Stormont reception will celebrate speech and language therapy’s 60 years

5th November 2005

As part of its 2005 diamond jubilee celebrations, the Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists (RCSLT) is holding a reception hosted by Iris Robinson MP MLA at Stormont at (12 midday) on Friday 18 November.

Civil servants for health and education, voluntary organisations and their users, speech and language therapists and lead allied health professionals from all over Northern Ireland will celebrate the profession's contribution to the lives of those who have communication disability. The RCSLT will also celebrate the establishment of its local office in Belfast.

The reception will showcase the important role Northern Ireland's speech and language therapists and support workers play in the lives of many people with communication, eating, drinking and swallowing problems.

The event will also highlight the close ties between the RCSLT and Northern Ireland Government departments. Over the past year, senior RCSLT representatives have met regularly with health and education chiefs and the Northern Ireland Commissioner for Children and Young People (NICCY) to map out the future of children's speech and language therapy services in the Province.

According to RCSLT Northern Ireland Policy Officer Alison McCullough, the results of the relationship that has developed will have a positive impact on the lives of children with problems and their families.

"We are committed to working in partnership with others to effect real and lasting changes in services for children and adults with communication disability in Northern Ireland. Today we also want to acknowledge the important role that voluntary organisations, carers and users of our services play in helping us make those changes and the key professionals who are supporting this process," Alison says.

The reception is the culmination of the RCSLT's diamond jubilee celebrations. In October, speech and language therapy departments across Northern Ireland threw open the doors to their departments when they celebrated Speech and Language Therapy Week.

ENDS


Notes for editors:

1. Governments across the four UK countries have recognised the importance of communication as key to improving quality of life and reducing inequality and inequity, for example in accessing employment and educational opportunities.

2. There is increased need for speech and language therapy intervention because of a number or reasons:

• people are living longer, and many more are living longer after cancer treatment and with problems such as dementia and stroke that affect communication
• there is increased recognition of problems such as autism and learning difficulties
• improvements in neonatal care mean the number of pre-term babies surviving with developmental problems, such as cerebral palsy is increasing

3. There is a recognised shortage of speech and language therapists in the UK, caused by recruitment and retention problems, which means many clients (particularly children) are experiencing severe delays in accessing therapy

4. The Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists (RCSLT) is the professional body for speech and language therapists in the UK and has over 12,000 members. Nearly 10,000 of these are speech and language therapists working across the UK. It is responsible for setting, promoting and maintaining high standards in education, clinical practice and ethical conduct.

The RCSLT is working with therapists to look at innovative ways to provide quality services to meet the needs of their clients and their carers.

Visit: www.rcslt.org for more information

For more information on the Stormont reception contact RCSLT Northern Ireland Policy Officer Alison McCullough. Tel: 02890 501802. Mob: 0786 778 1116