Should I contact private SALT? Advice please

[paradise]

My DS is 3 end of next month( but born 7 weeks prem) and I was concerned at the clarity of his speech in the summer, so my doctor refered us to a developmental pead who we saw 3 weeks ago and said he thought DS's speech was fine and just showed immaturies.
Anyway, last week, DS's nursery flagged up his unclear speech, so have just got back from seeing my HV, who is referring us for a speech therapy asessment and hearing test.She is also sending a nursery nurse to observe him at nursery too. I was told that i should be seen within 3 months, but I believe that this can take a lot longer! Should I try and contact a private SALT or is that going to confuse matters? Please can somebody advise me. thanks

I feel it is really up to you but judging by the sort of activities the NHS SALT did with my dd, I am sure that there is plenty you could be doing yourself while you wait.
My dd is 3 at the end of the month and has Down Syndrome and the associated speech difficulties. I must admit the frequency of NHS SALT, together with the actual quality of the sessions prompted me into attending private SALT for her. It has been money well spent (even if it does cost £40 per hour!!)But even after one session I came away with lots of specific targets to work with, our therapist actuallt specialises in DS. You may only need one or two sessions to give you enough info to work with him yourself at home.
I am sure there are lots of other MNs that can give you other ideas, but I would recommend Jolly Phonics to anyone. My ds used them in reception of mainstream last year my dd's sound production of the phonics has rocketed since July when we first started using them.
There are a few websites that may interest you, let me know and I will "dig them out" for you.
Good luck.

personally, after starting a thread about this yesterday, i would say unclear pronunciation is quite normal at nearly 3. So personally I wouldnt bother paying private and just wait for NHS

thanks Dingle for your advice. Would be interested in the websites you mentioned.

Also I live in West London / surrey does anyone have private salt experience in this area?

One of the websites allows you to put in your postcode & select SALT in your area, you then chose from who in your area works with children,different conditions....
I personally would rush into anything, have a good look around at what is available both locally, on the net, available from different resources before you make your choice.
I would be happy to email you if I have anything that may be of use, but generally the advice given is pretty much basic play activities.

thanks dingle, will pass on my email address to you. thanks

hi, we've just started using a private SALT for our twins, and it has been very good. I contacted her through helpwithtalking website - the lady i'm using is an NHS SALT who works part time as she has 2 under 4, and does private work in the evening/weekend when her dh is home with the kids. She has been excellent so far, and provided a full written report that i have had put on her file at peads developement cetnre for dd. cost £80, and each session is £40. couldn't face the 18m waiting list.