The SALT team works closely with the school’s leadership, teaching staff and wider multidisciplinary team to ensure communication and emotional wellbeing needs are met and integrated throughout the school day.

Students’ understanding and use of language and social communication skills are promoted across the curriculum by advising and supporting staff in making changes to the learning environment to create communication friendly classrooms.

All staff have received training to develop speech, language and social communication in school, including Makaton, Elklan, SCERTS and PECS.

The aims of the speech and language therapists are to:

• Develop each student’s potential to be a confident communicator.
• Promote communication skills for independence, choice, inclusion and rights.
• Promote an inclusive communication environment which values communication in all modalities, including verbal communication, signing, visuals and Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC).
• Promote reasons to communicate including making choices, expressing likes and dislikes, giving opinions and commenting.
• Promote frequent communication and interaction opportunities by ensuring that students have access to communication partners and opportunities.