Spark Speech

What Spark Speech does

Spark Speech Pathology is an independent speech pathology private practice operating from a single clinic at 643/645 Glen Huntly Rd, Caulfield South, in southeastern Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. The practice is owned and led by principals Beverley Sher and Liz Zhornitsky, both qualified speech pathologists with over 20 years of clinical experience each, supported by a clinical team of approximately 14 speech therapists and six administrative staff. It serves children, adolescents, and adults presenting with speech sound disorders, language delays, stuttering, voice difficulties, literacy challenges, and pragmatic or social communication deficits, including clients with Autism Spectrum Disorder and other neurodevelopmental conditions.

The core service offering comprises individual therapy sessions (delivered at the clinic, at local schools and early childhood centres, and via Telehealth), comprehensive assessments, and a substantial group programming layer that includes 20+ weekly after-school social interaction groups, literacy groups, and seasonal school holiday intensives. Spark After Dark extends the social-skills programming to adults aged 18+, an unusual offering for a speech pathology practice. Adjacent services include professional development workshops for educators and parents. Therapeutic approaches draw on established methodologies including Hanen, PECS, Lidcombe Program, Smooth Speech, Social Thinking, DIR Floortime, and Feuerstein Instrumental Enrichment, with a distinctive use of drama-based techniques for pragmatic and social-skills work.

Revenue is generated through professional-services billing, with clients paying via stored credit card, invoice, or automatic charge, and accessing multiple funding pathways: Medicare Chronic Condition Management Plan rebates of A$61.80 per session (up to 5 per year), Medicare Complex Neurodevelopmental Disorder Plan rebates of A$87.25 per session, private health insurance rebates via HICAPS item codes 310–390, and direct NDIS invoicing for self-managed and plan-managed participants. The go-to-market motion is sales-led via referrals from GPs, paediatricians, and allied health professionals, supplemented by an owned digital presence across a website, Facebook, and Instagram. There is no technology platform, no AI component, no disclosed funding history, and no public listing; ownership is concentrated in the two founding principals.

Name

Spark Speech

Legal name

Spark Speech Pathology

Website

https://sparkspeechpathology.com

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Spark Speech Pathology is an independent Melbourne speech pathology practice offering individual therapy, group programs, and Telehealth for children, adolescents, and adults with communication and social-skills needs. The clinic is owned by two principals and funded via private fees, Medicare, private health insurers, and NDIS.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Speech Pathology Services

NAICS

Educational Support Services (611710)

SIC

Services-Health Services (8000)

akta.pro primary industry

Social Communication / Pragmatics Intervention (School-Age) (EDAKAEAF)

akta.pro secondary industries

Fluency (Stuttering/Cluttering) Services (School-Age) (EDAKAEAG), Speech Sound Disorders (Articulation/Phonology) Intervention (EDAKAEAD), Language Disorders Intervention (Receptive/Expressive, Morphology/Syntax/Semantics) (EDAKAEAE), Literacy-Related Language Intervention (Phonological Awareness, Narrative, Curriculum Language) (EDAKAEAJ)

Keywords

• Speech pathology services
• Pediatric speech therapy
• Social skills therapy
• Language and literacy therapy
• Telehealth speech therapy

Headquarters

HQ city

Caulfield South

HQ country

Australia

HQ region

Oceania

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Speech Pathology Services: Individual and group therapy sessions for speech, language, social skills, and related services. Revenue is generated through client payments processed via stored credit card, invoice payments, and automatic charging.
2. Private Health Insurance Rebates: Clients pay full invoice and claim rebates from their private health insurer using HICAPS item codes (310-390 depending on session type and duration). Rebates vary by insurer and coverage level.
3. Medicare Plans: Chronic Condition Management Plan (CCM): $61.80 per session rebate, up to 5 sessions per calendar year. Complex Neurodevelopmental Disorder and Disability Services Plan (CND/M10): $87.25 per session rebate, 8 assessment sessions (lifetime) and 20 treatment sessions (lifetime).
4. NDIS Funding: Accepts self-managed and plan-managed NDIS clients. Invoices can be sent to client email for claiming, or directly to the fund.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Spark Speech Pathology provides speech pathology services for children, adolescents, and adults, including individual therapy, group programs, comprehensive assessments, and Telehealth sessions delivered from its Caulfield South clinic, local schools, and early childhood centres. The practice also runs more than 20 weekly social skills groups, literacy groups, an adults-only social skills program (Spark After Dark), school holiday intensive programs, and professional development workshops for educators and parents.

