Communication aid

Also called Communication device, AAC device, AAC equipment, Electronic communication aid

The umbrella term for the equipment, and what a person is entitled to expect from one: assessment, provision, training, repair and a backup.

What it is

Communication aid is the general term for any piece of equipment that helps a person communicate. In everyday use it usually means a speech-generating device, but in the NHS and in the law it covers the lot: a paper book, a tablet with an app, an eye-gaze system, a switch and the mount that holds it. It is the phrase you will find in an EHCP, a care plan and NHS England's service specification.

The term matters because it is what a person is entitled to. Nobody is entitled to "an iPad"; they are entitled to a communication aid that meets their assessed needs, which may be an iPad.

Who it can help

Anyone whose speech does not meet their needs, and who could use equipment to communicate. In England, people with complex needs meet NHS England's criteria for the specialised AAC service, which assesses and provides equipment free; people with less complex needs are the responsibility of local AAC services and local speech and language therapy. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have their own arrangements, with a statutory duty in Scotland to provide communication equipment.

The gap is real: local provision varies enormously, and a person who does not meet the specialised criteria can find that nobody is funded to provide their aid. That is where charities, schools and self-funding come in, and where families need to know what to ask for.

How it works

The entitlement comes in pieces. An assessment of need by a suitably qualified team, which should include the person, the family and the everyday partners. Provision of the aid, with the mounting, access equipment and page set the assessment identified. Training for the person and their partners, because an aid without training is a paperweight. Repair and replacement when it breaks, with a loan device in the meantime. And a low-tech backup for when it does.

In an EHCP, the aid and the support around it should be specified in Section F, which makes it enforceable. In a care plan, it belongs in communication needs. The Accessible Information Standard requires NHS and social care bodies to record and meet communication needs.

Getting started

Ask for a referral to speech and language therapy, and say the words "assessment for a communication aid". If the person has complex needs, ask whether they meet the specialised AAC criteria and for a referral to the regional hub. See referring to speech and language therapy.

While waiting, use what exists. The Talk board is free and needs no assessment; a paper board costs a printer. What the person does with them is evidence for the assessment.

Get it written down. Whatever aid is provided, ask for the plan for training, repair, backup and review to be in writing, in the EHCP or care plan, with names.

Where to get help

Communication Matters explains the entitlement in plain terms and lists every UK AAC service. NHS England publishes the specialised AAC service specification and commissioning guidance. ACE Centre runs two of the specialised hubs and gives independent advice. For funding where the NHS won't pay, The Sequal Trust and Cerebra help; for enforcement in an EHCP, IPSEA.