Finding Charlie's Voice is an Irish Registered Charity (CHY22899) that supports children and young adults with speech and language communication needs in Ireland.
The charity was inspired by Charlie, now 9, but born with Verbal Dyspraxia - a rare neurological speech sound disorder, impacting about 1:1000 children worldwide.
For reasons unknown, the pathways between the brain and the mouth have not developed, which results in unintelligible speech. It is also known as Childhood Apraxia of Speech. Children with Verbal Dyspraxia have immense difficulty planning the precise movements necessary to produce speech.
Those with verbal dyspraxia need to be taught the precise motor movements necessary to form sounds and words. They need to hear and say a single word over 1000 times before it becomes natural output, and so progress is slow and time spent in therapy is long - often years and years.
Their speech cannot be corrected without intensive, early and frequent intervention from a qualified Speech and Language Therapist.
Every child deserves the right to reach their highest communication potential. Every child deserves the right to support and intervention and to participate meaningfully in society.
We believe that children should be seen AND heard. Communication is a basic human right, but it is also a privilege.
Our Ethos
Many children and young adults with speech and language communication needs, will rely on parents/guardians/adults to advocate on their behalf
- to be their voice until they find their own.
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At Finding Charlie's Voice, we use the voice of not only our parents, but of adults living with speech and language disorders. These are our ambassadors and help drive our mission and ensure our values and goals remain person centered.
Our Mission
is to ensure that no child is left behind because they cannot speak and/or understand.
Our Vision
is to ensure that every child or young adult with a speech and language communication need, is afforded every opportunity and support to reach their highest communication potential.
Our Aim
is to support children and young adults in getting the appropriate supports that they need, through advocacy, research and direct support.
Our Board of Directors
Bríd O'Donnell
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Ambassador adult living with Verbal Dyspraxia
Dr Clare Carroll, PhD
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SLT and Lecturer
My name is BrÃd and I'm an adult with verbal dyspraxia. I was first diagnosed at age 3 over 21 years ago and even before I was formally diagnosed, I was lucky enough to be in speech therapy. It's thanks to that early intervention, the hours of speech and occupational therapy and supports from my family, friends and school that I am where I am today. Today I am pursuing a masters in computer science in Trinity College, with a bachelor's already under my belt. Despite the challenges, I am passionate about debating and public speaking. I began debated in school, and I continued in college, becoming the head of the Hist, the oldest student debating society in the world. The most important lesson I learnt from not only debating but from my dypraxia that the manner in which you speak will never be as important as what you have to say. And that's why I am delighted to be involved with Finding Charlie's Voice.
Clare Carroll is a registered speech and language therapist and a full-time lecturer in speech and language therapy at NUI Galway since 2005. She is co-director of the MSc in Childhood Speech, Language and Communication Needs. She has a wealth of clinical experience having worked with the Irish Health Service and in private practice. Clare is interested in lifelong learning and completed a MSc in Advanced Practice in Speech and Language Therapy in 2003. Her Masters dissertation investigated parents' perceptions of speech and language therapy services. She also completed courses in counselling skills and participatory research. Clare's PhD developed a model to enhance interdisciplinary team working practices for children with disabilities in Ireland. She has expertise in supporting the engagement and participation of children with disabilities in research and practice, in qualitative research methodologies and in supporting interdisciplinary practice in the field of disabilities. Clare's research interests are in childhood disability, collaborative working, health services research, integrated care, and participatory methods. Clare is passionate about services being informed by the people who use them, in particular understanding what is important to people with disabilities. She is passionate about people with communication disabilities engaging and participating in research and in our communities.