Stammering Therapy in London
Adult speech therapy to help you manage your stammer. Online speech therapy is also available!
Award-winning stammering therapy in London.
City Lit Speech Therapy is an international centre of excellence based in London. Our team of highly experienced specialist speech and language therapists lead a broad range of stammering therapy sessions, including intensive day-time sessions, and part-time evening/short stammering therapy workshops in Covent Garden, as well as a well providing a developed follow-up programme for ongoing support.
Running out of our centre of excellence in London. we have over 50 years’ experience in providing support for adults who stammer. Email us at speechtherapy@citylit.ac.uk to arrange an advisory session - this personal and free service will help you choose the right therapy for you.
Our approach
Our approach at City Lit is what is known as "stammering management" and is based on the work of two American speech and language therapists who also stammered, Charles Van Riper and Joseph Sheehan.
You enrol as students who engage in a process of learning. We believe that this encourages an active approach to change which is essential to successful stammering therapy.
Offering you the tools you need for long term change.
We believe it is important that you become your own therapist, so that by the end of a course they have a variety of tools for managing stammering.
Unlike some other stuttering therapy programmes, our therapy is not a 'quick fix'. Whilst it is possible to gain fluency relatively quickly, it is usually hard to maintain unless work is done also on the psychological aspects of stammering.
Addressing the psychological aspects of stuttering.
People who stammer often avoid speaking in a number of situations and often change words or swap sentences around in a bid to avoid stammering. As a rule, the more you avoid stammering, the more you fear it.
Stuttering behaviours may develop and change over time in an attempt to gain control of speech, but often this can result in increased tension-struggle.
Our approach to therapy is holistic and is designed to address all aspects of stammering - the feelings and attitudes as well as the speech - leading to more lasting change. We believe that trying to 'fight' your stammering is unhelpful and can be damaging in the long run.
Working on acceptance and openness leads to greater ease of speech.
Change is a process and takes time. Therapy is a partnership, but ultimately people only change by doing something different, not just by thinking or reading about it. Group therapy is often particularly beneficial.
Our Speech and Language Therapists
If you're looking for a speech therapist in London, our team of experienced Speech and Language Therapists have over 50 years’ experience in providing stammering therapy and support for adults who stammer or stutter. We offer a broad range of stammering therapy sessions delivered in small groups by qualified speech therapists. Learn more about our team below.
Carolyn Cheasman BSc (Hons) Reg MRCSLT
Carolyn has worked as a speech and language therapist with adults who stammer since 1979. She stammers herself and prior to training as a therapist attended an intensive course at City Lit which she describes as a 'life-changing event'. Carolyn has a particular interest in interiorised stammering. As part of her work she has undertaken considerable counselling training.
Vivien Grant-Jones
Vivien has been a part-time tutor for City Lit since 2009. In 2023 she gained the opportunity to be a Co-ordinating Tutor at City Lit. Vivien does not stammer herself but does experience cluttering (as part of her dyslexia). She has had a varied, diverse and creative career so far, the central thread being a personal and passionate pursuit to understand our individual and cultural relationship with fluency.
Anita McKiernan BSc, MSc, Dip Coaching, Dip Counselling Skills, MRCSLT, MASLTIP, HCPC Registered.
Anita is a Highly Specialist Speech and Language Therapist who joined City Lit as a part-time tutor in January 2019.
Anita works as an independent speech and language therapist with children, young people and adults with needs such as, Selective Mutism, Stammering, Voice Disorders, Autism and Speech and Language difficulties. She spent several years working in the NHS, in clinical, supervisory and leadership roles.
Rachel Everard BA (Hons) MSc Reg MRCSLT
Rachel has stammered herself since a very early age and originally came to City Lit as a client in the early 1990s. Her experience of therapy and meeting other people who stammer was a turning-point in her life. She decided to change career and train as a speech and language therapist, she became involved in the British Stammering Association and her personal identity changed as she began to accept herself as somebody who stammers.
Prior to joining the City Lit speech therapy team in 2001, Rachel worked as a speech and language therapist with children with a range of communication difficulties in community clinics, mainstream primary schools and at the Michael Palin Centre for Stammering Children.
Contact us
For general enquiries please contact us on 020 4582 0419 or email us at speechtherapy@citylit.ac.uk
Email our team directly
Carolyn Cheasman
carolyn.cheasman@citylit.ac.uk
Vivien Grant-Jones
- Effective counselling skills for speech and language therapistsCourse start date: Wed 21 May 2025 (and 2 other dates)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Louise Hillyer, Anita McKiernan, Amy StewartDesigned for SLTs working with any client group, this interactive workshop will help you develop practical counselling skills. Topics include developing the therapeutic relationship, boundaries, ways of responding, paraphrasing, reflecting, questioning, immediacy, self disclosure and loss.Full fee £449.00 Senior fee £449.00 Concession £449.00 - Introduction to mindfulness for speech and language therapists
Course start date: Wed 11 Jun 2025 (and 1 other date)Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Carolyn Cheasman, Dh KarunaviraLearn the elements of mindfulness-based stress management and mindfulness-based cognitive therapy. Experience a range of mindfulness practices. Background theory is included and relevance for clients and therapist well-being benefits will be explored.Full fee £229.00 Senior fee £229.00 Concession £229.00 - Working with adults who stammer: a course for speech and language therapists Course start date: Mon 13 Oct 2025 (and 1 other date)
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Carolyn Cheasman, Vivien Grant-JonesDesigned for speech and language therapists, this four-day interactive workshop will cover assessment and selection, stammering modification, interiorised stammering, cluttering, acquired stammering and an introduction to mindfulness. Opportunity to practise teaching techniques to clients included.
Note: this course runs on these days: October 13-15; and a final follow-up day on March 30..Full fee £599.00 Senior fee £599.00 Concession £599.00 - Acceptance and commitment therapy for speech and language therapists Course start date: Mon 16 Jun 2025 (and 1 other date)
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Carolyn Cheasman, Rachel EverardThe two major goals of ACT (a mindfulness-based approach) are acceptance of experience that is out of personal control and taking committed action towards living a valued life. On this worksh op you'll learn how this is achieved and ACT's relevance to speech and language therapy.Full fee £229.00 Senior fee £229.00 Concession £229.00
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