About Me.
Hello, I’m Heeral.
I’m a Speech and Language Therapist with over 15 years of experience supporting children with speech, language and communication needs. My independent work now focuses on children with speech sound difficulties.
Communication is deeply personal. It is shaped by culture, family and community, and it influences how a child experiences the world around them. I see speech therapy not simply as correcting individual sounds, but as helping a child feel understood, capable and confident in everyday communication.
My approach is thoughtful, calm and evidence-informed. I take time to understand each child’s speech profile, strengths, confidence and communication style before building a tailored plan around their needs. Therapy is structured yet flexible, with clear goals and practical activities that fit naturally into family life.
I work closely with parents, but I don’t believe parents need to become therapists at home. My role is to provide clear guidance and manageable practice so that progress can continue between sessions without creating unnecessary pressure.
I’m based in South London and currently offer a small number of appointments for children with speech sound difficulties, including online sessions where clinically appropriate.
My aim is always steady, meaningful progress: helping children develop clearer speech and supporting families to feel informed and confident about what we are working on and why.
Portfolio of Work
I feel fortunate to have contributed to a range of meaningful projects — you can explore some of them below.
Qualifications and Experience
I qualified in Speech Science at University College London (UCL) in 2009 and began my career in NHS community clinics and primary schools in South London.
Over the following 15+ years, I worked across community services, mainstream and specialist schools, resource bases and clinical leadership roles. This gave me experience supporting children with a wide range of speech, language and communication needs, as well as working closely with families, education settings and other professionals.
NHS and Wider Professional Work
My NHS experience continues to shape the way I practise today: carefully, collaboratively and with a strong emphasis on understanding the whole child rather than looking at an individual difficulty in isolation.
Alongside clinical work, I have contributed to wider projects focused on early communication, prevention and improving support for children and families.
I am a member of the Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists (RCSLT) and have contributed to professional and advisory work across organisations including HCPC, Speech and Language UK and higher education.
I have also guest lectured, supported Speech and Language Therapy students and shared my work at professional events, including the Early Years Summit.
Continuing Professional Development
Ongoing learning is an important part of my practice. My training over the years has included approaches across speech, language, fluency and parent-child interaction, including:
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Lidcombe Program
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Palin Parent-Child Interaction
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Hanen – It Takes Two to Talk
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Parent-Child Interaction approaches
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SCERTS
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PECS
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Solution Focused approaches
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Parent Advisory Training at King’s College London
My current independent practice focuses specifically on children with speech sound difficulties. I continue to develop my knowledge in speech sound assessment, speech processing and evidence-informed intervention so that therapy remains thoughtful, targeted and responsive to each child.
What Matters to Me
What motivates me most is helping children and families understand what is happening, what will help and why.
Whether I am assessing a child’s speech, planning therapy or working alongside a parent, my aim is to provide support that feels clear, purposeful and manageable — while helping children make meaningful progress in everyday communication.