Welcome to our page dedicated to speech, language and communication in children.

It is crucial for everyone in a child’s life – parents, educators and professionals to understand how important language and communication is in children and be confident in supporting how to develop these skills. Speech, language and communication skills not only form a vital part of daily life but also have a significant impact on future successes.

No two children are exactly alike and language skills can develop at different rates, but playing an active role in your child’s communication development will give them the best start in life, identify any early causes for concern and ensure access to early support if needed.

To play an active role and to support an environment for their communication to thrive we can spend quality time with our children, think about what quality time means to you, undivided attention, away from iPad’s, phones and devices, taking an interest and sharing in what your child enjoys and finding things we can enjoy and experience together, this opens so many opportunities for conversation, learning and bonding – we can do this at any age.

The links below are split into ages, for more information on your child’s speech language and communication please select the age range you would like more information for. For information about Oldham’s Children’s Speech and Language Therapy Service please see ‘Children’s Speech and Language Therapy Team’.