Accessing a therapist

To arrange an assessment choose a therapy service close to where you live. Once the service provider receives your referral they will contact you with an appointment. View therapy services in south eastern Sydney.

Following the assessment, a meeting will be arranged with the teacher, parents/carers and other professionals providing services to the student, to discuss the results of the assessment and develop priorities for therapy. The individual plan indicated priorities and the therapist responsibility for implementing the program.

Each individual plan is reviewed as necessary.

What is an individual plan?

Therapists will follow the principles for individual plan as outlined below.

The recommended guidelines for Individual Plans for students with disabilities are called current accepted practice (CAP) guidelines. The guidelines provide principles and parameters for physiotherapists, occupational therapists and speech pathologists supporting programs for school-aged children and young people with disabilities.

The guidelines cover three main areas:

Collaborative teams for individual planning
Individual planning
Supporting individual programs through therapy input

A Guide to the principles of current accepted practice

Part A: Collaborative teams for individual planning

Principles

Collaborative teamwork is an interactive process that allows people involved with a child/young person, to come together and create solutions to jointly define valued life goals for that person. Collaborative teamwork provides an integrated approach to therapy, education and community support. All members of the team recognise the expertise and skills that others bring to the collaborative team process.

Practice

Teams are identified, their roles and functions agreed and a co-ordinator appointed.
The core members of the team are people who have most contact with the child/young person, for example, parents or guardians, class teacher, teachers aide, integration teacher and therapist if needed.
This team may be extended to include therapists, teacher's aide, integration and support teacher, school counsellor, executive teacher, community support worker or case manager and others.

Part B: Individual planning

Principles

The child/young person and their family have ownership of the individual plan. they choose which life goals and information are included in the planning process so it reflects their attitudes, values, culture and the community of which they are a part. Families have a right not to be involved.

Practice

The collaborative team will develop an individual plan that will:

Include agreed goals that are realistic, relevant and achievable
Be relevant to home, school and community
Reflect a holistic approach
Incorporate monitoring and evaluation; Be reviewed at least annually

Part C: Supported individual programmes through therapy input

Principles

Each child/young person receives therapy support designed to meet, in the least restrictive way, the goals agreed to in their plan.

Each child/young person receives therapy support which is 'only as special as necessary'.

Therapy support provided for the child/young person takes place in the setting that is most relevant to the carrying out of that function being learned by the child/young person.

Practice

Support provided by therapists:

Is determined by the goals agreed to in the plan (non discipline referenced)
May be delivered in a number of ways
Is integrated into the learning programme.