Sally Ward and Catherine Aldred have worked together for a number of years, developing by means of extensive clinical experience and research both the BABYTALK and CHILDSTALK programmes. The same principles underlie each of the programmes.

 

Dr. Sally Ward

BABYTALK is the outcome of Sally Ward's extensive cutting edge research, which has led to pioneering ways of dramatically accelerating children's language development. Sally ward qualified as a Speech and Language Therapist at the University of London, and followed this with a qualification in the related field of Audiology from the University of Manchester. She then gained extensive experience of working with children with a wide range of speech and language problems, eventually specialising in developmental speech and language difficulties.

She has taught and published extensively in the area both nationally and internationally. She acted as Speech and language Therapy manager for a number of years, responsible for all Speech and Language impaired children within the NHS Trust, and also acted as Advisor in developmental language disability to the Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists, and is consequently able to advise any member of the profession in this country who asks for her help.

The outcome of a major three year research project funded by the North West Regional Health Authority, was the establishment of an accurate means of detecting infants at risk of language delay in the first year of life. This, together with the discovery of knew knowledge about the ways in which very young children respond to sound, resulted in the award of a PhD. The award of a second three year research grant enabled her to test out the idea that it might be possible, by means of a programme of advice to parents, now known as the BABYTALK programme, to prevent language delay in infants identified by means of the screening test.

The results of the study showed that not only was this the case, but that at seven years of age, children whose parents had received the advice programme were not only very significantly ahead in terms of language development compared to a matched control group who had not, but were also significantly ahead in terms of IQ. These studies have resulted in a number of publications in scientific journals, presentations at national and international conferences, much media interest and a considerable demand for teaching about the programme, both to Speech and Language Therapists and to other professionals. Most importantly, it led to the writing of the book 'BABYTALK', which can enable the parents of all children to optimise the development of their child's language, and maximise the potential of their IQ.

In addition to clinical work and teaching, she is currently researching influences on the development of attention skills in infancy.

 

Catherine Aldred

Catherine Aldred is a highly experienced specialist clinical therapist. She completed her Speech and Language Therapy qualification in Edinburgh, and later started research into ways of enabling parents to attain the skills vital to both BABYTALK and CHILDSTALK programmes, of providing their child with exactly the appropriate input to develop their child's communication and language.

As a result of her Ph.D. research and clinical experience, she has pioneered therapy, for children with language and communication difficulties. The resulting CHILDSTALK programme, based on the same principles as are fundamental to the BABYTALK programme, gives parents ways of developing interaction, communication and language skills to achieve a balance in their child's developmental skills. This, again in the same ways as does the BABYTALK programme, lays the critical foundations for all later learning and development.

She has presented papers nationally and internationally, giving papers to Speech and Language Therapist on CHIDSTALK and ways of facilitating communication and language skills in children. She was awarded a three-year grant to evaluate the effectiveness of therapy based on CHILDSTALK methods with young children who have communication difficulties. She has worked as paediatric Speech and Language Therapy manager with a NHS Trust for five years, providing training, support and advice to professionals with a particular emphasis on developing early advice and support for parents of young children.

She has also lectured in Speech Pathology and Therapy at the University of Manchester for five years. She worked in the University clinic, assessing a wide range of children, providing a specialist second opinion and making recommendations on the child's communication and language needs and how these can be supported by parents and in different schools settings. She continues to work for an NHS Trust providing specialist support, training and advice to professionals and local authority schools.

She has taken additional training in assessing children's social communication skills at the University of Chicago, USA and University of Newcastle upon Tyne and provides specialist advice in the field of autism spectrum disorders. She acts as professional advisor to Speech and language Therapists, who can seek her advice on ways to assess and provide therapy for children with complex communication difficulties.

She has also recently completed a social communication trainer course and gives lectures, workshops, and courses for parents and professionals nationally.