Friday Announcements

1.  ISAAC’S Online AAC Chats
From Marcia Gemler, ISAAC:

Please join us for the next AAC online chat!

Date: Monday 19 October
Time: 7.00PM – 8.00PM (UK Time)

Join us as we discuss Dr. Lateef McLeod’s poem, ‘I Am Too Pretty for Some Ugly Laws.’ The informal chats are hosted by the International Society for Augmentative and Alternative Communication (aka ISAAC). You do not have to be an ISAAC member to participate in the chats.

Chats are moderated by members of LEAD, ISAAC’s leadership committee for people who use AAC. Chat questions are posted at least one week before the chat, giving participants the opportunity to pre-program their devices with responses if they want. They are a fun opportunity to interact with other AAC communicators internationally.

Discussion Questions:

• What do you wish people understood about you before making assumptions?
• What influences our ideas about what looks normal or ugly?
• Have you ever decorated your device for Halloween?  What did it look like?

You can view the text and video of the poem, and sign up to join the meeting, here: ‘I Am Too Pretty for Some Ugly Laws.’



2.  1Voice Upcoming Events
From Jo Cope, 1Voice:

1Voice have a fantastic lineup of events coming up soon. Please see below for the full list:

East Midlands Social Meet Up. Lincoln. 18 October, 1pm – 3.45pm. Contact [email protected]

An Evening with Gregor Gilmour. Online. 3 November. 7.30pm – 8.30pm. Find out more

Annual Update and AGM. Online. 17 November, 7pm – 8.45pm. Contact Jo on [email protected] if you’d like to join us.

Parent – Carers Chat. Online. 20 November, 1pm – 2pm. Find out more

Beth Moulam’s Dreams Workshop. Mirfield, Yorkshire, 5 December, 10am – 3pm. Find out more



3.  Talking Mats Virtual Community of Practice AAC
From Paula Douglas, Talking Mats:

Are you a trained Talking Mats practitioner working with children, young people and adults using AAC? Join us on Wednesday 21 October, 9.30AM – 10.30AM for our Virtual Community of Practice AAC Meeting. We will be discussing the issue of AAC abandonment and considering how Talking Mats can be used to facilitate conversations, identify barriers and promote person-centred support.

Facilitated by Deborah Little, Talking Mats Consultant and Specialist AAC Speech and Language Therapist. 

Email: [email protected] for a link to join or to find out more.



4. ATiA Winter AAC Webinars
From ATiA:

This month ATIA is excited to announce three upcoming live webinars! Registration is $45 each, or free with a subscription code, and the recordings will be made available after each session takes place. ASHA and IACET CEUs are included!

Wednesday, 11 November:
Explicitly Speaking: Sexual Health Vocabulary Instruction for AAC Users
Join Hali Strickler, MA, CCC-SLP, AAC Services Coordinator, TechOWL, Institute on Disabilities at Temple University to learn how to apply AAC explicit vocabulary instruction and naturalistic implementation techniques to support learning of sexual health vocabulary. 

Tuesday, 17 November:
We Don’t Talk About Data (Until Now): A Study on Gestalt Language Processors (GLPs) and AAC
Wanting to see data with GLP and AAC? Come listen to Laura Hayes, MS, CCC-SLP and Jamie Klupe, EdD, CCC-SLP, with Special School District share data, videos, and tools from a 4-week pilot study tracking language growth in GLP AAC users through the Natural Language Acquisition Framework.

Wednesday, 9 December:
Why Joy Matters: The Science of Engagement, Learning, and Communication
Explore what science can teach us about joy, engagement, and communication – and how to apply those insights across everyday learning and AAC environments. Jennifer Bergstrom, EdD, CCC-SLP, and Lauren Enders Gonzales, MA, CCC-SLP, will lead this engaging session during the holiday season!



5.  Lead Speech and Language Therapist Vacancy
From Julie Atkinson, Birmingham Community Healthcare:

Due to my upcoming retirement, Access to Communication & Technology (ACT) has an exciting opportunity to lead the Specialised Services AAC SLT team.

We work with people with complex disabilities throughout the wider West Midlands region to develop ways to enable them to communicate and interact with their environment, assisted by the use of electronic equipment.

This full-time band 8A role will lead 3 Speech and Language Therapists and work alongside the other ACT multi-disciplinary team Leads and wider ACT team.

Interviews will be held on Friday 6 November.

For more information, contact Jo Cartwright (ACT Service Lead) on 0121 466 3050.
You can view the full job advert here: Band 8a Lead Speech and Language Therapist 



6.  AAC Assistant Practitioner Vacancy – Ace Centre
From Rachel Thwaite, Ace Centre:

Ace Centre is a national charity offering a range of Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) and Assistive Technology (AT) services for people with physical and communication impairments and those who support them.

We are looking for an AAC Assistant Practitioner to join our friendly and supportive multi-disciplinary team of therapists, teachers, engineers, and technicians in our Oldham office.

Salary: £29,541 to £37,563 (depending on experience)
Contract: Fixed term contract for 12 months (maternity cover)
Working Pattern: Full-time
Location: Oldham OL8 3QL

This role would suit an Occupational Therapy Assistant, Speech & Language Therapy Assistant or Teaching Assistant. It is an exciting opportunity to develop your knowledge and skills in relation to AAC across a wide range of settings and play a key role in supporting children and adults with communication difficulties.

Closing date for applications: Tuesday 3 November 2026
Interviews: 12/13 November

For further information and to apply, please visit: AAC Assistant Practitioner Vacancy

Ace Centre is an equal opportunities employer; we welcome enquiries from everyone and value diversity in our workforce.



7.  AAC & Sensory Impairment Research Grant

Communication Matters are pleased to be able to offer an individual, group, or organisation the opportunity to apply for £10,000 funding to undertake a research project. This offer is open to an individual or group with experience of augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) who would like to investigate an issue concerned with AAC and sensory loss.

We would consider supporting an individual who would like to use this opportunity to develop research skills. We can connect individuals interested in the award, without existing or current links to an academic partner, to an academic mentor to support them in developing their application and proposed project.

To learn more about the grant and how to apply, click here.



8.  CM Journal – Call for Articles

Looking ahead to the November issue of the CM Journal, and inspired by the excellent presentations at last month’s International AAC Conference, we would like to invite all conference presenters to submit an article for publication.

The CM Journal is a great opportunity to share your work, research, experiences, and insights with the wider AAC community. For more information about the journal, submission guidelines, and access to previous issues, please visit the CM Journal page.

Articles can be submitted by emailing [email protected]



9.  Voices without Limits – Scotland Communication Club
From the Mentoring Project:

The next Voices without Limits – Scotland Communication Club

Date: Thursday 29 October
Time: 10.30AM – 12.30PM
Location: Capability Scotland, Upper Springland, Isla Road, Perth, PH2 7HQ

The 3^rd meeting of the Voices Without Limits club is coming up soon. It’s a great place to meet other AAC users and take part in fun activities, and it’s free to attend!

To register your place at this communication club, click here.



10.  About Friday Announcements

These ‘Friday Announcements’ comprise weekly product updates, upcoming courses, and supplier news. Please email [email protected] with the item you want to be included by Thursday at 5pm – no more than 200 words (one entry per organisation per week) – and include contact email and/or link so readers can find out further information (no file attachments please).

This newsletter may include links to external websites or third-party content. While these are checked for quality and working links at the time of publication, Communication Matters is not responsible for the content, accuracy, or availability of external sites.