title: Early intervention project: evaluation of WILSTAAR, Hanen and specialist playgroup.
abstract: This paper describes an early intervention project which combines a three tiered approach to speech and language provision for pre-school children. Jointly funded by I CAN, AFASIC, Dorset Healthcare NHS Trust and the Department of Health, this two and a half year project aims to reduce the numbers of children and severity of their speech and language difficulties on entering school. The project uses the following approaches--the Ward Infant Language Screening Test Assessment Acceleration Remediation (WILSTAAR), the Hanen parent programmes and a specialist speech and language playgroup. In this paper these approaches are described with an explanation of how each is being evaluated and where possible interim results have been presented.
authors.affiliation: Department of Speech & Language Therapy, Dorset (NHS) Healthcare Trust, Boscombe, Bournemouth.
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Awcock
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Habgood
mesh_terms: D002675:Child, Preschool; D006801:Humans; D007805:Language Development Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000628:therapy; D007807:Language Tests; D008403:Mass Screening / Q000379:methods*; D010290:Parents; D015397:Program Evaluation; D013064:Speech Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis*