Elise McMellin
Children’s Specialist Speech and Language Therapist
Does your child have any of the following…
No words or limited vocabulary.
Delayed language (talking).
Difficulties understanding or following instructions.
Difficulties being understood clearly (speech sound difficulties).
Social communication differences (e.g Autism).
A stammer.
Needs visuals to communicate (e.g AAC).
Suspected or diagnosed Selective Mutism.
Or perhaps you aren’t sure and need some advice? No problem!
I offer a free 15 minute phone call to chat about your child, so we can work out what your child really needs.
Supporting preschool and primary school age children, across Folkestone, Dover, Ashford and New Romney.
Offering home visits on weekends and weekday evenings.
A bit about me…
Hello! I’m Elise. I’m a Specialist Speech and Language Therapist. I absolutely love working with children and helping them on their communication journey. This can involve supporting children to learn new speech sounds, to acquire their first words, to build sentences, to use Makaton, to develop their interaction skills and so much more. Being a part of a child's communication journey is very special, and supporting parents to be the masters in their child’s communication is so important to me. That's why I love what I do.
I have a Masters degree in Speech and Language Therapy from City, University of London. I have worked for the NHS in East Kent since 2021. During my NHS career I set up the use of QR codes across East Kent NHS to help parents access information; I help run the Talking Walk-In service across Dover (where parents access the NHS speech therapy service); I regularly take on students and I won a runner up prize recognised as a “Rising Star” across all East Kent NHS employees in 2024.
I am registered with the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC) and the Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists (RCSLT).
What I can offer…
In my private therapist role, I offer home visit appointments for children with speech, language and social communication needs after school and on weekends. I work with pre-school and primary school aged children. I can provide appointments across Folkestone, Dover, Ashford and New Romney.
If you have any questions at all, please feel free to contact me!
Services
Assessment
Option 1 (£70):
Assessment through observation during play (approx. 45 minutes) including a debrief.
Suitable for a pre-school aged child.
Option 2 (£60):
Speech Assessment (only) (approx. 45 minutes) including a debrief.
Suitable when you feel your child has difficulties with their sounds in words (only).
Option 3 (£130):
Full assessment of a child’s understanding, expression, play and interaction using observation (through play) and, where necessary, table top assessment(s) (approx. 1-1.5 hours).
Suitable for school-age children who may need table-top assessments to understand their strengths and difficulties. Suitable also for pre-school children who have multiple areas that need investigating using some table-top assessments to clarify their exact strengths and difficulties.
In any option you select, we will discuss your child’s developmental history, their strengths/needs and your goals for Speech and Language input, during the assessment session.
A written report is optional, with an additional cost of £70. A report is recommended if you need to provide evidence to other professionals or organisations when securing support for your child.
Therapy
£70
Approximately 45 minutes.
It’s important that parents feel confident to use the strategies outside of therapy sessions. So, sessions will be a mix of myself and you (parents, caregivers or guardians) supporting your child. We can arrange therapy flexibly to suit you and your child.
You will be provided with resources, where necessary, to support your child at home.
For very young children with limited attention, we may adjust the session length.
Interested in Resources?
As part of therapy, you will be provided with resources.
If you are not looking for an assessment or therapy, but are interested in resources, please feel free to have a look at the samples below. I’d be more than happy to share them with you.
Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) - how to use AAC poster, communication boards, visual timetables, choice boards etc.
Speech sound therapy resources.
Parent-Child Interaction Poster.
Intensive Interaction Poster.
Developmental Language Disorder poster.
For more information, please see ‘Resources’ page.
Resources…
Intensive Interaction Poster
Speech therapy resource: Carrier Phrases
Speech sound awareness worksheet
AAC: now/next board
Classroom Strategies
More coming soon…
Parent Child Interaction Poster
How to use AAC Poster
Use the message box below to request an emailed PDF copy.
FAQs
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I travel to you. A child is typically most comfortable in their own home.
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I offer appointments on weekday evenings (after 4:30pm) and weekends, at a time that is suitable for your family.
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An assessment and debrief can take between 45 minutes (speech assessment) to 1.5 hours (full assessment). Therapy will typically be 45 minutes, but we can adjust this if needed.
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If you’d like an advice session, I can offer 1-off appointments.
If you’d like more regular support, we can arrange weekly therapy sessions.
We can arrange a block of therapy, or as many sessions as you’d prefer.
Sessions can be as flexible as you need, to suit your family life.
All children are unique in their progress, and I’ll always be transparent about how much therapy I think a child may need, when I meet them.
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I would love to, however, since I work full time for the NHS, I am not available during school time to see your child privately. I am more than happy for you to video parts of our sessions to show to your child’s educational staff, and I am happy to email educational staff with plans and strategies for them to implement.
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No problem! Feel free to send me a text or call (07543896349) or email elise.the.speechie@gmail.com
Contact
If you have any questions about how we can support your child, and would like to arrange a free 15 minute phone/video call, please contact me using the message box below. Alternatively, please telephone or email.
I currently offer assessment and therapy sessions as home visits, on weekday evenings and weekends.
Folkestone - Dover - Ashford - New Romney.
elise.the.speechie@gmail.com
07543896349
Elise the Speechie
Specialist Speech and Language Therapist
Folkestone - Dover - Ashford - New Romney.
elise.the.speechie@gmail.com
07543896349