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The Wyvern School

The Wyvern School

  

SPEECH AND LANGUAGE THERAPY

"Staff and pupils routinely make good use of signing and communication devices"
– Ofsted 2017

Who Are We?

At The Wyvern School we have an in-house Speech and Language Therapy team consisting of a Speech and Language Therapist and a Speech and Language Therapy Assistant.

In addition to the school’s team, the school has an NHS Link Speech and Language Therapist employed by the East Kent Hospitals University Foundation Trust (EKHUFT), who they liaise closely with. EKHUFT are working with us to establish the Balanced System® approach to meet the speech, language and communication needs of all children.

The Wyvern Speech and Language team also liaise with the Kent and Medway Communication and Assistive Technology Service (KMCAT) for students who are on their caseload.

Together we provide a team approach to support your child reach their full communication potential.

How will my child receive Speech and Language Therapy?

The Wyvern Speech and Language team work with class teams and visit students in class to establish ways to best support their communication needs. They deliver specific speech and language interventions for those who need it, and who are identified by classroom visits, class staff or parents. We may work with students individually or in small groups. The Wyvern team make and provide appropriate resources to support their communication development. The team works to ensure the school is a communication friendly environment for all.

The Wyvern Therapy team aims to:

  • Prepare our students for not just learning within the classroom, but also to prepare them for life after Wyvern.
  • To develop school staff’s and parent’s / carer’s knowledge and skills to support our student’s communication.

If parents have concerns or would like some advice on supporting their child’s communication, they are encouraged to contact the Wyvern Speech and Language Therapy team.

 

Our AAC Communication Guarantee!

We are working to establish the Balanced System® within the school and we have a set of communication resources that are available for all students in all classes. These include:

Classroom Visual Timetables – All classrooms have a visual timetable displayed that shows students in the class what is happening throughout their day.

Core Word Communication Board – This is a communication board that is very similar to the core vocabulary page in the Clare Latham stage 3 communication book. This communication board is so useful as it has key vocabulary that we use all day, every day. It does not matter what you are talking about, in most conversations these words are very likely to appear!

Communication Boards – The aim of a communication board is to communicate rich ideas and teach vocabulary, not necessarily for sentence construction. They can be used during lessons, whilst reading stories or during play activities that your child enjoys. Our communication boards vary in the number of cells and can be tailored to the needs of individual students.

Now and Next Boards – These can be used to visually communicate instructions or expectations to a child. Now and Next boards can help alleviate anxiety related to transitions or changes in routines.

Green and Red Boards – This is a strategy that can be used to visually communicate a sequence of activities and support with turn taking.  This resource can include more symbols than a now and next board and the student can see the order of activities and when these are due to finish.

 

If you are a parent of a student in Wyvern School and are interested in any of these resources, please speak to your class teacher.  

 How can parents and carers help at home?

Please contact the Wyvern Speech and Language Therapy team if you would like support for your child. It is important that home and school work together.

Great strategies to support your child include:

  • Talk to your child about things they are doing and are interested in. Try to stick to 4 comments for every question that you ask.
  • Play games, take turns and listen to what they are saying, however they are communicating.
  • Use your child’s communication aids with them. Learn together and show them how to use them.

 Here are some fantastic websites and resources that you can access to help support your child’s communication development:

 

 

  • https://pathway.thebalancedsystem.org/ - This is the Balanced System® website, where you can find out more about the initiative. It will also signpost you to other great websites that will help support your child’s speech, language and communication needs.

 School Speech and Language Therapist Team:

The Wyvern School
Great Chart Bypass
Ashford
TN23 4ER

Telephone: 01233 621468

Email: stherapy@wyvern.kent.sch.uk

NHS Speech and Language Therapy Team:

Sonia Sivyer
Speech and Language Therapy
The Rainbow Centre
The Great Chart Bypass
Ashford
TN23 4ER

Telephone: 03000420847