Learning Disability Week at Sheffield Children’s

This week is Learning Disability Week and here at Sheffield Children’s we support many children and young people with learning disabilities.

Our support comes in many different forms, from the learning disabilities mental health team to our speech and language team and our lead nurse for learning disabilities who looks at our strategy to support our patients. Find information below on some of our work.

Friendship

This year’s theme for Learning Disability Week is Friendship.

Watch this video of staff signing ‘friend’ so you can also celebrate the importance of friendship.

Learning Disabilities Mental Health team

The Learning Disabilities Mental Health team work with young people who have learning disabilities and experience mental health issues.

They support young people and their families with understanding difficulties or behaviours and developing strategies to manage these .

They also work with young people, parents and schools to develop a young person’s quality of life by promoting social opportunities, relationships and building up skills such as friendships, communication and play.

Anna Murray, Clinical Psychologist said: “We work to enable young people and families to have a more positive interactions and times together.”

The team include fantastic professionals from different backgrounds, including nursing, clinical psychology, speech and language therapy, occupational therapy and psychiatry.

Everyone works together to have a shared understanding of patient’s needs and support strategies.

A little reminder from the team: “Relationships are important for us all; children with learning disabilities need a little extra help in developing them but can gain so much from our support and friendship.”

Find out more about the service on the website  here.

Speech and language

As part of Learning Disability Week, our Speech and Language therapists, Sally and Anna, want to tell you about #Makaton and what it’s used for. Watch their video below.

You can learn how to sign your name and write it in Makaton symbols by downloading a free ‘My Name Is’ guide from their website here.

Lead Nurse for Learning Disabilities

Recently we welcomed Michelle Evans, our new Lead Nurse for Learning Disabilities.

Read her story and thoughts on her new role at Sheffield Children’s.

Michelle added: “Starting a new role is never easy, and COVID-19 has brought a new set of challenges to navigate. Since starting in March, I’ve worked with some amazing colleagues and received a fantastic warm welcome from all who I have met at Sheffield Children’s.”