What is a Talking Walk-in?
A Talking Walk-in is a drop-in initial assessment session run by the speech and language therapy service. It is an informal play based session for children who are under 5 years old. It is the way that most families in Hackney first access speech and language therapy.
What is happening during Covid restrictions?
We are not running assessments in person at the children’s centres at the moment but are still taking referrals and offering assessment online or by phone. You can be referred by a professional or parents can contact us to book directly.
You will be invited to an online assessment session. These are on fixed dates and you will be given a time to attend. You will be sent a link to NHS ‘Attend Anywhere’. If you have been invited to a session that you can’t come to, please call our administration team to book a different session.
If you have been to a Talking Walk-in in the past year and want to get some more support from our service, there is no need to come to another one. Please call our Admin team, let them know you have attended before, and we will arrange for your local therapist to contact you.
How do I refer my child?
Please call the Speech and Language Therapy Admin Team on 020 7683 4262. You may need to leave your name and contact details on voicemail, but someone will get back to you. You can also refer by emailing: huh-tr.sltinfo@nhs.net , with your child’s details and the best way to contact you.
What will happen?
Before the day of the assessment you will be asked to complete some paperwork. One of our team will call you in advance to complete this over the phone. If you will have difficulty joining an online assessment, let them know and a phone call can be arranged instead.
On the day and time of the assessment, use the Attend Anywhere link you have been sent to join your call. You will need to add your name and then a therapist will come to pick up your call as soon as they are available.
If you have difficulty joining the call, the therapist will try to call you on the phone after 5 minutes.
The therapist will spend about 20 minutes with you listening to your concerns and gaining some background information.
The therapist will also observe your child briefly if they are present during the call – but we are aware not all children will engage in video-calls!
What will the outcome be?
Based on the information gathered in this session the therapist will decide if they think your child will benefit from being seen again by a speech and language therapist.
This could be for more assessment or you might be invited for a block of therapy. We may also make a referral to other services such as Audiology or a Paediatrician, if it is agreed this will be helpful.
We aim to give all families some advice or ideas to try at home following the session.
We will write a brief summary of the session and this will be sent to you in the post.
Tell us what you think!
Go to http://www.smartsurvey.co.uk/s/eyassessment/ to give us your feedback on your experience of our service.
