Start - Stuttering Treatment And Research Trust

How does your service support whānau? 

The Stuttering Treatment and Research Trust (START) was founded in 1993 and is the only organisation in Aotearoa that provides specialist speech language therapy and social work support for people of all ages who stutter and their families and whānau. 

START provides individual sessions - either in person at our clinic in Auckland or via Zoom throughout the rest of the country, including those living in Te Tai Tokerau. You just need to have access to an internet connection. 

Stuttering affects people of all ages and cultures. It’s not related to how intelligent or smart someone is. Many tamariki stutter at some point as they learn to talk. Stuttering is more common in boys than girls and can run in families or within whānau.

For tamariki who stutter, we work with them and their whānau to reduce the severity and impact of stuttering, increasing tamariki’s confidence, and increase the parents and whānau’s capabilities and confidence in supporting their tamariki with their stutter.

We work with rangitahi and adults who stutter too. 

We also provide a range of groups, courses and social opportunities for people of all ages who stutter and their families and whānau.

What do you think gets in the way of people contacting you for support (what are their fears and concerns)? 

Some people may also be embarrassed or ashamed about their stutter, they may try to hide it, not want to talk about it or not realise that help is available.

START is a charitable trust but we do charge for our services. We try to keep our fees as affordable as possible but know that cost sometimes gets in the way of people contacting us for support. We don’t want that to be the case - so if cost is an issue for you, please let us know and we’ll work with you to find a rate that’s affordable.

What surprises people when they do start working with you? 

That people think that therapy is just about eliminating stuttering or making them talk more fluently, but it's so much more than that. The people we work with often comment on how much better they feel after talking about stuttering and getting things out in the open.

What results have you seen in your work with whānau? 

The work we do with whānau helps to reduce the worry and concern that they might have about their whānau member. We see increased confidence in the whānau we work with and this helps to limit the impact stuttering has on their life.

Would someone you have worked with in the past share their experience of how your service has helped them? 

“I live in Whangārei and I’ve been having sessions fortnightly with Chris – one of the Speech Language Therapists from START. I first went to Auckland to meet Chris and he was very professional but kind and understood my speech problems. We got on well and have been talking via Zoom every fortnight. He is teaching me techniques to help me. Before meeting Chris, I had no help with my speech and feel very lucky to have met him. I hope that other people like me can get support from people like him or other START people.” J – 17 years.

“After hearing an interview on RNZ about START we finally had somewhere we could go to find help for our four year old girl, who had a stutter which was slowly getting worse. Although Kindy told me they hadn’t noticed anything, I’d noticed how the relieving teacher took no time to assist Millie when she wasn't able to explain what she wanted clearly.  I was really beginning to worry.

"I contacted START and very quickly we started sessions. Millie loved her sessions where she got to play computer games!! The homework activities we had to do during the week were so simple and easy to complete. Very quickly we saw an improvement in Millie’s speech and her confidence! She would proudly say she was doing ‘smooth talking’! It’s been eight months since we completed our last session and occasionally she still asks about seeing Anna on the laptop (we did all sessions via Zoom) and then that follows by “but I do smooth talking now so I probably don’t need to … but we did fun games!!”

"I can’t recommend START highly enough - the warmth of all the people we talked to, their easy manner, the fact they took me seriously and were just so helpful!! No question was silly - we were listened to and felt heard!! The convenience of not having to go anywhere was a blessing too - with three other siblings, two who are younger than Millie it was so easy.

I can’t thank START enough for helping Millie talk smoothly, enabling her to communicate effectively with anyone and everyone now. She’s no longer her sister’s quiet shadow - she is now her own person. ,”Angela, Millie’s mum – Whangārei."

Is there a referral process or can people self-refer to your service? 

There’s no formal referral process – you can self-refer to START either by phoning us on 09 579 5667, emailing us on support@start.org.nz or filling out our website enquiry form https://www.stuttering.co.nz/contact-us/

Next Steps

You can self-refer to START either by phoning us on 09 579 5667, emailing us on support@start.org.nz or filling out our website enquiry form https://www.stuttering.co.nz/contact-us/

GET IN TOUCH WITH

START

Phone: 09 579 5667

Email: support@start.org.nz

Website: https://www.stuttering.co.nz/contact-us/