RCSLT - Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists – Details, episodes & analysis

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Join us as we uncover the fascinating role of speech and language therapists working in awake craniotomy. We go to Birmingham to meet SLT Georgie Harrington and Mr Ismail Ughratdar, Consultant neurosurgeon to find out how they work as part of a team. Donald Innes, an expert by experience, who has had two awake craniotomies, shares his story and thoughts about the process. Kathleen Graham, SLT and now senior project manager for the RCSLT and lead on new awake craniotomies position paper (Oct 2025), gives us some of the history about the procedure.

With thanks to speakers:

• Donald Innes, expert by experience
• Kathleen Graham, Senior Project Manager, Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists
• Georgie Harrington, Clinical lead, Speech and Language Therapy Outpatients, University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust
• Mr Ismail Ughratdar, Consultant Neurosurgeon, Speech and Language Therapy Outpatients, University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust

Useful links:

• RCSLT awake craniotomy position paper (October 2025)
• Awake craniotomy | RCSLT (resources for the public)
• Awake craniotomy resources | RCSLT (resources for members of the RCSLT)
• What to expect during an awake craniotomy for brain tumour removal 

Please be aware that the views expressed are those of the guests and not the RCSLT.

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In this episode we chat with Professor Bronwyn Hemsley and Dr Lucy Bryant, both of the University of Technology Sydney, about their recent systematic review of interventions based on Gestalt Language Processing and Natural Language Acquisition. The discussion covers:

• What was the clinical question you were trying to answer?
• How did you go about undertaking the review? 
• What were the key findings?
• What does this mean for the speech and language therapy profession?

With thanks to panellists:

• Professor Bronwyn Hemsley, Head of Speech Pathology at The University of Technology Sydney and co-lead of the UTS Disability Research Network
• Dr Lucy Bryant, Senior Lecturer in Speech Pathology, The University of Technology, Sydney

Resources:

Bryant, L., Bowen, C., Grove, R. et al. Systematic Review of Interventions Based on Gestalt Language Processing and Natural Language Acquisition (GLP/NLA): Clinical Implications of Absence of Evidence and Cautions for Clinicians and Parents. Curr Dev Disord Rep 12, 2 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40474-024-00312-z
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s40474-024-00312-z 

To read about the prevalence of echolalia mentioned in this podcast see the open access review: 

Sutherland, R., Bryant, L., Dray, J. & Robert's, J. (2024). Prevalence of Echolalia in Autism: A Rapid Review of Current Findings and a Journey Back to Historical Data. Current Developmental Disorders Reports, 11, 171–183 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40474-024-00311-0
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s40474-024-00311-0

Please be aware that the views expressed are those of the guests and not the RCSLT.

Please let us know what you think of this podcast.

The May news podcast for the Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists featuring Derek Munn, Director of Policy and Public Affairs, and Steve Jamieson, CEO for the RCSLT. Published 27 May 2025.

In this month’s news podcast RCSLT CEO joins us to talk about the 80th birthday celebrations; the Equality, Diversity and Belonging (EDB) work with members; the leadership programme; applications for new governance roles and more. 

Derek Munn shares some exciting wins for the profession around the UK and outlines some areas of focus for the policy team over the coming months.

This interview was conducted by Victoria Harris, Head of Learning at The Royal College of Speech and produced and edited by freelance producer Jacques Strauss.

Please be aware that the views expressed are those of the guests and not the RCSLT.

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Listen for the latest on RCSLT's recent service user survey of speech and language therapy provision during the pandemic and the Building Back Better report which it prompted (see more here: https://www.rcslt.org/get-involved/building-back-better-speech-and-language-therapy-services-after-covid-19/) 
Hear the latest on how Covid is impacting on waiting lists; the case for better ventilation of enclosed spaces; and clear masks.
Plus more on NHS reform in England and a win in the House of Lords on the Domestic Abuse Bill.

This interview is conducted by Victoria Harris, Head of Learning at The Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists.

Please be aware that the views expressed are those of the guests and not the RCSLT.

Please let us know what you think of this podcast.

