Your child’s Physiotherapy journey

There are some situations where we work with a child for several years. This is what their journey with us may look like.

Who will refer my child to your service?

Your child will usually be referred by the paediatrician or GP. Sometimes your school may ask us to see your child.

We aim to see you within 13 weeks of receiving the referral, it will be sooner if the referral is urgent.

Where do you see my child?

Your child may be seen in NHS sites, your home or at school for an assessment and follow-up.

How do you assess my child?

Physiotherapy will assess many aspects of your child’s gross motor skills including movements, posture, muscle tone and strength, joint range. We will use standardised assessment tools for our assessment where available as well as observation and examination.

As your child continues under our care, reassessment will occur frequently as they continue to develop and change. We also need to gather lots of information to provide us an understanding of what has happened since they were born and what their difficulties are – we need to talk to parents and sometimes other professionals and school to get this information.

How often you see my child for therapy?

Early intervention helps to achieve better motor skills. We will see your child more often when they are young. On average 90% of gross motor function is reached by 5 years.

Most affected children’s motor development will plateau around 3 years. Once your child has achieved maximum gross motor skills, therapy will be directed to maintain the gained skills. If your child had surgery or other orthopaedic intervention we may need to see them more often.

What else will you provide for my child?

  • We recommend home based programmes and will support you to do work on these with advice, recommendations and training.
  • We will offer training to school staff who may also carry out your child’s programme.
  • We sometimes provide specialist equipment to help your child develop including that needed for 24 hour postural management for children with complex needs.
  • Both therapists and therapy assistants may see your child.
  • We offer group work for some children.
  • We can sign post you to other services that we feel may benefit your child.

Will you discharge my child?

It depends on what physiotherapy intervention is needed. Many children will receive a few sessions of physiotherapy and can be discharged with advice and can come back and see us again if they need to. Some children with long term conditions will be reviewed for several years and remain on the caseload for much longer, especially when they are younger.

Non-urgent advice: Further information

I have more questions. Who should I speak to?

Please speak to your therapist about any questions you have however big or small.

Alternatively, our admin team can redirect your queries: oxonchildrens.therapies@oxfordhealth.nhs.uk

Page last reviewed: 12 August, 2021