top of page
Kids with Capes

what we do

We are a private paediatric speech pathology clinic working with children from 0-18 years of age and their families and carers to provide a variety of services. 

how we do it

Our team of extensively experienced speech pathologists provide a variety of assessment and therapy services, and our wonderful Allied Health Assistants provide home and community based support for more intensive therapy.

why we do it

We have a strong commitment to a collaborative approach when it comes to speech pathology. As a clinic we prioritise inclusion and diversity, and work from a client-centred, neurodiverse affirming approach to our work, all the way from the initial enquiry through to completion of service.

PHILOSOPHY

MEET THE TEAM

20171008_170227.jpg

Maria Kouspos
she/her

BSp Path, MSPAA, CPSP 

Maria has been providing paediatric speech pathology services for 20 years in early intervention, education, hospital and private service settings.

Areas of Interest:

  • ASD & FASD

  • Developmental disorders and early language development

  • Orofacial Myology

  • Multidisciplinary assessment 

  • Parent and teacher support and training

Jo G profile pic.jpg

Joanne Gimas

she/her

BSp Path, MSPA, CPSP

Joanne has been providing paediatric speech pathology services for 20 years in both the education system and private service settings.

Areas of Interest:

  • Speech & oral language development

  • Literacy skills development 

  • Parent & teacher training

  • Multidisciplinary support

  • Sounds-Write phonics program

Sarah G Profile Pic.JPG

Sarah Gravina

she/her

MSpPath, MSPA, CPSP

Working in both education & private clinic settings for over 10 years, Sarah's team approach to paediatric speech pathology is ideal for bringing parents & teachers into the therapy process.

Areas of Interest:

Bel 1.jpg

Belinda McCully
she/her

BSp Path, CPSP 

As a speech pathologist of over 20 years, Belinda has worked in a variety of settings with a broad range of children and adults.

Areas of Interest:

  • Early intervention

  • Feeding difficulties

  • Fluency/stuttering

  • Developmental disorders

Photo.jpg

Henry Choi
he/him

MSp Path, CPSP

Henry is a registered speech pathologist who started out with us as an Allied Health Assistant whilst completing his studies. He is keen to provide clients ongoing and consistent communication support

Areas of Interest:

  • Speech sound disorders

  • Articulation

  • FASD

  • ASD Assessment

IMG_4050.jpg

Felicia Schmaman

B. A. (Sp & H), M. Ed. MSPA, CPSP

Felicia has been providing paediatric speech pathology services for more than 40 years in a variety of settings including private practice.

Areas of Interest:​

  • ASD assessment, including ASD assessment of girls within a multidisciplinary framework

  • Pragmatic language assessment

  • Language assessment

  • Early language development

  • Developmental disorders

  • Childhood Apraxia of Speech

FullSizeRender.jpeg

Abrar Al Abdulla

BSp Path, CPSP 

Abrar has over 4 years of experience providing pediatric speech pathology services in educational settings.  

Areas of Interest:

  • Fluency & Speech Sound Disorders

  • Language & Literacy Skills Development  

  • Parent & Teacher Training  

  • Multidisciplinary Support  

  • Sounds-Write Phonics Program

Alexis_HeadshotNov2023 (1).JPG

Alexis Shiu

Allied Health Assistant

​Alexis is a second-year speech pathology student who has experience working with children with diverse needs. She is keen to make a positive impact by assisting speech pathologists in empowering clients to achieve their goals.

Areas of Interest:

  • Preschool and school age children

  • Neurodiversity-affirming practice

  • Multilingualism

thumbnail_IMG_2415.jpg

Brooke Pereira

Allied Health Assistant

Brooke is a third year speech pathology student with experience in paediatric support in both primary and secondary schools.

Areas of Interest:

  • Speech sound disorders

  • Multidisciplinary support

  • Assessment

  • Collaborative therapy

Ella.jpeg

Ella Matthiesson

Allied Health Assistant

As a fourth year Speech Pathology student, Ella is a wonderful addition to the Bright Start team assisting our practitioners and working with clients to achieve their goals.

Areas of Interest:

  • Preschool and school age children

  • Collaborative therapy

  • Fun and learning

speech-therapy-service-dubai.png

Georgia Barry

Allied Health Assistant

Georgia is a first year speech pathology student with significant work and life experience that make her a wonderful AHA.

Areas of Interest:

  • Speech sound disorders

  • Neurodiversity-affirming practice

  • Collaborative therapy

D0SduZIXQAAE5wP.jpg

Michaela Smethurst

Allied Health Assistant

Michaela is currently studying for her AHA qualifications with a view to ultimately transferring to speech pathology studies. She has recently compelted a placement with Bright Start and makes a wonderful addition to our team.

Areas of Interest:

  • Language disorders
  • Speech sound disorders
  • Neurodiversity
Profile_Pic.jpg

Jordyn Nashar

Allied Health Assistant

Jordyn is a third year Speech Pathology student, who assists our practitioners in implementing fun and effective therapy sessions under the supervision of our speech pathologists.

Areas of Interest:

  • Preschool and school age children

  • Collaborative therapy

  • Fun and learning

IMG_9539.jpg

Xinyang Yang

Allied Health Assistant

Xinyang is a third year speech pathology student who completed one of her paediatric student placements with Bright Start.

Areas of Interest:

  • Speech sound disorders

  • Neurodiversity-affirming practice

  • Multilingualism

Photo (2).JPG

Lakshika Thilakarathne

Allied Health Assistant

Lakshika is a speech pathologist working towards her Australian accreditation. While she does that she is able to utilise her skills and experience as an AHA.

Areas of Interest:

  • Speech sound disorders

  • Neurodiversity-affirming practice

  • Social communication

  • Team based support

LXLN0900.JPG

Lauren Jacobs
she/her

Practice Manager

With over 15 years working in Allied Health administration, Lauren is a wonderful asset to both the business and the families we work with.

Child In Speech Therapy
SERVICES

SERVICES

assessment

Bright Start Speech Pathology offers a variety of assessment services. Our aim is to provide accurate information to the family, practitioners and educational settings in order to support a child to develop their skills, succeed and reach their potential. 

therapy

At Bright Start Speech Pathology we provide a range of child and parent based interventions that focus on increasing communication through the use of the latest evidence based methods.

aha program

Allied Health Assistants (AHA) can be a wonderful element of the therapy journey for your child. Working under the supervision of your child's speech pathologist they provide more frequent support across a range of domains.

groups

A complimentary service to our one-on-one therapy is the group programs we offer each term holidays. Targeted to our current client base each term, these programs offer the opportunity to learn, practice and implement a variety of skills. Click below to see the current programs.

orofacial myofunctional therapy

Bright Start Speech Pathology offers orofacial myology services to assist with mouth breathing, tongue tie, sucking habits, tongue thrusting, braces support, picky eating and more.

CONTACT
Autism Therapy

RESOURCES

Bright Start Speech Pathology has an extensive library of resources available, from tip sheets and helpful websites to external practitioner recommendations.

Boy Playing with Blocks

GET IN TOUCH

Clinic: 77a Tucker Road, Bentleigh VIC 3204

Phone: 1300 754 079

Fax: +61 3 8582 9746

Email: info@brightstartspeechpathology.com.au

Facebook: Click here

Instagram: Click here

CPSP Horiz hig res RGB.jpg
bottom of page