The North West of England, the Isle of Man and North Wales Cleft Network is a twin site centre, one of nine highly specialised cleft units in England and Wales. Our regional network is committed to providing high quality care to children affected by clefts and their families.
As your child grows up, s/he will be cared for by yourselves, but different members of our specialist team will become involved at different times. We aim to work together with you as partners in your child’s care.
Who makes up the cleft team?
We are a multi-professional specialist team of clinicians who work closely together to provide high quality care and outcomes for all patients within our network. Our team comprises:
- Speech and Language Therapists
- Clinical Nurse Specialists
- Clinical Psychologists
- Cleft Surgeons
- Paediatric Dentists
- Dental Therapists
- Orthodontists
- Audiologists
- Ward Staff
- Clinical Geneticists
Separate leaflets are being developed for these services.
In the North West – multi working full or part time for the Cleft Network. We also work closely with your local healthcare team.
We are supported by our Network Manager, Cleft Team Coordinators and our administration teams.
What do we do?
We work with patients from birth to adulthood providing the full range of healthcare recommended for the care of a child with a cleft lip and/or palate. We also provide a service to any child or adult who may present with ‘nasal’ speech without an obvious cleft palate.
Our care starts in the antenatal period or soon after birth when the family meet one of our team of Clinical Nurse Specialists.
Families are introduced to the Cleft Surgeon and other team members at one of our multidisciplinary clinics. Your child will be seen by them for assessment, advice or treatment at regular intervals as they grow up. Often the appointments are set up according to national guidelines or protocols.
More regular treatment may be provided by your local health care team. We work closely with them to make sure your child is receiving the best care possible.
