Claire Whitehead is a highly experienced Senior Speech and Language Therapist with almost twenty years of clinical practice. She has worked in Dubai for seventeen years across hospitals, clinics, and schools, supporting children with a wide range of speech, language, and communication needs. Families value her calm, supportive manner and her commitment to evidence-based, play-based intervention.

Claire has held senior leadership roles, including Clinical Manager and Head of Department, where she supervised large multidisciplinary teams and supported the development of high-quality therapy services. She champions collaborative care and works closely with parents, teachers, and other professionals to help each child reach their full communicative potential.

• Early intervention for communication delay
• Receptive and expressive language disorder
• Phonological disorders
• Stuttering and fluency disorders
• Articulation difficulties, including lisps
• Learning difficulties, including auditory processing and dyslexia
• Autism Spectrum Disorder
• ADHD and ADD
• Motor speech disorders, including childhood apraxia of speech
• Cerebral palsy and Down syndrome
• Social communication and pragmatic language difficulties

Claire has completed extensive specialist training, including:

• DIR Floortime
• Orton-Gillingham (Levels 1–3)
• Therapeutic Listening
• British Makaton
• The Lidcombe Programme
• Cogmed
• Sensory Integration Theory

Her advanced training supports a comprehensive, child-centred approach that integrates best practice with functional, family-focused strategies.

Claire completed her early practical training in specialised education settings and mainstream schools as part of her university clinical placements. She then joined Red Cross War Memorial Children’s Hospital in South Africa, where she worked with complex paediatric cases across inpatient and outpatient services. After relocating to Dubai, she continued her paediatric clinical work in both school and clinic environments and has remained a key contributor to the development of high-quality speech and language services in the region.

Claire also presents regularly at conferences and training workshops for parents, educators, and healthcare professionals.

If you would like an appointment with Claire, please get in touch.