East Lothian

For information on local Drop-in and information sessions for parents/carers please see info from your local SLT team

A Telephone Helpline Service is  available on a Tuesday afternoon .  To seek advice, or to discuss a child or young person with a Speech and Language Therapist from the East Lothian team, please phone:  0131 446 4136 from 1.30 – 4pm every Tuesday.

Early Years Communication

We offer an Early Years Communication CPD session through the East Lothian CPD directory. This usually runs twice annually. The training is also available on request as a 2 hour or half day session to nurseries and primary schools, including partnership nurseries and Early Years Centres.

Signalong is a sign supported communication system, designed to help children and adults with communication difficulties. It is designed to support spoken language to help people with communication difficulties understand and express themselves.

Unlike British Sign Language training, or that provided by some other organisations, Signalong training focuses on developing communication skills rather than teaching blocks of signs, many of which will be quickly forgotten through lack of use. The precise Signalong method of presentation enables users to remind themselves of signs which have been forgotten and to learn new signs from the manuals. Training programmes therefore focus on the application of sign-supported communication, e.g. aspects of total communication, such as facial expression, body language and voice tone; plus simplification of language and keyword selection.

Annual Signalong Accredited Foundation courses are offered through the East Lothian Education CPD directory as a 7 week twilight course. The sessions usually run at Sanderson’s Wynd Primary School.

The ASN team in East Lothian also offer Signalong training sessions on request to schools and nurseries. This could be for individual children and staff associated with them. There are also Introductory and Foundation courses available for parents and nurseries, which schools can request if they have a minimum of 8 people to train. Training sessions are tailored to need, e.g. 1 or 1.5 hour refresher sessions, 2 hour training or 15 hour accredited Signalong course.

Eating, Drinking and Swallowing (EDS)

Training for nursery staff and school staff on eating, drinking and swallowing is available on request.

Nursery Drop In for Parents

A Speech and Language Therapist can be available on request from Nursery for parents to discuss concerns they may have about their child’s speech and language development; and  to receive support and advice. Nursery staff are encouraged to contact their local Speech and Language Therapy team to arrange a convenient date and time to meet with parents.

For more information on any of the services detailed above, please contact your local SLT department.