The provision of communication aids to children in England: An analysis of applications to the communication aids project

Background: Children who experience difficulties in face-to-face interaction, understanding language and developing literacy can benefit from the provision of communication aids such as speech synthesizers and specialist software applications that support their social participation and learning. The Communication Aids Project (CAP) was a national initiative by the Department for Education and Skills in England, aimed at supporting and developing the provision of communication aids to children. This paper presents an analysis of the number and type of applications to CAP. In so doing, the paper begins to explore how the need for communication aids might be understood in England. Methods: The analysis was carried out on a database of 3060 anonymized records, representing applications to CAP between January 2002 and January 2004. Results: Applications to CAP were made on behalf of children with a broader range of disabilities than might be assumed, including a relatively high proportion of children with autistic spectrum disorder. Rates of application to CAP varied in line with Local Education Authority population size (e.g. total pupils, total pupils with special educational needs (SEN)), rather than indicators of regional variation in SEN provision (e.g. proportion of population identified as having SEN). Conclusions: Within a context of changing services to children in England and increasing emphasis on the plurality and contestability of services, the relevance of these findings for service providers and service commissioners is discussed.