Selective mutism (SM) is an anxiety-based disorder that affects a child’s ability to speak to specific people, in specific environments despite being able to talk freely in settings where they feel more comfortable e.g. at home with their family.
For some children, they are able to use non-verbal communication to get their message across in these situations such as nodding, pointing, using their fingers to express numbers/choices etc. For others, they may be literally ‘frozen’ in their anxiety and unable to respond in this way.
SM is NOT choice
It is important to remember that the young person does not CHOOSE to remain silent, their anxiety prevents them from being able to speak, even if they desperately want to. It is not personal. They need your help to build their confidence and trust.
If you have concerns about your child’s talking in different environments and think they may have selective mutism, please speak to your health visitor or your child’s nursery or school to discuss whether a referral to the speech and language therapy team is appropriate.
If your child is not in education, please contact us on 0300 123 344 or email: medch.childrenscommunity@nhs.net to discuss accessing further support.
Assessment for Selective Mutism
Assessment for selective mutism will look slightly different for each child depending on the needs identified in the child’s referral. The assessment will often involve an observation of the child or young person in an educational setting and a meeting with parents and school/nursery staff to gain a picture of the child’s communication across different settings. At times, it will be appropriate to complete a direct assessment with the child however for some children this will not be appropriate. The therapist seeing the child for assessment will be able to explain the assessment process in more detail once a referral has been triaged and accepted.
Training for schools and parents
Once a child has been referred to our service, an assessment has been completed and a diagnosis of selective mutism has been agreed, a package of support will be discussed and agreed with home and school. If a child is in nursery or an educational setting and difficulties with talking are impacting the child at school or nursery, then whole school training may be offered to the setting to support staff with creating an anxiety free environment for young people with selective mutism.
In addition to this training, parents and school can also access online training offered by Kent Community Healthcare. This training has been developed for children and young people living in Kent but the team have kindly agreed to families and schools in Medway having free access to this online training.
To access the training please visit the Kent Pod here > – Please feel free to use the information and strategies in this training to support children at home or in your setting however please note, any information about support pathways will be related to Kent and not to children living and accessing education in Medway.
If you have questions about accessing support for your child with selective mutism in Medway, please speak to your health visitor or your child’s nursery or school to discuss a referral to the speech and language therapy team.