Page 215 - Handbook of Electronic Assistive Technology

Chapter 7 • Alternative and Augmentative Communication 203

including the development of a dedicated Communication Champion to develop ser-
vices across the country. The Office of the Communication Champion (OCC) published a
report in 2011 making a detailed list of recommendations to the government. Regarding
the development of AAC services, the OCC recommended that the NHS Commissioning
Board procure regional or supraregional ‘hub’ centres to assess the needs of children
and young people who can benefit from AAC and to provide them with appropriate com-
munication aids and services, in partnership with locally commissioned AAC ‘spoke’
services (OCC, 2011). These recommendations were accepted in the government’s
Special Educational Needs and Disability Green Paper of the same year, and the NHS
Commissioning Board duly began the identification of specialist AAC centres in 2012,
identifying existing services with established expertise for both children and adults
requiring high-tech AAC systems.
Today, this has led to the establishment of 15 specialised services across England and
the establishment of a consistent referral criteria and timelines for assessment, provision
of equipment, planned preventative maintenance, repair and review. These centres are
supported with a centralised budget of around £15 million per year. Full details can be
5
found in the service specification document but, in summary, specialised services cover
all ages and are contracted for the assessment and provision of high-tech communication
aid systems and devices. In addition to the device, the NHS England commissioning docu-
ment specifies that services must also provide any equipment needed for the individual to
access the device (e.g., switches, eye-gaze technology systems, etc.), as well as any mount-
ing equipment needed to ensure that the AAC device and any access or control system is
in a suitable and consistent position for the user to access. Specialised services also have
a remit to provide training for the user and their support team, as well as offering more
general training sessions for staff working within their geographical area.
At a local or community level, AAC provision is managed by Clinical Commissioning
Groups, in common with other health services. Full details on the role of local AAC services
can be found in NHS England’s commissioning guidelines. 6

Scotland
In Scotland, a report entitled A Right to Speak: Supporting Individuals who use Augmentative
and Alternative Communication (Scottish Government, 2012) made eight recommenda-
tions for the development of AAC service provision in Scotland. These recommendations
included the setting up of a system of AAC Networks, including national, regional and local
services. This work was supported by NHS Education for Scotland and funding was made
available for a 3-year (2012–15) programme to raise awareness of AAC, to enhance the pro-
vision and support of AAC services and equipment and to build a base ensuring a sustain-
able future for good quality AAC services in Scotland.

5 http://bit.ly/2yAphtT.
6 http://bit.ly/2hZA2LU.