School stammering support feature on BBC Breakfast

Last bank holiday weekend, STAMMA members Susanne, along with her son Oliver, and Will sat on the famous BBC red sofa for a feature on how to support young people who stammer at school.

As the summer holidays draw to a close, on Sunday 24^th August BBC Breakfast put a spotlight on children who stammer as they prepared to go back to school.

This time of year can be worrying for many, especially so if you stammer. Children might be anxious about starting a new school and reactions from classmates. Or answering the register and reading aloud in class.

As 8% of children will stammer at some point,  it's vital for teachers and schools to be aware of how they can support young people in the classroom and make them feel comfortable. To highlight this, the BBC got in touch to ask if we could help them find people to appear in a segment for their Sunday morning breakfast show.

We put the call out and the brilliant Susanne, who volunteers on our Parent 2 Parent online support group, immediately took up the challenge and agreed to take part.

On the sofa, Susanne and her son Oliver joined Will Laven from the Stammer Stories podcast to talk about their personal experiences and journeys growing up with a stammer. Susanne shared her initial worries when her son started school and told viewers how she has advocated for Oliver, and about her experiences supporting other parents through STAMMA groups. 

All three highlighted how important it is for schools to have support systems in place and reasonable adjustments if needed, so that young people can thrive and have the best possible experience.

You can watch Oliver, Susanne and Will above. Thank you to BBC Breakfast for giving us permission to use the clip.

Information & support

• If you're a young person who stammers, or a parent, see our Stammering at School or Moving to Secondary School pages.
• If you're a teacher, see our Guide for Teachers.

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