I don’t have space to see clients at my flat. I needed to decide if I’d go and visit people, or rent a therapy room and have clients come to me. When I calculated how much time I’d spend travelling from family to family, I realised I’d only be able to see 4 or 5 clients in a day. It made more sense for me to rent a room, I’m able to book in between 6 and 8 clients a day.

There are of course advantages to seeing clients in their own home or educational setting. There are also advantages to seeing people in a distraction free, neutral space where both children and their parents can focus on the therapy session.

I work part time, so I looked for rooms I could rent by the hour or day. I’ve used 5 different therapy rooms and learnt what’s important to me, here are some things to consider.

Where is the room?

I look for somewhere close to public transport. One of my current rooms has a car park which is a bonus. Families have also commented that they enjoying coming somewhere close to cafes and shops. I decided not to work from one practice that looked gorgeous during the day, but felt isolated at night, I didn’t think I’d feel safe.

Is it accessible?

Think about the access. If you work with pre-schoolers like I do, they may arrive in pushchairs. My first therapy room was up 3 flights of stairs. They may also be in the process of toilet training, how far away is the toilet?!

Is there space for your clients to wait if they arrive early? Are there any resources you can borrow, such as child sized furniture or musical instruments? Is the room suitably furnished, or will you need to remove fragile things before getting started each day? How often is it cleaned? Is there any storage you can use?

What are the rental terms?

The places I’ve worked from have varied hugely in terms of the admin, and payment terms. Two places required me to sign a contract, provide my insurance information, and give notice if I wanted to stop using the room. Others have been more flexible. When I was gradually returning to work after maternity leave, I chose a room I could book on an ad hoc basis to minimise the risk of paying for a room I wasn’t using. Then when it wasn’t available on the days I needed, I found a room where I book 6 sessions at a time, but don’t need to sign a contract. I was surprised that when I asked for a discount, one place was happy to give me one.

What’s not essential but nice to have?

I like the idea of having access to a kitchen, but in 18 months I’ve only made myself 1 cup of tea! I do use the sink to fill and empty buckets for water play though. I thought wireless internet access would be useful, but on the rare occasions I’ve needed my iPad online, I’ve tethered it to my phone.

Referrals and other benefits

It might be worth thinking about what other businesses or services work at any location you’re considering, as they may be able to refer people to you. Some venues offer other incentives: when I rented a room in a wellness centre, I was considered a “teacher” and could go to yoga classes for £1!

Each time I need to look for a new therapy room I feel overwhelmed, something always comes up though! If you have questions about finding a therapy room leave a comment or email me.

This post is part of a series, I wrote about how I advertise my service and how clients contact me in previous posts. Coming next pricing, billing and all things money.

Several therapists working in the NHS have emailed me to ask my advice about starting their own therapy business. I thought I’d share what I tell them here, in a series of posts. I started working independently about 18 months ago, I’m not claiming to have all the answers! I’ll write about what works (and doesn’t) for me, here in London; you can decide if it’s relevant to you and your situation.

How do potential clients contact you?

I already had an email address I used for work, so I kept using it. My work phone number was more complicated. I see my clients in a rented therapy room (more on that coming soon) and do my admin at home. We don’t have a landline phone, and I didn’t feel happy putting my mobile number on the internet. So I bought a Skype phone number. I selected a London area code, and for £3.35 a month I have a work phone. When someone calls the number, Skype rings on my desktop computer. If I’m out and about and expecting a call, I can open the Skype app on my mobile, and that’ll ring too. The number has an answer phone, and Skype emails me when someone leaves a message.

When a family books a therapy session I give them my mobile number, so I know they can reach me if they’re running late. This set up is working well at the moment.

I only use this number for work so I’ve made my answer phone message specific. I ask callers to tell me where they live and how old their child is. This helps me filter my enquiries. I’m able to call parents of older children straight back and explain I only work with under 7s. As well as check my availability in a particular location (I work in 2 different places) before returning a call.

Short form on the website

I also have a form on my website that parents can fill out to get in touch with me. It’s a free service by Wufoo. One of the questions on the form is: What are you concerned about in terms of your child’s speech, language and communication skills? The way a parent answers this question sometimes gives me an indication of how involved they’d like to be in the therapy process. 

This post is the first in a series about Becoming Independent. I’ll write about how potential clients find my details in the next post.

Photo by Álvaro Ibáñez

Since setting up in independent practice I’ve had almost weekly emails from people who want to train as speech and language therapists. They explain they need to gain relevant work experience and ask if they can come and shadow me during therapy sessions with my clients. 

