The Paediatric Speech and Language Therapy Community Service is a clinic based service where children attend for assessment and intervention of their speech, language and communication needs. 

Referral Criteria are regionally agreed as follows:

18 months to 18 years of age.

Consent must be obtained from person with parental responsibility.

Child must present with communication difficulties which impact on their social, emotional or educational development. This includes children with

• Receptive language difficulties
• Expressive language difficulties
• Delayed/disordered speech development
• A stammer/non fluent speech
• Voice disorder e.g. hoarse voice (NB ENT assessment needed prior to referral)

EXCLUSION CRITERIA

• Referrals of children where there is no evidence of reason for concern. 
• Referrals of babies/toddlers with tongue tie where there is no history of feeding or speech difficulties.
• Referrals that indicate inappropriate expectations relative to a child’s age or developmental level.
• Referrals of bilingual / multilingual children where there is no evidence of reason for concern regarding speech and or language development within the first language.
• Referrals of children with voice problems prior to ENT assessment.
• Referrals of children with eating / drinking / swallowing difficulties
• Lisps in children younger than 4 ½ years.
• Referrals of children with selective mutism where there is evidence that speech and language development is age appropriate.
• Referrals of children with general learning difficulties where there is evidence that speech and language skills are commensurate with general ability.
• Referrals of children with specific literacy problems where there is evidence that verbal communication is normal.
• Re-referral of school aged children within 6 months of discharge by Trust staff as not requiring therapy and not presenting with any different difficulties.

There is open referral process to access Paediatric community SLT. 

GPs should continue to refer through CCG and send to SLTCore.referral@southerntrust.hscni.net