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Hundreds of thousands of children have been left waiting on the NHS for the developmental therapies they need, with some waiting for more than two years, The Independent has revealed.
Long waiting lists for services such as speech and language therapy will stunt a generation of children and “have a long-term impact on the UK”, according to the head of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health (RCPCH).
More than 1,500 children were left waiting two years for NHS treatments, according to internal figures obtained by The Independent, while another 9,000 waited more than a year. The total community child care waiting list is 209,000.
Dr Camilla Kingdon, president of the RCPCH, told The Independent: “The size of waiting lists in the community is extremely worrying. Community health services, such as autism services, mental health support and speech and language therapy, play a vital role in a child’s development into healthy adulthood and in helping children of all backgrounds reach their full potential.
“Lack of access to public health services also has direct socio-economic consequences for children and families. Delays in access to these essential services can impact social development, school readiness, and educational outcomes, and further drive health disparities across the country.”
She said health and medical staff were working extremely hard but that without support they would struggle to cope with long delays, which “will affect Britain in the long term”.
NHS figures for children’s community waiting lists show that in September more than 61,000 children were on waiting lists for speech and language therapy and community pediatric services. There were almost 20,000 waiting for physiotherapy and occupational therapy and just over 15,000 waiting for audiology examinations.
Louisa Reeves, from the charity Speech and Language UK, said: “With at least 1.7 million children speaking and understanding words due to the pandemic, any delay in access to speech and language therapy is very worrying. The government should improve access to support for speech and language challenges for families. This includes tools and training for nurseries and schools to identify and support children who struggle with speaking and understanding words. If urgent action is not taken, hundreds of thousands more children will be at risk of falling behind in education, developing mental health problems and becoming unemployed in the future.”
Alex Thomas told The Independent that her daughter Madison, who is four, was referred to speech and language therapy services when she was two at the start of the pandemic. She waited 10 months for her first assessment, but when it did take place it was through a digital appointment.
Ms Thomas said her daughter had been “massively affected” by the delays and had been left alone to complete her daughter’s activities and therapy.
“She’s going to school in September and the attitude she’s had is just bad… I honestly feel like I’m sending her to school at a complete disadvantage to her peers.”
Mrs Thomas has been told her daughter is unlikely to get the speech sessions she needs before she starts school because the waiting list is so long and the team is “flooded” with children.
Sarah Scobie, deputy director of research at the Nuffield Trust, said: “Delayed access to children’s services is having an impact now and in the future. Assessments and treatment of developmental problems, including hearing and speech, are one of the areas covered. Without early intervention, these issues can have a long-term impact on young people’s education, health and well-being long into the future.
An NHS spokesman said: “The National Health Service is working hard to reduce waiting times and improve outcomes for services for children and young people, including those commissioned by local authorities, and is developing a long-term workforce plan to ensure that services have the right numbers of the right types of staff in the coming years.’
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