Speech-Language Pathology Assistant (SLPA)

At home. Puffin Services has no clinic at all, so there is nowhere to travel to and no centre appointment to schedule around — in-home is the only way the upcoming pediatric support is designed to be delivered. Register your interest to be notified at launch.

Speech-Language Pathology Assistant support is $80 per session, and a session runs 50 to 60 minutes in your own home. Some families can put BC autism funding toward speech support, depending on the child's age band and plan and on the supervising Speech-Language Pathologist meeting the registry requirements. The service is in development and not yet bookable online — register your interest and we will be in touch as it opens in your area.

Not quite, and the difference is worth knowing. A Speech-Language Pathologist is the clinician who assesses your child and writes the plan; a Speech-Language Pathology Assistant delivers that plan session by session, under the SLP's supervision. What families call speech therapy is usually this combination. Puffin Services’ SLPA support is in development: it will be in-home at $80 per session, supervised by an SLP registered with the College of Health and Care Professionals of BC and listed on the Registry of Autism Service Providers. If your child has not been assessed yet, an SLP assessment comes first.

A Speech-Language Pathologist (SLP) is a regulated professional registered with the College of Health and Care Professionals of BC — they assess your child, diagnose, and write the treatment plan. A Speech-Language Pathology Assistant (SLPA) delivers the sessions that plan calls for and reports back, but does not assess, diagnose, or change the plan. Puffin’s upcoming support is SLPA support, so it will work to a registered SLP’s plan and does not replace an assessment.

An assessment, yes — a referral, usually not. Puffin’s upcoming SLPA, OTA and behaviour intervention support will deliver a plan written by a registered clinician, so there needs to be a plan to deliver. Puffin does not assess and does not diagnose. If your child has not been assessed, that is the first step and it happens through an SLP, OT or behaviour consultant, publicly or privately.

Puffin’s pediatric support is being designed for children and youth, with the specific range depending on the service and the supervising clinician’s plan. It is a separate service from hourly childcare, which covers ages 0 to 12. Pediatric support is in development and not bookable yet — register your interest and we will confirm the details for your child at launch.

That is the intention. Puffin’s upcoming SLPA, OTA and behaviour intervention support is being designed to work alongside the team your child already has rather than replace it — delivering their plan and reporting back to them, so you do not have to leave a clinician who is working in order to change where sessions happen. Register your interest to be notified at launch.

That is what the service is being designed for, but whether your funding applies depends on your child’s eligibility, their age band, and the funding rules in force. Under the current program, funding for children under six can be spent on RASP-listed professionals and on behaviour interventionists supervised by one — and Puffin’s specialists will work under RASP-registered supervision. The program is also changing: it is scheduled to end April 1, 2027 and be replaced. Confirm with the Autism Funding Unit (1-877-777-3530) rather than assuming either way.

A Speech-Language Pathologist registered with the College of Health and Care Professionals of BC and listed on the Registry of Autism Service Providers (RASP). The SLP will write and own the plan; the SLPA will deliver it and report back. Pediatric support is in development and not bookable yet.