Father’s Day is a time to celebrate the wonderful dads and father figures who show up every day for their families. For some fathers, the journey into parenthood brings unexpected challenges, and it’s often in those moments that their strength, love, and resilience shine the brightest.

This Father’s Day, we’re proud to share the inspiring story of Steve, a dad who has overcome hurdles and achieved incredible feats to help his son, Eddie, find his voice.

Steve is a bona fide supporter of Speech and Language UK. 💪 He first got in touch with our fundraising team back in 2023 ahead of an impressive challenge: a trifecta of running events across the West Midlands, raising money for the 1 in 5 children facing challenges with talking and understanding words.

Here, he tells us more about his experiences as a dad to a child with speech and language challenges, and how this journey has compelled him to become a real advocate for the 1 in 5 children struggling with talking and understanding words in the UK.

Can you tell us a bit about your son Eddie and when you first noticed he might need support with talking and understanding words?

We first noticed that Eddie may need extra speech and language support just before his second birthday. While excelling physically, he wasn’t reaching verbal milestones at the same rate as his sister. He was still babbling, so we contacted our health worker before the traditional 2-year check, and this eventually led to a referral to NHS Speech and Language Therapy.

What has been the most challenging part of the journey for you as a dad?

I always quote another parent of a child with special needs, who I met when going through the most difficult period and this is adjusting to having a child with needs. She described it as a ‘grieving process’ because you grieve for the child you thought you were going to have. This was around the 4- to 5-year-old mark, as he started in a mainstream nursery and the differences to his peers were evident once he was in that setting. It was tough to see and adjust and still can be at times, as we don’t do a lot of the traditional father-son activities that I thought we may have done. However, the person I quoted also went on to say that you will have an equally rewarding journey and that is exactly right. Life with Eddie is different to what we expected as parents, but we wouldn’t change him for the world.

What kind of support or advice has made the biggest difference to you and your family?

“The support of the wider speech and language therapy industry, including professionals, fellow parents and organisations such as the Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists and of course, Speech and Language UK has helped. Particularly when it comes to parents. Being a parent of a child with speech and language difficulties can feel isolating as you think you’re the only parent going through it, however you soon realise that isn’t the case and speaking to people that understand what you and your child are going through really helps. Social media can have a bad reputation, but it was on Twitter/X where I first interacted with so many people and opened up about Eddie’s needs and my own struggles as a dad. It led to me wanting to do something to give back, which is why I decided to run a series of races, culminating in a half marathon in Birmingham in 2023 to raise money for Speech and Language UK. My knees are paying for it now, but it helped raise almost £5,000 and hopefully more awareness of speech and language needs too, so it was worth it!”

What’s something about being a parent to a child with speech and language challenges that you wish more people understood?

Empathy. That is the biggest thing I ask for from professionals who work in the speech and language industry and to those that can influence it. Please think about how your words and how you talk to parents (and the child) might impact their day. We had a couple of not nice experiences with dismissive people we encountered during the toughest period, and it didn’t help the process. Patience is also important. If a child is struggling to speak, there may be a gap of silence. Some people find that awkward and want to fill but if you give a person time, they’ll find their own way to communicate. Another piece of advice is that a ‘one size fits all’ approach doesn’t work. There are lots of other useful tools, but every child is different, so you have to find what works for your child. For us, we have found more success with Makaton sign language, rather than PECs symbols/cards for example. Our son communicates really well using Makaton. It has helped unlock his speech and he can now say many more words with the help of signing them first. Mr Tumble is a legend! 🙂

Steve has poured his heart into helping other children like Eddie get the support they deserve.

But sadly, Steve isn’t the only worried parent having to act and fight for support that should already be in place. A record-high two million children across the UK are struggling with talking and understanding words right now — a number that continues to grow.

Here at Speech and Language UK, we campaign for better access to specialist speech and language support, create resources and training for professionals, and support families directly with advice and tools to help their children find their voice.

If you’ve been inspired by Steve and Eddie’s story this Father’s Day, please consider donating to help change young lives.