 long years of being passed pillar to post.

Speech and Language Therapy services for children have been affected by governments cuts in education and health. You now have to pay your own fees to train as a SLT now - no doubt has an impact on recruitment.

Signed x

Thank you to everyone who has signed. It has increased by more than 100 this evening!

I’m signing this too. My son has a diagnosed language disorder and verbal dyspraxia and the NHS Salt has turned up twice this year.

I even worse issue with the none existent physio and OT.

I’ve resorted to private salt and ot and the affect has been miraculous but incredibly expensive.

The system has a v short sighted approach if they think this is going to save money in the long run

Signed... 9139. to you and your daughter.

Signed.

Signed. SAeN in general is incredibly underfunded. Are you anywhere near the Midlands ? There's a fantastic lady called Libby Hill of Small Talk. She's who you need

9150

Signed

More thanks! What a nest of vipers you all are..

Gin no, I’m South coast.

signed. Best of luck for your DD, OP.

I've signed and shared. The state of speech and language provision in the UK is depressing.

Signed! The help available 20 years ago when my dd needed it was amazing, if my dgd needs the same help it's just not there anymore, so god knows what would happen to her.

Signed it. Glad someone started this. My ds has speech delay and I have been shocked at how badly the funding cuts have affected everything. We waited 8 months for an appointment after being told that we couldn't be referred before he was two (although it seems this was inaccurate). We've met once with an bus speech therapist and are unlikely to see someone again until he's 3 1/2 - 4. Appalling.
Luckily my little boy has made progress independently. I can't imagine how others feel.

Signed. I have 2 DCs with S&L issues (oldest delayed/echolalia, and youngest non-verbal), and the lack of support for this has frustrated me to no end.

I would post this on the SN Children board too. I’m sure a lot of people on there will sign it

Thanks again everyone.

It’s nice to ‘meet’ other parents of children with SLI. It’s a lonely old world.

Thanks for posting this. My son has thrived in s wonderful SEN provision. However, when he moves to mainstream in September he will be charged from speech and language therapy. His problems haven’t gone away, just the therapy. We will pay £75 a week for therapy because we (just) can. Thousands of families can’t. It’s terrible.

Boogle what an awful situation for you to be in. Does your son have an EHCP?

Signed and shared. We're in the same position so this is a really important petition for our family.