Team talks up speech solution

SPEECH problems in children suffering from Down's syndrome could be improved thanks to work carried out by Edinburgh researchers.

A team from Queen Margaret University College hope its research will help sufferers to integrate into society by improving their communication skills.

It has been awarded 348,000 project funding by the prestigious Medical Research Council. Led by Professor Bill Hardcastle, the team is using a technique known as electropalatography (EPG) to pinpoint speech problems.

Speech difficulties in children with Down's syndrome can lead to problems making friends, or in education or in finding jobs.

Prof Hardcastle said: "This is a major grant which gives priority to what has traditionally been an under-funded area."