Save specialist provision for children with severe speech + language difficulties in Herts
The Issue
Hertfordshire County Council (HCC) plans to scrap provisions for children with severe speech and language difficulties and change them into specialist resource provisions for pupils with autism, first in secondary schools, then primary (see https://www.watfordobserver.co.uk/news/18969948.plans-specialist-autism-centres-secondary-schools/). Provision for autism is extremely valuable but should be in addition to, not instead of, speech and language bases.
We are professionals who’ve worked in these bases when they were often full or oversubscribed. We know how much they help the children, educationally, socially and emotionally.
When children don’t learn their native language fully and there’s no obvious reason why, it’s called ‘developmental language disorder’ (DLD) (for more information see radld.org and https://www.rcslt.org/wp-content/uploads/media/Project/RCSLT/rcslt-dld-factsheet.pdf). This often-hidden, lifelong disability affects 7.5% of us (vs. 2% for autism). Pupils in speech and language bases are there because they’ve already failed in mainstream due to severe DLD. HCC does not have any plan for children who will fail mainstream in the future due to the same difficulties.
Without the right help, there are big costs to children, society and the economy with children with DLD facing increased risks of: lower academic achievement, behavioural/mental health problems, bullying, sexual abuse, unemployment, social disadvantage, involvement in crime and higher re-offending rates. Support from specialist teachers and speech and language therapists can make a real difference to life outcomes.
HCC has a duty of care to vulnerable pupils with severe speech and language difficulties who fail in school and should continue to make specialist provision for their education.
Claire Hammond - former Lead Speech and Language Therapist for DLD in Herts
Dr Ruth Rogers - Independent Speech and Language Therapist and Educational Psychologist, formerly working in Speech and Language Bases in Herts
Alison Bryan - former lead Speech and Language Therapist in speech and language bases (Essex and Hertfordshire) for 30 years and developer of the internationally used intervention ‘Colourful Semantics’
Sarah Watson - Specialist Speech and Language Therapist for mainstream schools, London
Caroline Hepburn - Independent Speech and Language Therapist, formerly working in Speech and Language Bases in Herts
Petition Closed
The Issue
Hertfordshire County Council (HCC) plans to scrap provisions for children with severe speech and language difficulties and change them into specialist resource provisions for pupils with autism, first in secondary schools, then primary (see https://www.watfordobserver.co.uk/news/18969948.plans-specialist-autism-centres-secondary-schools/). Provision for autism is extremely valuable but should be in addition to, not instead of, speech and language bases.
We are professionals who’ve worked in these bases when they were often full or oversubscribed. We know how much they help the children, educationally, socially and emotionally.
When children don’t learn their native language fully and there’s no obvious reason why, it’s called ‘developmental language disorder’ (DLD) (for more information see radld.org and https://www.rcslt.org/wp-content/uploads/media/Project/RCSLT/rcslt-dld-factsheet.pdf). This often-hidden, lifelong disability affects 7.5% of us (vs. 2% for autism). Pupils in speech and language bases are there because they’ve already failed in mainstream due to severe DLD. HCC does not have any plan for children who will fail mainstream in the future due to the same difficulties.
Without the right help, there are big costs to children, society and the economy with children with DLD facing increased risks of: lower academic achievement, behavioural/mental health problems, bullying, sexual abuse, unemployment, social disadvantage, involvement in crime and higher re-offending rates. Support from specialist teachers and speech and language therapists can make a real difference to life outcomes.
HCC has a duty of care to vulnerable pupils with severe speech and language difficulties who fail in school and should continue to make specialist provision for their education.
Claire Hammond - former Lead Speech and Language Therapist for DLD in Herts
Dr Ruth Rogers - Independent Speech and Language Therapist and Educational Psychologist, formerly working in Speech and Language Bases in Herts
Alison Bryan - former lead Speech and Language Therapist in speech and language bases (Essex and Hertfordshire) for 30 years and developer of the internationally used intervention ‘Colourful Semantics’
Sarah Watson - Specialist Speech and Language Therapist for mainstream schools, London
Caroline Hepburn - Independent Speech and Language Therapist, formerly working in Speech and Language Bases in Herts
The Decision Makers
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Petition created on 21 January 2021