A service has launched in North Yorkshire offering help for parents of children with speech and language difficulties.
Called Cleartalking, the therapy service is led by Boroughbridge-based NHS-trained speech and language therapist Julia Charlesworth and provides help for children up to 16 years. A website has been launched at www.clear-talking.co.uk
The new service will see children referred from parents, schools and GPs across North Yorkshire, including Harrogate, Ripon, Northallerton, Catterick and Wetherby.
Julia (pictured below) founded the business in response to growing demand from parents and schools for treatment of children with speech and language problems beyond that provided by the NHS.
Julia has been working as an NHS speech and language therapist (SLT) for 15 years. Her training was at the University of Central England where she qualified with a BSc (Hons) in Speech and Language Pathology and Therapeutics.
She has worked in a range of community and clinical settings – firstly as a generalist in Darlington, then developing a specialism in Deafness in Kent, before moving back to the North East.
She said:
With increasing pressure on health services in terms of meeting growing demand and funding, parents are finding it difficult to get the help they need for their children, when they want it. We hope to fill that gap with professional services designed around parents and schools.
I regularly meet parents who are concerned about the ability of their children to communicate effectively and how this might affect their social skills and learning at school. Our service is designed to help mums and dads with a service provided where and when they want it – to fit in with busy lives.
Cleartalking assesses and treats children aged under the age of 16 with a range of difficulties including unclear speech, dyspraxia, children who are slow to start talking or slow to put words together and difficulties with word order, grammar or sentence construction.
Parents, schools and GPs looking for more information can visit www.clear-talking.co.uk
