About Us and Our Team
M-SLA works in partnership with Clinical Psychologists from hemotion to deliver gold standard autism assessments. The service prides itself on being able to offer service users and their families efficient diagnostic assessments and follow up support.
In some areas, the waiting list for an autism assessment can be up to two years which should not be the case. We aim to offer assessments and support when the need arises and complete assessments within four weeks from the referral being accepted, yet maintain our high standards and quality.
Our assessments are completed in a multidisciplinary way and so is our feedback. With consent, we will liaise/work with the service user’s school/workforce and any other agencies involved to ensure that the advice and support provided is tailored specifically.
We encourage our service users who are unsure about autism to consider the pre-assessment first to see if an autism assessment is appropriate. This will ensure that appropriate referrals for diagnostic assessment is made.
Our NHS work tirelessly to deliver assessments but due to staff shortages and long waiting lists, there is limited availability for post-assessment work. We have therefore also created a post-diagnostic pathway to meet this gap.
We conduct specialist assessments, consultations and build bespoke packages of care/interventions to fit the needs of pupils with Speech, Language and Communication Needs (SLCN) in secondary schools. The niche area of secondary school students with SLCN is where M-SLA specialises, with successful outcomes for the pupil, their family and their school.
CEO Farah Hawa has worked in secondary schools around the country. Although considerable progress has been made, the lack of specialist support for secondary aged pupils; be it difficulties accessing specialist support at this level or schools being unaware of support that is available, is still concerning. We aim to bridge this gap.
For some children, their SLCN may not ‘appear’ until they reach secondary school. As the SLCN was not picked up at primary school, it is often the assumption that the needs that the young person presents with is not related to difficulties understanding and using spoken language. This then leads to the young person being misunderstood and incorrect labels placed on them i.e. behavioural, emotional and social difficulties or being viewed/described as 'naughty', 'lazy' and non-compliant'. Therefore this service was created to raise awareness and understanding of SLCN in older children and ways to support/facilitate communication in order to achieve desired outcomes and reduce exclusion rates.
Our Team
Dr Bradley Crook DClinPsy. PGCert. B.Sc
Clinical Psychologist
Bradley has experience working therapeutically with children and families in the NHS as well as part of a private psychology company and providing therapy to teenagers and children for anxiety, depression, low self-esteem and self-harm. He has supported young people in the foster care system and provides assessment and support to children and adults with Autism Spectrum Conditions.
Bradley has extensive knowledge and experience developing and delivering training packages to children’s services, schools and colleges.
hemotion was created as Bradley and his business partner Dr Greg Stocks had significant concerns about the way in which our culture shapes views on gender and the negative impact of this on identity. In particular, how rigid views on masculinity shape boys’ relationship with their own emotional wellbeing and help seeking.
