The ability to communicate is something many of us take for granted, but one in ten children in the UK struggle with a communication development or disability.

A child or young person may have a communication disability if they cannot express themselves, understand others or build relationships because of problems in one of more of these areas:

• Understanding and finding the right words
• Producing, ordering and discriminating between speech sounds
• Using rules about how words, phrases and sentences are formed to convey meaning
• Using and understanding language in different social contexts

Develop your child’s communication skills

• Play lots of games that encourage children to talk, such as I Spy, Spot the Difference and Simon Says
• Give your child lots of opportunity to speak to you
• With younger children, repeat their sentences back correctly to show that you are listening and so that they can hear examples of proper speech
• Give your child plenty of time to get their words out
• Read books that make use of repetition, such as those containing rhymes and songs
• Listen to your child with interest, ask them about their day, and to retell familiar stories to you