1.9 million children struggle to talk or understand words

New research from charity Speech and Language UK to mark No Pens Day, reveals the shocking implications on children’s formative school years due to speech and language challenges. The research comes to a crisis point, with a record high number of children (1.9 million) struggling to talk and understand words.

The charity’s annual No Pens Day (27th November), celebrates communication in the classroom while raising vital funds to ensure every child who needs it has support with improving their communication skills.

A study using 1,000 families with a child who struggles with talking and understanding words finds that nearly half say their child has refused to go to school, with more than 10 per cent saying that their child has missed 15 days of school during a single term.

These impacts aren’t just limited to children being absent from school; they are much broader. 80 per cent of families feel that their child has suffered negative consequences because of their speech and language difficulties. Learning experiences at school are being profoundly impacted, with 75 per cent saying their child finds school and learning difficult, and a further three-quarters say their child struggles to understand instructions at school.

With trained staff and early language interventions, most children who experience speech and language challenges can overcome these. Left unaddressed, however, they can face a lifetime of struggle and exclusion. Without the right support, they are six to eleven times more likely to be behind in key subjects at school, twice as likely to be unemployed as young adults, make up almost half of mental health service referrals, and two-thirds of the young offender population.

Research emphasises an urgent need to support teachers with training to ensure they can foster speech and language development in the classroom. Encouragingly, early language interventions, and training for teachers, have transformational outcomes for children with speech and language challenges.

With government’s current policy being to only fund a single early language intervention in school, pubic donations play a crucial role in ensuring these are readily available to all children who need them. With a record high number of children who need support, donations are needed more urgently than ever.

On No Pens Day, children are asked to bring in £1 and the public is encouraged to donate too. Just £25 can provide teachers with the training to deliver life-changing Talk Boost programmes. If every pupil in a school brought in £1 and raised £500 it would fund ten calls on the Speech and Language UK advice line.

As wells as raising vital funds for 1.9 million children who need support, No Pens Day is a chance for children to talk, listen, and take part in pen-free activities that promote communication and collaboration in the classroom. This year over 3,300 schools across the country are taking part in No Pens Day, which will involve the biggest ever show and tell — a day of talking and listening activities where pupils bring in something to talk about in front of their class.

Jane Harris, chief executive of Speech and Language UK, says: “Imagine not having the words to express yourself, to tell your loved ones about your day, and to task questions to help you learn. That is the reality for 1.9 million children today, and our research paints a very worrying picture about how this affects their lives. More children than ever need life-changing support, and the funds we raise on No Pens Day will help ensure our nation’s children can face a lifetime of confidence and opportunity, rather than struggle and prejudice.”

Vicky Green, headteacher at Mandale Mill Primary School in Stockton-on-Tees, says: “The support we have received from Speech and Language UK has meant we’ve seen less children requiring Speech and Language Therapy referrals than previously. From taking part in the Early Talk Boost programme, we have seen our students improve their understanding of words and sentences from 22 per cent before to 42 per cent after the intervention. No Pens Day offers an opportunity to fix the system and ensure no child slips through the net. The vital fundraising guarantees schools across the country can do more to enhance their students’ lives to the fullest.”

Speech and Language UK is encouraging the public to get involved this No Pens Day, by donating and by sharing their own ‘show and tell’ on social media by posting a video or photo of an object using the hashtag #NoPensDay

To find out more about No Pens Day and to sign up for a classroom pack, click here.
 
To donate, please click here.