At the moment I can’t see how having someone observe me carry out therapy benefits my clients, who are my customers. So I’ve been politely explaining that I don’t offer shadowing opportunities for this reason. Am I missing something? Do you deal with these types of enquires differently?

I tend to suggest that people contact their local NHS service; when I worked in the NHS we offered half day observation sessions. Back when I was looking for relevant experience before applying to train as a therapist I had lots of luck with my local volunteer centre. They matched me to a weekly Stroke club and a summer day camp for children with Down’s Syndrome. I received training and worked alongside therapists, during both of these placements.

The guidance for applying for a place on a speech and language therapy degree course says applicants need to demonstrate awareness of client needs and the skills required to work as a therapist. I wondered if I could put together a short workshop that would support the people who ask to shadow me with their applications. I could cover things like:

• an introduction to the range of clients I work with, and their needs, with video examples,
• an introduction to different types of therapy, and ways of working,
• workshop exercises to demonstrate and practise the core skills therapists require,
• a reading or resource list, particularly those written by people with speech, language and communication needs or their families,
• suggestions for how to approach therapists, to ask for observation experience,
• an opportunity for questions and answers.

What do you think? Does this sound useful? If you’re in the process of applying for a therapy degree course would you attend?

Photo by crabchick

I finished running the program for the first time in January and last week I visited the families who’d taken part, to review their progress. So what were the outcomes? All the children had moved forward with their communication; one child listened to a question and responded appropriately by nodding her head, another came up to me and initiated a game by tapping me on the shoulder — they were communicating!

The parents had also made huge, significant changes — they were waiting for their children to communicate, rather than anticipating their needs. They were joining in with activities their children had chosen, rather than trying to re-direct them to activities they’d chosen. I watched one mother notice her son was captivated by sticking pieces of damp paper to the table, and use the intrude strategy to encourage him to indicate he wanted more paper – and it worked!

The parents were overwhelmingly positive about having taken part in the program; they talked about how wonderful it was to meet parents of children with similar needs to their child. They were reassured to learn how to move their children’s communication forward. They noticed small changes and celebrated them.

Why does the program work so well?

• It incorporates what we know about adult learning and changing habits. Hanen’s 4P cycle of prepare, present, practice and personalise engages parents and gets them ready to be successful. A mother commented that although her husband had read the More Than Words book – it just wasn’t the same as attending the sessions.
• It uses video examples during the parent sessions, and video coaching at the home visits, to help the parents see what they’re doing that’s beneficial and identify the next step.
• It uses a group format, which is hugely supportive for parents. Our group was made up of parents who spoke five different languages, they really gelled and it was easy to see how reassuring the group problem solving was.
• The program is intense: we met for seven weekly parent sessions lasting three hours, and four home visits. After Lidcombe therapy, it’s the most intensive intervention package the team offers. It felt like an investment: at the end, parents were so much clearer about what they were trying to achieve, more aware of how their behaviour could support their child, and ready to co-create the therapeutic process.

More Than Words in Private Practice?

This week I’m leaving my NHS post (eek!) and heading out into the world of private practice. I’m trying to figure out how to make More Than Words part of what I offer to parents. I’ll be able to run evening sessions, so working parents could attend, although I’m not sure if logistics-wise I’ll have enough appropriate families on my caseload at the same time, to make up a group. Have you run Hanen programs outside the NHS? How did it work?

If you’re an SLT and would like to attend a More Than Words workshop, Ealing are hosting one from 29 – 31 July 2013, you can register your interest today!

The Therapy Ideas Workshop, Get Control of Your Time and be More Productive by Prioritising Your Caseload is on 12 October at Sadler’s Wells in London. That’s a Friday–so it’s a perfect excuse for a weekend away!

London for speech therapists

To make your London visit speech and language therapy themed, start with dance and music—a great way to study non-verbal communication. Your workshop ticket gets you 20% off any show at Sadler’s Wells or the Peacock Theatre. Just buy your theatre ticket on the day of the workshop. Check out Some Like it Hip Hop or the Cedar Lake Contemporary Ballet.

How about observing pragmatic skills in action during a stroll around the market? At Borough Market you can also conduct a single case study: which texture of treats are easiest to nibble while walking? We all know SLTs like to natter, so enjoy a good catch up over afternoon tea at Bea’s of Bloomsbury, coffee at Workshop Coffee Company or cocktails at the Zetter.

There are plenty of affordable hotels near the workshop venue, like the Premier Inn and Jury’s Inn. So come and join me for the workshop and enjoy a weekend in London, it’s win – win!

Photo by coolhunting “tapas”‘s