The recommendations under this category are:

The establishment of a Communication Council to monitor and support implementation of the Review’s recommendations
Creation of a post of Communication Champion to lead on awareness raising and best practice
The commission of a National Year of Speech, Language and Communication to be led by the Communication Champion
All parents to receive information which emphasises the importance of Speech, Language and communication to children through the Child Health Promotion Programme
Once a child’s need has been identified a range of information, advice and support should be readily available, particularly at key stages
Recommendation that the Government considers the case for funding national, regional and local support services for parents
Government to remind local authorities of their current duties to provide information to families, including publicly funded provision

The recommendations under this category are:

PCTs and local authorities to work together to identify potential SLCN of children and young people across age range and key transition points
PCTs to adopt the updated Child Health Promotion Programme to monitor children and young people and to implement the child and family health and development reviews, including the review of speech and language development
Government to consider a review of the ‘red book’ (Personal Child Health Record) to ensure families and professionals have a clear record of a child’s speech and language development
Speech, language and communication to be prioritised by all Children’s Centres and that it is a primary focus for measuring every child’s progress
Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) to examine how to strengthen focus on speech, language and communication in the primary curriculum and the Department to be ready to act on this advice
DCSF reinforces its inclusive approach to SEN in the revised secondary curriculum
The importance of meeting the needs of all children and young people with SLCN must be emphasised when issuing guidance on the use of funding by local authorities and schools, including that for personalised learning

The majority of recommendations are under this category and are as follows:

A joint framework for commissioners, including Children’s Trusts and schools on the commission of a continuum of universal and targeted and specialist services
The commissioning framework to be developed through a programme of pathfinders, funded and supported by the Government, to identify best practice and evidence of effective interventions
Recommendation that the Department of Health creates a speech, language and communication annex to Standard 8 of the Children’s National Service Framework
The current DCSF review of the Dedicated Schools Grant should take account of how the school funding system supports the delivery of universal, targeted and specialist services for children and young people with SEN
The commissioning framework should include advice on:

Professionals from across the children’s and young people’s workforce undertake pre-qualification training in collaborative and multidisciplinary working.

The Children’s Workforce Development Council, in collaboration with The Children’s Workforce Network to ensure that speech, language and communication and SLCN are a core requirement at the appropriate level in all qualifications for the children’s workforce as part of the emerging Integrated Qualifications Framework.

Standards for Qualified Teacher Status to ensure that students develop a better understanding of children and young people’s SLCN and how to address those needs.

The DCSF to included speech, language and communication, both as a core requirement and as an elective module in the new Masters in Teaching and Learning.

The Government to ensure that good quality training is available to everyone in the children’s workforce to develop skills in relation to speech, language and communication. This should include how best this training should be provided, including consideration of whether training should be an entitlement and the circumstances in which it would be appropriate to fund the ‘backfilling’ of post in order to enable staff to undertake training.

A modelling exercise to be undertaken by the Government, working with other partners, to help Strategic Health Authorities and Primary Care Trusts, in partnership with local authorities, to estimate the workforce that they will require to deliver appropriate services.

The Government to consider a programme of research to enhance the evidence base and inform delivery of better outcomes.

The Government to develop a ‘hub and spoke’ model of regional provision, coordinated by a national organisation. In addition, on appointment of the Communication Champion, the effectiveness of local areas’ AAC provision should be evaluated and the findings reported to the Communication Council.

The Government’s forthcoming Youth Crime Action Plan and the follow-up work on young offenders’ health should consider how best to address the SL of young people in the criminal justice system, including those in custody.

The DCSF to remind local authorities of their statutory responsibilities and parents of their rights, regarding consultation procedures.

The recommendations under this category are:

Each Children’s Trust to appoint a senior member of its governing body to lead on speech, language and communication in the local area, with a role to oversee a drive to improve outcomes.

The Government considers amending regulations and associated guidance.

The new CAA takes account of the effectiveness of Children’s Trusts in facilitating joint working and effective commissioning to deliver improved outcomes.

Review whether Children’s Trusts are functioning effectively and take account of the evidence to strengthen arrangements, including further legislation.

The forthcoming Offsted review takes full account of the need for the joint provision of services for children and young people with SLCN.

The recommendations under this category are:

The DCSF to work closely with its central and local government partners to promote the framework to local leaders, setting out in the 2009 Departmental Annual Report the steps taken and progress made.

The Department of Health to support the development of appropriately skilled and experienced clinical leaders who can interpret policy and research to support the delivery of evidence-based practice.

The Government considers retaining national early years targets beyond 2011, with a further recommendation of introducing a national indicator specifically for SLCN to underpin a relevant Public Service Agreement from 2011.

The joint framework on commissioning to emphasis the need for local agencies to monitor performance and publish their finding in an accessible form.

The Government to make as much data as possible available about the educational attainment of children and young people with SLCN and allow it to be accountable for progress and to encourage improvement in provision.

Jane Gregory BA, BSc

Specialist Speech and Language Therapist