About explore speech
A community built around your child
Explore Speech started with the passionate belief that every child deserves to be understood. Since 2018, we've grown from a single Speech Pathologist into a team that supports families across Mooroolbark and the Yarra Valley for therapy and for genuine support.
How we started
Our founder, Lauren Planner, started Explore Speech because she saw too many families navigating communication challenges on their own.
Lauren built something unique: a practice where the relationships between the therapist and family are just as important as the therapy itself. Explore Speech is lucky to have amazing staff who love working together and who share their ideas and skills with each other. Explore Speech is a place where progress is celebrated together.
Why community matters here
When you join Explore Speech, you're joining a team of therapists who are all working toward the same thing: supporting your child to reach their communication goals, in whatever form that takes. We connect with schools and kindergartens. We collaborate with paediatricians, OTs, and other allied health professionals. We become part of your child's team and we want to ensure no parent feels like they're figuring this out alone.
Our team is small enough that you'll know our therapists by name, and they'll know your child's favourite dinosaur, their go-to comfort phrase, the way they like to play. Continuity matters. So does familiarity.
Our community Partners
The Parents Hub
We are proud to support The Parents Hub as one of our community partners.
The Parents Hub offers facilitated playgroups, baby classes, Mum’s groups, and classes during the weekdays. They also offer events and programs for Mums outside these hours. It is a safe space specifically designed to advocate health and wellbeing, help foster childhood development and connect parents and carers in the community. The Parents Hub is a not for profit, whose mission is to promote the wellbeing of parents and carers. They are run by a team of local Mums and are passionate about creating an inclusive, fun and supportive village for parents.
Explore Occupational Therapy
We are lucky to work closely with Rhonda at Explore OT. Rhonda and Lauren have worked together in multiple workplace settings since 2013. In 2018, Explore OT and Explore Speech were founded alongside each other. This has allowed for amazing therapeutic sharing and learning across the disciplines of speech and OT.
Rhonda is an Occupational Therapist and the director of Explore Occupational Therapy. Rhonda takes a practical and family-centred approach to her therapy support. She is an engaging therapist who brings a lot of creativity, movement and fun to all her sessions.
*Please direct any enquiries about the services of our community partners directly to them.