Speech Pathology Week

For Speech Pathology Week (23 August to 29 August), we sat down with Rocky Bay Speech Pathologist Eloise Purdy, who works with children and families from the beautiful Lady Lawley Cottage in Cottesloe. With five years’ experience in paediatric speech pathology, Eloise is passionate about helping children build confidence through communication skills and self-advocacy using fun and engaging play-based therapy.

In this Q&A, she shares insights into the diverse role of a speech pathologist, challenges common misconceptions about the profession, and explains how the unique spaces at Lady Lawley Cottage help children thrive.

What does a speech pathologist do?

The role is quite varied in that it changes with every customer, but the main umbrella is communication – then it branches off into different goals.

There are speech sounds and helping children make themselves understood, language skills and comprehension, as well as more functional social skills like advocating for yourself.

Which area do you enjoy working in the most?

Early intervention (children under five), but I love that I get to work across such a large range of ages, from pre-school to older teens. It feels like you’re always learning. I’m also really enjoying some of the more functional areas like supporting high-school kids with neuro-affirming social skills

Confidence plays a really big part in speech pathology. Communication is so intertwined with confidence that it’s nice to see that confidence grow throughout sessions.

What makes Lady Lawley Cottage a unique place for services like speech pathology?

It’s a really beautiful spot for therapy and a great set-up for kids. The soft playroom is one of my favourite spaces, and we’ve got a large range of toys and activities which we integrate into the therapy to make it as fun and engaging as possible

What kind of activities and resources do you use for kids’ specific speech therapy?

It very much depends on the child. I would say the soft playroom is a big one. You’d be surprised at how combining gross motor play can help keep a child regulated.

For example, if you’re working on functional communication and action words like ‘climb’, ‘jump’, ‘slide’, ‘more’ or ‘finish’, all those doing words can be put into practice in the soft playroom. It’s a nice way to use the space that’s meaningful to the kids as well as being fun!

In other areas, if we’re working on specific targets we might use flashcards, using them within a game of hide and seek or getting the kids to pick them up throughout an obstacle course. Having the right space paired with resources like this is helpful for supporting kids that struggle with just sitting down at a desk – whether they’re very young or simply prefer movement.

Can you name three misconceptions about speech pathology?

1. It’s just about how to say sounds – there’s so much more.
2. Therapy consists of sitting at a desk doing drills then going home. In reality, one of the best and most effective strategies, especially for little ones, is being active during therapy sessions.
3. Therapy ends with the therapist. The parents and carers in a child’s life are their biggest supports and their biggest strengths. We help families support their child by finding ways to integrate those strategies into home routines. It’s an evidence-based way to work towards achieving goals.

What are some common communication challenges faced by the customers you work with?

I think it depends on the age of the kids, but they often need support when they’ve been through transitions to different environments with different expectations, such as when they’re first starting school for example. It might impact comprehension – remembering things, being able to listen when it’s noisy, that kind of thing

A lot of the customers we work with are neurodivergent or have different communication styles. So, we work with customers collaboratively to decide what works for them. For example, if they’re struggling with indirect communication – like people not saying what they mean, then we could work on problem solving strategies to help them respond.

And I’d say social communication is a massive one in almost every aspect of life. It’s about balancing what strategies to use as well as understanding that there will be some things out of your control and learning how to cope with that.

Rocky Bay offers a multi-disciplinary approach to their services, how does that work within the team at Lady Lawley Cottage?

There’s a massive overlap when it comes to speech and OT (occupational therapy). A lot of the kids we work with have sensory needs or struggle with emotional regulation, and that’s not something that you can just push aside during a session – so this is where an OT can help support them too. It’s a really nice holistic approach to achieving the customer’s goal.

What do you enjoy most about working for Rocky Bay?

It’s such a beautiful hub. The resources are amazing. It’s a wonderful little team – very friendly, funny and positive. And since we have a lot of shared customers, there’s a lot of collaboration, problem solving together and sharing of resources.

What traits do you need to do this job well?

One of my core principles that I always like to come back to is the idea of unconditional positive regard, towards not just our child customers but their families as well. The idea is that regardless of any struggles or difficulties they’re having, they are doing their best. So being flexible and being able to meet them where they’re at during that time is important.

Favourite piece of advice you’ve been given?

Give yourself some grace. A lot of parents feel like they’re not doing their best. If you’re having a 60% day and you’re not feeling the best, then 60% is your 100%.

What advice would you give to someone who may be experiencing speech-related difficulties, but who might be hesitant to seek support?

Potential customers might be concerned about a big commitment, but the great thing about allied health and speech in general is that it can look different for everyone. Weekly or fortnightly sessions might be appropriate, but it could just be a one-off assessment. It’s very much about prioritising choice and control. And I would say if you’ve got concerns, contact us for a chat.

Rocky Bay’s Youth Respite service is now open for bookings, with first guests expected next month (September). How do you think having a respite service onsite is going to impact your role and services here at Lady Lawley Cottage?

I think it’s wonderful. It’s a great opportunity. It’s working towards building a little community around the hub and a great way of building relationships, as well as extending support networks for the families and customers.