In this IJLCD episode, we talk to Richard Cave, who works with the Motor Neurone Disease Association (MND), about an article he’s written on voice banking. Voice banking is a process in which people who suffer from MND or other conditions are given the opportunity to record their own synthetic voices for use with an AAC device in the future. 
 
IJLCD (Wiley link):
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/1460-6984.12588

For RCSLT members, access this paper by navigating to the IJLCD website from our A-Z journals list here. Also, if you would like further information on the research terms used in the podcast, or many other aspects of research design, please navigate to the ‘Sage Research Methods’ collection from the Research Methods page of the RCSLT website’

MND:
https://www.mndassociation.org/

RCSLT pages on voice banking:
https://www.rcslt.org/speech-and-language-therapy/clinical-information/voice-banking/
 
You can follow Richard on Twitter (@speedoftrust27) to get more information about free Voice Banking training sessions for SLTs who may be interested in this exciting technology. 
 
The interview is conducted by Amit Kulkarni, Head of Research and Outcomes at The Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists.

Please be aware that the views expressed are those of the guests and not the RCSLT.

Please let us know what you think of this podcast.

In this episode we talk to Jo Sandiford, Senior Lecturer at Leeds Beckett University about student placements and the new placement guidance document which Jo authored.

This is the first in a short series of podcasts in which we explore how placements are evolving, the impact of the pandemic, and how we hope to create more placements in the future to meet the needs of the profession.

The recently launched new guidance for practice-based learning can be found here (note that this is open access so non-members can see it too).

The interview is conducted by Jacques Strauss, freelance digital producer.

Please be aware that the views expressed are those of the guests and not the RCSLT.

Please let us know what you think of this podcast.

Welcome to the March 2021 news catch up from The Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists, covering Covid-19; health and care in government budgets; and an update on the RCSLT survey of people's access to speech and language therapy which is coming soon.
(More about the survey here: www.rcslt.org/news/rcslt-survey-…ge-therapy-update/)

For members the podcast delves into member wellbeing and some key events coming this year.
- Health and wellbeing resources: www.rcslt.org/learning/covid-19/health-wellbeing/
- Member events: www.rcslt.org/events/

The interview is conducted by Vicky Harris, Head of Learning and features Derek Munn, Director of Policy and Public Affairs, RCSLT and Rachel Purkett, Director of Engagement and Communications, RCSLT.

Please be aware that the views expressed are those of the guests and not the RCSLT.

Please let us know what you think of this podcast.

Today’s podcast is on a paper from the International Journal of Language and Communication Disorders. Every other month RCSLT selects an article from the journal that we think will be of interest to the wider speech and language therapy community and interview the authors.

This episode is with Triona Sweeney and Debbie Sell, authors of the paper: 

 
Over 50% of children with cleft palate require speech therapy. However, there is a lack of timely, accessible speech therapy services in the UK and Ireland. Previous studies have shown that parents can deliver therapy effectively, and that connected health can support the delivery of speech therapy. This study aims to provide evidence that parent‐led therapy with the supervision of a specialist cleft therapist using FaceTime is effective.

NOTES:
For RCSLT members, access this paper by navigating to the IJLCD website from our A-Z journals list here. Also, if you would like further information on the research terms used in the podcast, or many other aspects of research design, please navigate to the ‘Sage Research Methods’ collection from the Research Methods page of the RCSLT website’ 


The interview is conducted by Amit Kulkarni, Head of Research and Outcomes at The Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists.

Please be aware that the views expressed are those of the guests and not the RCSLT.

Please let us know what you think of this podcast.

Find out why we are launching a podcast about the International Journal of Language and Communication Disorders (The IJLCD) and what you can expect to hear.  Featuring Amit Kulkarni, Head of Research and Outcomes at the Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists.  

Please be aware that the views expressed are those of the guests and not the RCSLT.

Please let us know what you think of this podcast.

Listen for the latest on Covid-19 including RCSLT's work with the AGP Alliance www.rcslt.org/media-centre/healt…l-to-matt-hancock/, clear masks, vaccinations and wellbeing. Find out about the big areas of focus for RCSLT over the next year and key issues to be aware of in politics which impact on speech and language therapy.

Please be aware that the views expressed are those of the guests and not the RCSLT.