Liz Wassall is the Speech and Language Therapy Service Manager, leading an integrated team that assesses, diagnoses, and treats both children and adults with communication, language, and swallowing difficulties. Here, she tells us more about the personal experience that inspired her to become a speech and language therapist.
“A family member had a stroke when I was 11,” she shares. “That’s what got me interested in speech therapy, so I suppose it has always been threaded through my life.” Since then, that early interest has grown into a passion for making a difference by supporting people through some of their hardest moments.
With a background in early years and autism, Liz has always been an advocate for partnership working across health, education, and social care. “For me, it’s always been about reducing health inequalities and giving people the best possible start,” she says. “That means listening properly, working collaboratively, and understanding what really matters to someone, not just clinically, but personally.”
This way of working is clear across her whole team.
Within children’s services, the team supports babies, toddlers, and young people with speech, language, and communication needs, as well as eating and drinking difficulties (dysphagia). Their work spans nurseries, schools, clinics, and family homes, and extends to children facing more complex challenges, such as those in the youth justice system or experiencing family breakdown.
Alongside this, the adult team works with people living with acquired communication and swallowing difficulties, often following strokes, neurological conditions, or cancer. By partnering closely with care homes, social care teams, and hospital colleagues, they help people recover, manage risk, and remain safely at home.
“Our work is far broader than many people realise,” Liz explains. “It’s not just about helping someone ‘talk better.’ It’s about helping them connect, whether that’s a child asking for help in class, or an older adult enjoying a conversation at lunch.”
The team works alongside teachers, social workers, paediatricians, health visitors, and many others to adapt environments, create accessible communication systems, and empower others to carry strategies forward. “We couldn’t do this work without partnership,” Liz adds. “There aren’t enough therapists to do it all directly, so we coach, model, and build others’ capacity wherever we can.”
In areas such as Walsall, additional funding has allowed the service to test new approaches, including faster assessments, more consistent coaching, and intensive early support for children aged 0–5. Their work within family hubs has reshaped how early help is delivered, reaching families sooner and closer to home. “We know the earlier we get in, the better the outcome,” she says. “It’s that simple.”
Liz is also helping to embed new ways of thinking across the service, drawing on frameworks such as Care Aims and Bridges that focus on what truly matters to people. “It’s about asking, ‘Who’s bothered? What are they bothered about? And what’s the need behind that?’” she explains. Whether it’s a parent concerned about their child eating too many crisps, or a stroke survivor determined to regain independence, it all starts with listening properly.
Away from work Liz loves spending time with her family and friends. Weekends are spent in the garden. She has just had a new greenhouse and is excited to be growing her own veg.
Whether in her personal life or professional role, Liz is driven by one core belief: everyone deserves the chance to be heard and understood. “That’s what we’re here to do,” she says. “To make a difference, even in small ways. To give people a voice and to help them use it.”
