Dee Wardrop Speech Pathology & Occupational Therapy Services

01/12/2025

Get Set for Prep 2026!
Is your child starting Prep next year? Give them a confident start with our fun and supportive school readiness program!

Across four engaging mornings, kids build:
✨ Pre-writing & scissor skills
✨ Early literacy foundations
✨ Friendship & social skills
✨ Confidence with classroom routines

✔️ Run by Speech Pathologists & OTs
✔️ Small, friendly groups
✔️ Perfect for children starting Prep in 2026

📅 Jan 19–22
🕘 9am–12pm daily
📍 Northcote & Coburg
🔗 Register now — limited places!

Let’s help your little one feel ready, capable and excited for their first year of school! https://www.deewardrop.com.au/groups/

23/11/2025

JUST 48 HOURS LEFT TO SIGN

This petition to parliament is calling for transparency and further enquiry about the “who” and “how” of the new NDIS Support Needs Assessments: these are expected to begin mid 2026, with no clear details yet provided.

Our concerns include:

*Conflict of Interest* It seems the same agency who completes the assessment will be determining the Plan Budget. How will this confict be managed?

*Qualifications* Assessors are not required to have ANY qualification - just having undergone 'training'. Who will train them? How and what will they assess?

There’s a LOT more info about our concerns on the link below.

Please read, sign and share the petition here ⬇️

https://www.aph.gov.au/e-petitions/petition/EN8570?fbclid=IwY2xjawOPmbdleHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETFMWnBNakUwWDJPWEJ5YXRBc3J0YwZhcHBfaWQQMjIyMDM5MTc4ODIwMDg5MgABHtMMIvmJH2pufVldMUWMx-ea3RhTanXgcGmpx9ASjI81XTvtJxAxxypkEARN_aem_yfGH6MvTkmM5n-DvHfQBJQ

Help us make sure changes to the NDIS are fair for everyone.

19/10/2025

Belinda joined the DWSP team in 2023. Belinda has over a decade of experience working in administration roles in community health setting and private medical practices, as well as with ophthalmologists and anaesthetists. Belinda enjoys policies and procedures and making staff and clients experiences as smooth as possible.

Outside of work Belinda enjoys music, catching up with friends and her dog.

12/10/2025

Jodie is part of the DWSP team, working as an Allied Health Assistant (AHA).

Jodie has extensive experience with creating safe, engaging, and nurturing environments for children. She has worked for several years as an Early Childhood Educator, guiding and developing children’s learning according their individual needs and learning goals.

Jodie is highly skilled in supporting children to participate in their educational settings and promoting their inclusion in the group and wider community.

She is known for building supportive, engaging settings for both children and their families, and is passionate about fostering the wellbeing and development of young learners.

In her spare time, Jodie enjoys hanging out with her own four children, catching up with friends, and taking her dogs on big adventures.

05/10/2025

Rachna graduated with a Bachelors in Occupational Therapy in 2017 and has a background that spans India, Canada and now Australia. She has worked extensively with children and adolescents presenting with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), ADHD, and developmental delays. Her experience spans private clinic settings, and community-based environments, including her time as a disability support worker for children in Canada.

Rachna moved to Australia last year and has recently resumed her professional OT journey in Melbourne. She is passionate about providing client-centered care, placing great emphasis on understanding each child’s unique strengths, and lived experiences.

Rachna brings quiet compassion, creativity, and a whole lot of patience to every session. She is warm and approachable, values collaboration and enjoys working closely with parents, and other health professionals to deliver holistic, meaningful interventions.

As she continues her professional journey in Australia, she is actively developing her understanding of the local culture to ensure her practice is respectful, responsive, and empowering for all clients and families she supports.

Rachna is fluent in English, Tamil and Hindi and currently supports clients in Northcote and Eltham clinics.

29/09/2025

Janice graduated with a Master of Speech Pathology from La Trobe University in 2015. She has worked internationally and in Australia in special developmental and mainstream education.

Janice enjoys working with children across all ages and has specific interest areas in early language skills/neurodiverse population, speech, language, feeding, and Alternative and Augmentative Communication (AAC). Janice is trained in DIR Floortime, Hanen, Responsive Feeding, Oral Placement Therapy and Foundations to LAMP.

Janice is based at our Northcote, Coburg and Eltham clinics.

