Preparations are well under way for the new Speak With A Picture programme that launches at the end of the summer. SWAP has been supported by BBC Children In Need and replaces the Way2Say project that came to an end in March 2018.
SWAP is a parent training programme designed specifically to help pre-school children who have communication difficulties. Sessions are due to begin in September and will be available to families in the boroughs of Havering and Redbridge, as well as Barking & Dagenham.
The programme is aimed at children with a social communication difficulty. The project uses picture symbols to develop an alternative communication system. This enables the parents and families to communicate with their children and it is also intended as a pathway into nurseries and pre-school.
The programme will be based at the Sycamore Trust UK in Dagenham and starts in September. Children will initially be referred by their health or education professional and following that will be invited to attend twelve weekly sessions along with their parents with a view to improving communication skills and building parental confidence. The sessions will last for an hour each week and each child will be coached by two Sycamore staff along with their parents.
Speak With A Picture aims to develop early communication skills in children who have complex social communication difficulties by using pictures and symbols. Instead of speech, the children are encouraged to choose the right image and replace the symbol for a desired outcome, enabling them to have their needs met in any social situation.
We’re delighted to welcome two new members of staff who have joined us to help with the programme. Ann Marie Lyons-Mummery and Cheryl Kearney joined us two weeks ago and have settled in very quickly. They are both experienced in social care with particular emphasis on pre-school children and they will be running the programme from September onwards.
Sycamore operations manager Lynn Chapman said “we’re really pleased to get the project under way. We’ve already had a number of referrals and we are expecting to be over – subscribed when the project starts in September.”
For more information on Speak With a Picture; please call 020 8517 9317 or e-mail