​Our story


Who we are and what we do

​Speechie is an independent speech-language therapy service committed to Kiwis living great lives. 

Speechie's mission is to enable affordable, accessible, quality speech-language therapy for anybody who wants it, because we believe that communication currency is the second greatest gift we can give our fellow human beings.  (The original greatest gift being the gift of love.)
Speechie is a social enterprise, which means that we use money as a tool for doing good in the world. ​ The good that Speechie does as a social enterprise is called our 'social impact.'  ​

Speechie's current social impact priority is making sure that efficient, effective, early identification, assessment, diagnosis, and treatment of children with Communication Disorders is happening in Aotearoa New Zealand. ​


Diagnosing the least diagnosed disorders of childhood

Communication Disorders affect 1 in 12 children ages 3 to 17 and are the most common disorders of childhood.  Children with Communication Disorders are at risk of having poorer learning, social and financial outcomes and a reduced quality of life.  Currently these children may be diagnosed when it is too late, or may not get the level of support they need, or may not even be identified at all.  Speechie is working to change this.



​Closing the speech-language therapy gap

The government provides a free public speech-language therapy service for children with communication needs through the Ministry of Education.  But in the public service there are children with Communication Disorders waiting to be identified, waiting for help to begin, waiting for their profile of needs to be accurately established, and waiting for a level of service that matches their needs.  So, in reality, the public service is is overloaded and there is a speech-language therapy gap.

At Speechie, we believe it is all of our responsibility as Kiwis to try and close this gap, so that the right children get the right help, right when they need it. 

We are dedicating ourselves to building an affordable, accessible, unconstrained, consistent, substantial, well-supported and ongoing speech-language therapy service for our children through a shared funding commitment.

Not free, but subsidised. 

​Families don't need another free speech-language therapy service - this already exists.  What families really need is a way to access quality speech-language therapy for their children in time for them to have the best future they can.



​Growing a sustainable, subsidised speech-language therapy service for children

Through our 'communication currency for kids' shared funding initiative Speechie is working to close the speech-language therapy gap. 

Anyone anywhere in the country can join the 'communication currency for kids' community and team up with us to build a subsidised speech-language therapy service for children AND make this subsidised service a sustainable option for families and children into the future. 

TOGETHER WE CAN help more children, help them sooner, and help them better.


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Become one of our Dedicated Referrers

When schools and ECE subscribe to invest in the 'communication currency for kids' initiative and become a Dedicated Referrer, they choose the subsidy packages they want for their families, and we give their families the following guarantees:

  • Consistent, comprehensive, communication screening
  • First appointment in 10 days
  • Initial assessment in 30 days​
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Dedicated Referrers also get referrer benefits.  Other organisations supporting children can get the same subsidies and service guarantees for their families - also by subscribing to become a Dedicated Referrer.  



​​Become one of our Community Partners

Any child, adult, family, business, organisation, or group can become a Community Partner and join the collective effort to give children with Communication Disorders awesome futures by making an impact investment in the 'communication currency for kids' initiative. 

Any investment of goods, services, time, or money is welcome.  There is no investment too big or too small.


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​Become one of our Nominated Providers

If you are an independent SLT practitioner or an independent SLT practice and want to have a part in closing the speech-language therapy gap, you can sign up to the 'communication currency for kids' initiative to provide subsidised speech-language therapy services for children as a Nominated Provider in the Nominated Provider Network.