SLCo is a Scottish registered charity which represents the interests of children and young adults with lived experience of communication impairments, working towards their inclusion in society and supporting their parents and carers.
Our East Dunbartonshire Youth Club provides a safe, welcoming and accessible out with school hours service for young people with speech, language and communication impairments. The youth club provides a social meeting place where young people are encouraged to form friendships in a supportive atmosphere helping to develop their social, life and team working skills, whilst also reducing their social isolation. This gives young people who find it difficult to function and communicate in mainstream circles a chance to have fun with their peers, meet up with friends and enjoy leisure time on a regular basis. We also provide fun and stimulating activities that encourage conversation, working as part of team and opportunities to participate in social events that they would have difficulty with in a mainstream setting. This club, for some of those who attend, gives a chance to spend time away from their parents allowing them to become more independent and to assert their own voice. Children and young people with SLI have a unique set of barriers when it comes to socialisation with peers. Because of their inability to communicate effectively, they are often side-lined, marginalised, misunderstood, bullied and excluded. The opportunity to be with others who share the daily challenge of a communication impairment lends itself well to feelings of shared identity, belonging, peer support and fostering collective power to ultimately help to build self awareness, inner strength and resilience. These are attributes often lacking in young people who are so isolated. We also have a well supported parent group in the area and many young people who benefit from support of this kind.
