Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have (1) to mark International Stammering Awareness Day on 22 October, and (2) to develop technology across the NHS which ensures equal access to specialist speech and language therapy for people who stammer.

While there were no specific events to mark World Stammering Day on 22 October, we acknowledge the unique role that speech and language therapists play in the identification and assessment of children and adults with fluency disorders which affect their communication, including stammering. Their skills allow the diagnosis of specific fluency disorders, the associated consequences, as well as retained communication abilities.

NHS England provides assessment and treatment for children and adults with a stammer. There are different treatments available for stammering, depending on a person’s age and their circumstances. These include direct and indirect therapy, and other treatment options such as psychological therapies and the use of feedback devices which alter the way an individual hears their voice.