22/09/2025

Jade is part of the DWSP team, working as an Allied Health Assistant (AHA). She brings her bright and bubbly personality to every session!

Currently studying her Masters in Primary Teaching, Jade finds her work as an AHA complements her studies, allowing her to apply and refine her skills in both settings. She is passionate about creating nurturing, patient, and inclusive spaces where every child’s unique strengths and needs are supported.

She has a rich background in the arts, having performed in mainstage musicals such as Cats the Musical and West Side Story. Alongside her performance career, she has spent years teaching dance to children of all ages, fostering their confidence, creativity, and movement skills in an engaging and supportive environment.

Outside of work and study, Jade enjoys staying active, exploring creative projects, and spending time with friends and family.

15/09/2025

Sonia joined the DWSP team in 2024.
Sonia has a background in customer service and allied health and has been working in clinics for over 10 years.
In her spare time Sonia enjoys camping and 4 wheel driving, getting together with friends as well as baking.
Sonia is based at our Northcote and Coburg clinics.

14/09/2025

Did you know 1 in 4 children begin school with communication skills that aren’t quite on track? Early speech & language support can make all the difference — improving literacy, confidence, friendships, even mental wellbeing. We have appointments available now. Let’s get your child the help they deserve.

Call us now on 8376 6399 to request an appointment.

One in four children starting school now has a speech or language delay. It can hold back their learning, affect their friendships and harm their mental health. Speech therapists are struggling to find ways to support them all, but one school is leading the way.

08/09/2025

Steph studied at the University of Melbourne, completing a Bachelor of Arts in 2014 and then a Master of Speech Pathology in 2016. Her Masters research was conducted at the Murdoch Children’s Research Institute and explored the language skills of preschool children born very preterm.

After graduating, Steph relocated to Tasmania, where she worked in schools, child and family centres, and early childhood inclusion services. During this time, she developed a strong foundation in supporting young children and school-aged students with diverse communication needs. She also spent 12 months working at the Royal Hobart Hospital, supporting deaf and hard of hearing children and their families.

Driven by a long-held dream to live and work in Japan, Steph moved to Tokyo, where she provided speech pathology services to children and teenagers within the international community.

Now based in Melbourne, Steph brings her broad experience and deep passion for communication to private practice. She values building strong, trusting relationships with clients and their families and prioritises listening to the voices of those with lived experience of disability and communication differences.

Her professional interests include early language development, phonology and articulation, fluency, and AAC (alternative and augmentative communication). She also has a particular interest in working with autistic, multilingual, and/or deaf and hard of hearing clients, as well as clients experiencing selective mutism or childhood apraxia of speech.

Steph works in our Northcote and Eltham clinics and schools.

03/09/2025

✨ Starting OT? Here’s What to Expect! ✨

Your child’s first occupational therapy session is a chance for us to understand their unique strengths and challenges. It will include:

✔️ Parent & Therapist Chat: A follow-up discussion on concerns raised in your initial phone call, plus any additional questions we may have
✔️ Play-Based Assessment: Engaging activities to observe motor, sensory, and emotional skills
✔️ Next Steps: A discussion about initial insights, recommendations for therapy, and formal assessments if needed

We know new experiences can feel overwhelming, so we focus on making this session engaging, supportive, and comfortable for your child. 💛

📩 Have questions? DM us or call 8376 6399 to learn more!

01/09/2025

Phoebe is a speech pathologist who graduated with a Masters of Speech Pathology from the University of Melbourne.

Phoebe has experience working with children, adolescents and families in private practice speech pathology. Phoebe has experience providing sessions for a range of children, including neurodiverse children (autistic children, ADHD-er children), Intellectual Disabilities and more. Phoebe also has extensive experience delivering therapy on:

neurodiversity affirming practices
language disorders and delays
speech sound disorders (difficulties pronouncing sounds/words accurately)
stuttering (delivering both the Lidcombe Program and the Oakville Program)
AAC needs (augmentative and alternative communication device)
literacy difficulties (using a systematic and synthetic phonics approach)
Phoebe is passionate about evidence-based and family-centred practice, involving children and their parents in all aspects of therapy. Phoebe has a bright and bubbly personality and loves working with children. Phoebe enjoys making therapy fun to create a positive learning experience to support families to reach their goals.

Phoebe will be based in schools, and at our Northcote and Coburg clinics.