Management Information Sheet
Speech & Language Therapy Service from April 2016
This briefing is for Stakeholders to inform you of the new speech and language therapy (SaLT) service that will be in place from April 2016. It would be appreciated if you could please use your cascade routes to distribute this among your networks.
Norfolk County Council and the CCGs for Norwich, North Norfolk, South Norfolk and West Norfolk have jointly recommissioned integrated speech and language therapy services for children. This is to ensure that Norfolk's services meet new national legislation and that we have a more joined up service, linking children and young people's education and health needs.
Families and partners were involved in designing the specification for the new service and East Coast Community Healthcare (ECCH) was awarded the contract, from April 2016. ECCH already provides a well-regarded SaLT service in the Great Yarmouth and Waveney area.
ECCH provided a strong bid which met that specification, offered good value for money and includes a new helpline service for families. The new service will also include a strong focus on providing support and training to parents and those working with children and young people, to ensure that everyone is working collectively to support children's speech and language development.
The new service provided by ECCH will be for children and young people aged 0-19 years. A key aspect of the service will be the development of skills, understanding and knowledge for the wider workforce and 'team around the child'. This will include the involvement of families, early years, school and educational settings to ensure support can continue in the settings and in the home to maximise the benefit of the interventions.
All children and young people that currently benefit from speech and language therapy will continue to do so under the new arrangements.
There will be a mobilisation process to ensure a smooth transition of the current service to ECCH during which referral and or contact arrangements will be finalised and communicated.
Michael Bateman,
Head of the Education Inclusion Service,
Children's Services, Norfolk County Council