Product overview

Spark Speech Pathology is an independent speech pathology practice operating as a single-location clinic in Caulfield South, Victoria, offering a comprehensive suite of speech pathology services. The core offering consists of individual and group therapy addressing speech, language, fluency, voice, social skills, and literacy. Key service modules include: Individual Therapy (in-person at clinic, schools, or via Telehealth), Assessment Services, and Group Programs (Weekly Social Interaction Groups, Literacy Groups, Spark After Dark for adults, and School Holiday Programs). Professional Development Workshops for educators and parents represent an adjacent service offering. The practice personalizes therapy programs for each client, working with children (including preschool), adolescents, and adults across individual, group, and telehealth formats.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Individual Therapy One-on-one personalised speech pathology therapy covering speech sound disorders, expressive and receptive language, fluency/stuttering, voice, written language, phonological awareness, and auditory processing, delivered at the Caulfield South clinic, local schools, early childhood centres, or via Telehealth.
• Assessment Services Comprehensive evaluation of an individual's language, speech, and social skills, including school observations and liaison with parents and teachers, to inform diagnosis and treatment planning.
• Weekly Social Interaction Groups Group-based social skills sessions run weekly after school, grouped by age and ability, each 45 minutes, facilitated by a qualified speech pathologist and speech assistant to develop conversational, cooperative, friendship, and conflict-resolution skills.
• Literacy Groups Group-based therapy targeting reading and writing skills development, including reading comprehension and creative writing.
• Spark After Dark Social skills group program for adults (18+), focusing on social communication, emotional regulation, conversation skills, and maintaining relationships.
• School Holiday Programs Intensive 2-hour group sessions run over three days during the July and January school holidays, targeting social skills development in a fun, intensive environment.
• Professional Development Workshops Presentations and workshops for teachers, integration aides, and parents on topics including social interactions, language disorders, phonological awareness, Fragile X Syndrome, and Autism Spectrum Disorders.

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Therapy Focus: Large Western Australian paediatric allied health organisation delivering speech pathology, OT, and physiotherapy primarily through NDIS. Comparable to Spark in clinical scope and target demographic, but operates at significantly larger scale and regional breadth.
• Therapy Pro: National Australian allied health provider offering speech pathology, occupational therapy, and psychology across multiple states with telehealth. A broader incumbent than Spark, but competes in the same NDIS-funded paediatric therapy space with overlapping scope.

Direct peers

• Talking Matters: Australian speech pathology practice providing paediatric therapy for speech, language, literacy, and social skills, including group programs and school-based services. Directly comparable in scope and target population to Spark, and competes for the same Medicare/NDIS-funded referrals.
• Stepping Stones Therapy: Multi-disciplinary paediatric allied health provider in Australia offering speech pathology alongside occupational therapy and psychology. Comparable to Spark in delivering individual and group therapy for children with communication and social-skill needs, with overlapping NDIS/Medicare payer mix.
• Mosaic Education and Therapy: Allied health clinic providing speech pathology and educational support for children and adolescents with developmental and learning differences. Overlaps with Spark in social-skills, literacy, and language therapy delivery, particularly for school-age clients.
• Melbourne Speech Pathology: Independent speech pathology clinic based in Melbourne offering assessment and therapy for children and adults across speech, language, fluency, voice, and social communication. Direct local competitor to Spark Speech in the Victorian market, with overlapping funding (Medicare, NDIS, private health) and similar delivery modes.
• Small TALK Speech Therapy: Australian paediatric speech pathology practice offering individual and group therapy for speech, language, literacy, stuttering, and social skills, with telehealth delivery. Comparable to Spark as a similarly sized, multi-disciplinary SLP clinic serving children through school-age clients across Australian geographies.

Emerging players

• Connected Speech Pathology: Australian speech pathology practice delivering individual therapy and telehealth for paediatric and adult clients with speech, language, and social-communication needs. Comparable to Spark in methodology mix and Medicare/NDIS funding acceptance, but at a smaller, emerging scale.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/sparkspeechpathology
• Instagraminstagram.com/spark_speech_pathology/?hl=en
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/spark-speech

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Spark Speech