Robert Buckland

A different means of communication

November 9th, 2007

For most of my life, I have taken the power of speech and language entirely for granted. It has been the basis of my career in the law, and the cornerstone of my political progress. As a result of what is happening with my daughter, these assumptions have been entirely overturned.

Words are only one way of communicating. Pictures are very useful too. Yesterday I had a session with the speech and language therapist who has been helping my daughter learn to communicate with a pictorial card system, known as PECS. I was able to see Millie use PECS in her class at her special school. I was bowled over by the results. Quite nonchalantly, she was making clear choices without any prompting. She was communicating clearly with staff. I was able to have a learning session with the speech therapist so that we can use PECS at home. I can’t praise her enough. The work that speech therapists do is vital, yet they are all too often treated as a “Cinderella” service.

The thing I like about PECS is that users are encouraged to construct entire sentences using cards. They will have a PECS book, which consists of a file of pages with velcro strips for card storage, plus a long velcro strip that is used to construct sentences. Once the user constructs the sentence using cards, they will hand that strip to the recipient who should then read it out loud, allowing the child to say the words if they are able.

At this stage, we are still dealing with need-based enquiries (eg “I want”), but the system allows users to communicate their feelings too. Can’t wait for that.
It was a friend of mine from West Swindon who opened the door on PECS to me many months ago. Seeing it in action with my daughter has made me fully appreciate its potential. I had been worried that it would be some sort of diversion away from the development of speech. I was wrong about that - PECS is a way of helping develop speech, because it emphasises social interaction and the value of communication to the child. I can’t wait for the time when she will be able to tell me her feelings, not just her immediate needs!

PECS, as many of you will know, stands for Pictorial Exchange Communication System. There is a very good reference page on this topic at the National Autistic Society’s website: http://www.nas.org.uk/nas/jsp/polopoly.jsp?d=528&a=3642

Apex Chambers is now up and running at 33-35 Cathedral Road, Cardiff CF11 9HB, telephone 02920232032 and fax 02920233636. Yesterday was a moving-in day, so now we are ready for action! Lots of positive feedback about this initative, so I am optimistic for a bright future.