Catalyst for change: 100 subscribers & counting

We are delighted to share an exciting milestone for the ASC Stammer Awareness Toolkit…

Over 100 Education and Speech & Language Therapy professionals from across the UK have now created their accounts and are utilising the knowledge, strategies, tools and support of the ASC Stammer Awareness Toolkit.

This milestone is very important to us. Eight percent of children in the UK have a stammer, and we know from research and young people themselves that it can have a very real effect on their current and long-term social, emotional and mental well-being. It is estimated that 40-60% of children experience teasing and bullying about their stammer. School can be an isolating and cruel place. Through the knowledge and strategies provided by the ASC Stammer Awareness Toolkit, we want schools to be empowered to change this.

We recently published our latest policy report examining barriers to speech and language therapy services in England; putting forward seven recommendations to improve the experiences of children who stammer and their families. The Stammer Awareness Toolkit offers a practical example of how schools can be supported to incorporate stammering awareness training into their inclusion policies – one of the recommendations to the Department for Education contained in this report.

“It is very comprehensive; tips are all extremely helpful; I like the fact you’ve included video clips of people with stammers”

The Toolkit is designed specifically for education professionals to enhance their understanding of stammering, their confidence in supporting pupils who stammer, and to help them in their own efforts to promote acceptance of differences amongst school peers.

We understand that education professionals have limited time and resources, and the Toolkit has been designed in a way that recognises this. All content can be completed online and at your own pace – your progress will be saved whenever you log out of your account.

“…the quizzes made it engaging without feeling too much like a ‘test’”.

We are enormously grateful to all of our Toolkit subscribers so far. You are playing a huge part in making a positive difference to the school experiences of pupils who stammer.

However, we can’t stop here. It’s vital that we are ensuring schools across the UK have access to the Toolkit, and with your support we are aiming to expand our reach to another 100 subscribers! Although our subscribers come from every corner of the UK, the majority of subscribed schools are based in the East Midlands and West Midlands at the moment – a big thank you for spreading the word! In other parts of England, we still have some way to go to ensure the Stammer Awareness Toolkit is getting into schools across the North East and South West, as well increasing access in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

“I look forward to sharing this resource with schools”

We believe that through informing and educating about stammering, we are empowering schools to bring about change. The content of the ASC Stammer Awareness Toolkit is based on the latest research and first-hand experiences of young people who stammer. Please do share the Toolkit sign up page with your colleagues and other schools.

For those 100 subscribers, the Toolkit’s practical strategies and interactive materials are supporting them to increase their understanding of stammering and confidence in supporting their pupils who stammer, as well as helping them to promote acceptance of differences amongst school peers.

Thank you for helping us to spread the word!