A Systematic Review of the Speech, Language and Communication Needs for children aged 5-8: Implications for Wales and Beyond.

During the Covid-19 pandemic, many children lost access to language-rich, non-parental care environments which are critical for early language development. These children are now aged 5-8, in full-time schooling, and there is limited understanding of the impact that speech, language and communication needs (SLCN) may be having on their wellbeing, school independence and progression in general. The aim of this review was to synthesize existing evidence of the pandemic’s impact on the SLCN and wellbeing of children aged 5-8 years. Specifically, the review sought to identify where Wales sits, within a global picture. Furthermore, the review sought to highlight specific interventions and assessment tools that are used to support SLCN and subsequent wellbeing of 5–8-year-olds. This systematic review adhered to the PRISMA framework while the PICO framework guided the research questions and search strategy. The MMAT and JBI Critical Appraisal Checklist were used to evaluate the included studies. Following the application of the inclusion criteria, 12 papers were included in the review. Due to the heterogeneity of the studies, a narrative synthesis was adopted for analysis. The findings indicated that this research field is limited in addressing the specific impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on SLCN for this age group. The results indicated that there are clear links between SLCN and wellbeing for children, there is no universal standard for SLCN assessment and specific intervention studies on language development for this population were not identified. The findings highlighted that service access, resource availability and socioeconomic factors significantly influence the identification and management of SLCN