Depending on the assessment, the assessment structure and types of activities can vary. If you require further information to help prepare your child before attending please contact our support team on 9560-699633 and they can provide further details. When parents ask, “How should I prepare my child and what should I tell them”, the answer can be something like “we are going to a place called the Sprouts Child Developmental Centre and together we are going to be seeing (name assessing occupational therapist) and they are going to do some activities and games with you that helps us know what you’re good at and what you might need some help with. Just have fun and be you.”

Parent involvement is encouraged in the assessment consultation however if the assessor feels at any time your presence is influencing your child and inadvertently impacting on the assessment process, you may be requested to sit in the waiting room. If this does occur, please do not be concerned as all of the rooms are fitted with CCTV cameras. This is designed specifically so you can continue to watch the rest of the assessment from one of our handheld tablets/ Mobile. You will then be asked to re-join when appropriate.

Depending on the age of your child, whether they can be assessed formally or semi-formally and which assessment tool is used, the length of each individual assessment consultation can vary. Please contact the Sprouts Child Therapy team on 9560-699633, via email here: sprouts4therapy@gmail or via our contact us page here to determine the approximate length of the consultation. Depending on your child’s age and developmental concerns our assessment consultation usually takes place over one, two or three sessions. If all requested paperwork has been forwarded to Sprouts Child Developmental centre prior to your appointment, this gives our Assessment Team enough preparation time to read and understand the reports and questionnaires, therefore utilising the time within the Assessment optimally with you and/or your child. As a guide the following will assist in preparing your child for the assessment: For children under the age of 3 or with developmental issues (ASD, Genetic Conditions, Global Developmental Delay) they will participate in a semi-formal functional assessment in a Sprouts Child Therapy room that will last between 1 – 1.5 hours. Often language and maturity level are determining factors which is why it’s important that parents/caregivers provide as much information as possible prior to the appointment to assist in making the most appropriate decision. If your child is under 5 years and 8 months and a standardised assessment can be administered, the consult will be 1 – 1.5 hours. For children 5 years, 9 months and older, the assessment consultation is divided into 2 sessions (one hour for the first session and 1 – 1.5 hours for the second session).

Sprouts Child Developmental Centre, assessment reports include the compilation of all relevant subjective and objective assessment data. They provide recommendations to other professionals if needed along with comprehensive home programs and suggestions for childcare, kindly or school. All reports are unique to the individual and not computer-generated. A report is usually sent out electronically within 14 days with relevant health professionals copied in at parent’s request. We do not email reports to your child’s childcare, kindly or school for privacy reasons unless specific instruction to do so is given.

The Assessment team consists of senior occupational therapists who perform all assessments, including OT for children. The assessing occupational therapist then allocates your child to the most appropriate treating occupational therapist in order to maximise the relationship between the therapist and child to achieve the most positive outcome. There are times when the assessing occupational therapist could be the treating occupational therapist, but this depends on location, availability and most importantly, “fit”.

Each OT for children session lasts approximately 45 minutes comprising of 1:1 time your child and providing feedback to your family. This hands-on therapy time does not take into consideration the time required for the occupational therapist to plan the session, write clinical notes following the session, administration time to comply with legislation for those accessing Government Funds as well as any other correspondence to other health professionals or teachers.

At the outset of your child’s ‘block’ of therapy, a set of goals will be set by your therapist in collaboration with you and from recommendations by the assessing occupational therapist. These goals will underpin the choices the therapist makes to focus on during each session. OT for children can vary, but depending on your child’s needs, you will have between 5 and 20 sessions before a  break from occupational therapist is suggested. A break is needed to gauge how your child performs without occupational therapy intervention and to monitor their progress. Decisions regarding further occupational therapy will be suggested by the therapist, otherwise an appointment for a review will be suggested in 6-12 months’ time.

Please click here to access our price guide

You are encouraged to attend with your child during their occupational therapy session, however depending on each unique circumstance there may be times where the treating therapist may request that you remain in the waiting room. Sprouts Child Developmental Centre has installed CCTV cameras in all of the Treatment and Assessment Rooms so you can watch everything your child is doing even when you are not in the room.

Your child’s teacher/carer will be invited to attend an information evening held at Sprouts Child Developmental Centre or sent a link to watch an Information Session.  If they have further questions or would like to set up a phone consult to discuss your child this is also an option. If you or child’s therapist believes more correspondence is required, or a school visit would be of benefit, this too can be organised (school visits are an additional cost (please discuss this with your OT if this is required).

Sprouts Child Developmental Centre has developed ‘clinic’ based therapy as the ‘core therapy’ offered and has sustained this approach for nearly 8 years. In order to meet the demands of client services and to continue to evolve, school-based therapy (Early intervention program) has developed as one of our extended services. To provide the level of therapy that has been integral in establishing Sprouts Child Developmental Centre services ‘school based’ therapy has been negotiated between the school and Sprouts Child Therapy Foundations (SCTF). Each school that offers services in conjunction with SCTF has developed a ‘sensory room’ that meets specific requirements in order to ensure that therapy at school is comparable to what is offered in the clinic. If you would like Sprouts Child Developmental Centre to come into your school, please email info@sproutschildtherapy.com to discuss this further.