Conferences

Saturday 21st April 2012, Lakeside Centre,
Aston University, Birmingham

Conference 2012 has now taken place, it was good to meet up with old friends and see new faces. The presentations as usual provided a great forum for discussion and learning more about Communication Supportive Environments. In this time of change it was heartening to hear about the good work that continues to occur and to compare notes about the changing face of our working practices.

The papers are now available free of charge until 29th June, when they will be transferred to our documents library.

Take a look at the links for professional development from Sheffield and Birmingham. The annual SEN support scholarship programme will provide up to £2,000 each to boost the skills of talented teaching assistants and school staff who work with children with SEND.

Jean Gross has kindly given permission for her Power Point presentation to be available for use by delegates. However she requested that pictures of children should not be used. Some slides therefore have gaps in them and two slides have been removed. You can download the presentation below.

Keynote Speaker Papers

  • Jean Gross, The Communication Champion
    The SEN White Paper and the legacy of the National Year – where now for SLCN?
    Download presentation (Edited, PPT, 11.6MB)

  • Marie Gascoigne, Director, Better Communication CIC
    What really makes a difference for children and young people with SLCN? Delivering services for maximum impact
    Download paper (PDF, 1.5MB)

  • Geraldine Bates, Specialist Speech and Language Therapist for North Bristol NHS Trust
    School age children with communication difficulties: What can we do to support their peer relationships and self-esteem?
    Download paper (PDF, 119KB)

  • Sarah Spencer and Ioanna Bakapolou, Developing a tool to support communication friendly classrooms in Reception, Years 1 & 2
    Report is due to be published in the summer so they have not been able to provide us with a paper.
    Find out more about the Better Communication Research Programme

Practitioner Presenters Papers

  • Janet Cooper BSc Hons cert MRCSLT, Early Language and Communication Programme Manager, Stoke on Trent City Council
    Creating a Communication Friendly Environment in Early Years Settings
    Download paper (PDF, 119KB)
  • Glenn Carter, Speech and Language Therapist Team Leader, National Health Service Forth Valley and Andrew Facherty, Additional Support for Learning Manager, Falkirk Council Education Services
    Communication Supportive Environments: What makes the difference for children and young people with SLCN?
    Download paper (PDF, 196KB)
  • Kathryn Wilkes, Literacy Coordinator/Assistant Director of English, SWB Academy, Wolverhampton
    Secondary Talk: One Academy’s Journey
    Download paper (PDF, 196KB)

These conference papers will be of interest to: Teachers and SENCOs, Teaching Assistants, Speech and Language Therapists, Advisory Teachers for SLCN, Educational Psychologists and LA Advisors