More Than Therapy: Understanding and Support from Said Differently
About Said Differently
Welcome! At Said Differently, we are passionate about supporting communication. We provide speech and language therapy services for children and young people, their families, and their support networks. We understand that every child is unique, and we are committed to offering a service that is person-centred, evidence-based, and truly makes a difference.
Said Differently is led by Abigail Uttley, Owner, Founder, and Clinical Director
Abigail is a dual Psychology & Speech Pathology graduate of Manchester Metropolitan University and an experienced clinician who has worked internationally for over a decade within both the NHS and private health sectors in the UK and the Middle East (Oman/UAE). Abigail is a Highly Specialist Speech & Language Therapist with a deep commitment to neurodiversity-affirming practice. This means that she values and respects the diverse ways in which neurodivergent individuals communicate and experience the world. She practises in an anti-ableist way and believes in valuing, listening to, and learning from lived experience.
Our Expertise
Abigail specialises in Autism Spectrum Condition (ASC) and is certified in the administration of the ADOS-2, which is considered to be the gold standard in Autism assessment. She is also trained in the administration of a multitude of standardised speech and language assessments, which she uses alongside her clinical experience and various intervention approaches, including a special interest in Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC), to support children to develop communication skills and to support those who communicate in different ways.
With plans for growth in the near future, we currently provide support for a range of speech, language, and communication needs (SLCN), including:
- Developmental Language Disorder / Language Disorder
- Language Delay / Early Childhood Language Development
- Speech Sound Disorder / Delay (Articulation and Phonology)
- Learning Disability / Cognitive Communication Difficulties
- Attention Related Difficulties (ADD / ADHD)
- Social Communication Differences / Understanding of Differences and Self Advocacy Development
- Post diagnostic support following an Autism diagnosis
- Language Difficulties associated with Autism Spectrum Condition (ASC/D)
- Support for AAC Users
- Complex presentations / Language needs associated with particular Syndromes
Our Approach
At Said Differently, we are dedicated to providing a service that is:
- Client-focused: Ensuring our work is tailored to suit each child or supervisee’s individual needs.
- Evidence-based: Balancing our clinical experience and learnings from the lived experience of others with approaches that are known to be effective whilst investing in continued professional development to remain abreast of developments in our field.
- Reliable: Striving to provide a consistent and dependable service. With long waiting lists and constant cuts to NHS services we know how important this is.
- Individualised: Recognising that every child’s journey is unique and every family’s priorities are different.
- Supportive and flexible: Working with parents, therapists and the wider team around the child to meet their needs. We can visit you at home or visit your child at school. We’ve even been known to work on goals in the park because communication happens everywhere!
- Culturally competent: Abigail has seen first hand the impact that working to understand other cultures and ways of life benefits her clients.
- Inclusive: honouring all forms of communication, striving to support and advocate for those from marginalised communities with consideration of intersectionality.
- Collaborative: Collaboration is paramount to our approach. We actively collaborate with parents, carers, educational professionals, NHS therapists and allied health professionals to ensure that therapy goals are shared and that skills can be used in all sorts of everyday situations.
Our Commitment
Abigail is passionate about increasing awareness of speech, language and communication needs, with a specialism in Autism. At Said Differently we aim to support the families we work with and the communities we serve to gain greater understanding and acceptance of communication differences through our diagnostic, therapeutic, and outreach work.
We are committed to continued professional development to ensure we are always up-to-date with the latest research and best practices in our field. Abigail is a certified member of industry professional bodies The Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists (RCSLT) and the Association of Speech and Language Therapists in Private Practise (ASLTIP), and holds the necessary licences to practise with The Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC) UK. During her work in the Middle East she held licences to practise with the Ministry of Health, Oman (MOH), and the Dubai Health Authority (DHA).
In previous roles, Abigail served as a committee member of the Mainstream Schools Speech and Language Centre of Excellence Network (London), part of the Royal College of Speech & Language Therapists continued professional development initiative, promoting evidence-based best practice and multidisciplinary collaboration. This enabled her to propel her advocacy work in the parliamentary arena as part of a parliamentary working party focused on speech, language and communication needs in Westminster. Abroad, Abigail has actively taken part in local university hospital (SQUH), governmental and embassy (United States, United Kingdom) initiatives in the same vein, she runs her local ASLTIP group and is an active member.
If you’re worried about your child’s communication skills we're here to provide the specialist support, guidance, and collaborative partnership you've been looking for
We strive to create a safe and nurturing space for our clients to thrive, recognising that feeling comfortable and supported is essential for progress.
Contact us today to discuss how we can help your child or young person reach their full communication potential! We look forward to working with you.
For a confidential chat about your needs:
To learn more about ways to work with us: