I CAN

THE MOST UP-TO-DATE AND COMPREHENSIVE INFORMATION ON ALL ASPECTS OF CHILDREN’ S COMMUNICATION ONLY A CLICK AWAY  

“I wish this site had been here about four years ago when I needed it, I have been all over the place looking for information that you have got together on the one site. Thanks, it's excellent and I will be singing its praises to all my friends with special needs children.” Parent participating in pilot

I CAN’s Talking Point website has become the quickest single route for parents looking for the most comprehensive, accessible and up-to-date information and resources on all aspects of children’s communication development and disability from the widest range of sources.

P arent Point and Talking Links are two exciting new developments on the site developed by I CAN, the charity that helps children communicate, via unique collaborations with partners in the statutory, private and voluntary sectors.  The enhanced site was unveiled on May 16 2006 by Annabel Burns, Deputy Chief Adviser, Children's and Young People's Services DfES.

Parent Point offers knowledge, ideas and resources for families to promote all children’s communication development and support children with a communication disability.  Available resources include an interactive message board, downloadable songs and nursery rhymes, factsheets in seven languages, webcasting and information from other charities for families of children with a communication disability in association with other disabilities
www.talkingpoint.org.uk/parentpoint

Funded by DfES Parenting Fund, Parent Point marks a voluntary sector first with content developed in partnership with 10 organisations all working in the fields of children’s disability, welfare and development.  

Talking Links was conceived and developed in collaboration with Experian, the global information solutions company.  It is a unique database that enables parents to search by postcode and find vital information about local speech and language, education and voluntary sector services available to support their child’s communication disability.
www.talkingpoint.org.uk/talkinglinks

Virginia Beardshaw, Chief Executive of I CAN said, “There is an urgent need for parents to be able to access comprehensive information on all aspects of children’s communication development and disability easily and from one place.  For the 1.2 million families of children with a communication disability, finding information and details about local health and education services can be a confusing and time consuming process.  Parent Point and Talking Links are prime examples of how the voluntary, private and statutory sectors can pool their expertise, work well together and build each others capacity.”

Annemarie Shillito, Head of Corporate Communications at Experian commented: “Experian is committed to using its resources, people and day-to-day business expertise to benefit communities on a local and national basis. The Talking Point project is a major step forward in helping families get the information and resources they need at the right time to support children with a communication disability and encourage the communication development of all children. We are delighted to have contributed.”

Talking Point has been completely redeveloped by Danish IT consultancy Pentia using the Sitecore .NET Content Management System, a system recognised by Microsoft as one of the most exciting Internet content management systems available on the market today.

Press release provided by I CAN