Voice Difficulties

Voice disorders are medical conditions which involve abnormal pitch, loudness or quality of the sound produced by the larynx which affects speech production resulting in, for example, husky voice or high-pitch voice.

Speech and Language Therapists offer support to children and young people from birth to 18 years where communication difficulties are impacting on their ability to fully participate in daily life.

How can we help?

Speech and Language Therapists are uniquely placed to support children and young people who are experiencing problems with the quality of their voice.

Guidance and helpful information

Ask your GP to arrange an ear, nose and throat appointment if you are concerned about the quality of your child’s voice.

We require a recent ear, nose and throat report from the consultant to support the referral.

What happens next?

Once the request for service has been accepted, you will be notified and sent an appointment, as per the process above. We try and see all children within 18 weeks of acceptance onto the waiting list. . Where this is not possible, we will contact you and advise what the anticipated time frame for assessment will be. You can contact the SPA on 0330 024 5321 for support and assistance at any time while you are waiting.

We will see you and your child at one of our clinic venues. We will discuss the nature of the voice difficulty, the possible causes and the options for intervention. The intervention may involve regular clinic appointments or advice and monitoring. The intervention will aim to reduce the impact for the child and family and increase voice production.

Self referral

You can now self-refer your child into this service. For more information please view this guide on how to self refer.

For details of what the service supports and what supporting documentation you require for your referral, please view the request criteria page.

What is the process?

Contacts

Children and Family Health Devon
Single Point of Access Team
1a Capital Court
Bittern Road
Sowton Industrial Estate
Exeter EX2 7FW

t: 0330 0245 321