The first contact will always involve an assessment. The Speech and Language Therapist will need to obtain a complete picture of the child’s communication including speech and language skills. This means that he or she will have a good understanding of the problem so that they can decide the best course of action. Some of the assessment will be observation and discussion while other parts will be informal games or formal standard assessment tools. It is always a good idea to have a hearing test if any communication problem is suspected. Attention and listening, verbal comprehension (understanding) and expressive language (sentences) are just some of the issues, which need to be examined.
All assessments will be discussed fully so that plan of action may be agreed. Sometimes a parent may only want an assessment and will then wait for NHS therapy. The first session includes a brief report. If further more detailed reports are required then this can easily be arranged. If therapy is indicated, all expected outcomes are discussed and agreed upon with a timescale.