Referrals to Primary Care Speech and Language Therapy department

I am going to attempt to explain a little about the new service pathways – so that you and your staff are clear about how to proceed to refer a child to Primary Care SLT. There are huge changes in service delivery, and it can be hard to keep up to date with the changes, and how they impact on your pupils.

There is a difference between the type of SLT service provided in Primary Care and Disability, the referral processes are different, and the service provision is also different.

Primary Care

Primary Care SLT services are suitable for children who do NOT have 2 or more complex needs. There may be a diagnosis of a condition – but it is the level of NEED that determines the correct pathway, and children in primary care services have needs that can be met in a uni-disciplinary way. The child can have a complex communication difficulty, but not in combination with other complex difficulties in other areas.

Examples of children seen for SLT in Primary Care:

·        a child with pronunciation difficulties

·        a child with comprehension/expression difficulties

·        a child with hoarseness

·         a child with a stammer

·        an autistic child who is verbal and does not have an intellectual disability

·        a bilingual child who is delayed in learning their mother tongue

·        a child with moderate comprehension difficulties and a physical impairment

·        a child with expressive language difficulties and anxiety

·        a child with Down’s Syndrome and a need for a communication device, who is not accessing other services

·        a child with a cochlear implant

For children who are being referred to Primary Care SLT services – you can fill in a school referral form (attached above), ask the parents to sign it (we need consent for the referral) and send it in to;

·        the address listed below (by post)

OR

·        This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. (by email)

After we receive the referral, we send an application form to the parents for info re case history, languages spoken, current concerns etc. When we receive this back – we arrange an appointment for them during one of the screening months. We hold screening months 3 times per year – February, June and October. In order to allow enough time for screening files to be made up and sent to SLTs around the county, we are tightening the cut off dates as follows:

Therefore children referred at the beginning of the school year will be seen in February 2025 for screening.

After children are seen for screening, they are either taken on for therapy, or assigned to a waiting list (depending on their severity and the capacity of the SLTs). Children receive a block of approx. 6 sessions after which they are returned to the waiting list and seen again in chronological order in a rolling-waiting list type of system.

Most of the children that you would be referring to SLT would be for Primary Care rather than disability services, because if the child has two or more complex needs, they would probably have already been assessed and referred to the disability services before school age. However you may have children in your school who are receiving SLT services from either Primary Care or Disability services, and there will be different Speech and Language Therapists for each.

Disability

If a child has 2 or more complex needs, they receive services from a Children’s Disability Network Team (CDNT) as part of the new way of delivering services to children with disabilities, called Progressing Disability Services (PDS).

Children do NOT need to have a diagnosis to receive services from a CDNT, but they need to have complex needs in two or more areas (eg feeding difficulties, communication, Physio, OT, behaviour etc).

To access the CDNT there is a monthly referral forum where all new referrals are reviewed and considered. At this forum it is decided by a committee whether the child’s needs would be best met in the CDNT or in Primary Care.

To refer a child for consideration at the forum, it is necessary to fill in the Children’s Services form (attached) AND the Additional Information Form for their age range (also attached).

To summarise:

A parent can refer a child to SLT.

A teacher can refer a child to SLT (once parental consent is gained)

Most of the referrals your staff will be making will be for Primary Care SLT

If you are unsure – contact me This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or your local SLT, and we can talk you through the process.