Our Team

Carl Sokkar

Speech Language Pathologist and Clinic Director 

Carl is an experienced speech and language pathologist who has worked with children and their families for most of his extensive career. His work has spanned over many settings including community health, hospitals, schools, universities and private practice. He is now the director of the Speech Language Learning Centre and works with preschool and school-aged children through to early adulthood. Working in universities for many years as a clinical educator, associate lecturer and researcher, he brings a strong foundation of evidence-based practice to his clinical work. 

Carl’s special interests lie in speech and language difficulties for children and adolescents. He also has strong interests and extensive experience working with literacy difficulties. Carl’s philosophy has always been children and their families first. His family-centred and evidence-based approach to his management of clients ensures that the children he works with receive the best possible care.

Danielle Thompson

Speech Language Pathologist

Clinical Director Lower North Shore and Northern Beaches Clinic

Danielle is an experienced and engaging speech language pathologist who has dedicated her career to helping children and their families across a number of clinical settings. She has worked in community health, hospitals, extensively in preschools, schools and private practice as well as a university clinical educator ensuring the most recent evidence-based practice in her work. 

Danielle has recently returned to Sydney after 5 years with her family on the beautiful south coast of NSW where she established a thriving speech pathology practice. She is passionate about bringing the services of the SLLC to the Lower North Shore and Northern Beaches of Sydney where she now resides with her young family. Danielle has extensive experience and special interest in working with preschool and school aged children with speech, language and literacy difficulties along with children who stutter.

Danielle believes a caring relationship and collaboration with families and educators, is the key to successful intervention and meaningful change in a child’s life.

Kerry Watts

Speech Language Pathologist

Kerry is an experienced and committed speech-language pathologist who has worked extensively in school and private practice settings. Her particular areas of interest are early childhood language delays and school age language and literacy difficulties. Kerry values the opportunity to support parents through the early days of ASD diagnosis as well as helping their child develop their social and communication skills. Working with school aged children and adolescents to support their progress at school by improving their knowledge, skills and confidence is seen by Kerry as an important part of her role as speech-language pathologist.

Amanda Serci 

Speech Language Pathologist

Amanda is a compassionate and engaging speech pathologist who has extensive experience in private practice, working with young children through to adults, supporting them with their various communication needs. Specifically, she has worked with them to address speech, early language development, school-aged language, literacy, and pragmatic skills, as well as fluency and voice difficulties. She also has an interest in paediatric feeding. In addition to clinic-based therapy, she has provided services in school, preschool, and aged care settings.

Amanda is committed to lifelong learning and regularly engages in professional development to maintain a high standard of care for her clients. She also strives to collaborate with clients and their families to reach common goals and bring about meaningful change in their daily lives.

Eleanore Wright

Speech Language Pathologist

Eleanore brings a wealth of experience to her practice. She has worked for over 10 years with preschool children, school aged children and adolescent patients and their families. She has practiced in one of America's top children's hospitals and in community, primary and senior school settings in Australia. Eleanore has particular interests in speech and language difficulties for children and adolescents and significant experience working with literacy difficulties, stuttering and orofacial myofunctional disorders.

Eleanore is a mother of three young children and understands the challenges of integrating therapy into family life. She believes that the best outcomes are achieved through collaboration and enjoys working closely with families to support them and their children in achieving their goals.

Jenna Royden 

Speech Language Pathologist

Jenna is an energetic and dedicated speech pathologist who has worked across the lifespan treating speech, language, literacy, pragmatics and implementing assisted and augmented communication (AAC). She now works in a paediatric setting and has a specific interest in early intervention, particularly with children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and developmental disorders. Jenna adopts a play-based approach to facilitate lasting and meaningful change by integrating important aspects of her clients’ everyday lives. Her goal is to facilitate change whilst maintaining a fun and engaging environment that inspires her clients to continue striving for their goals.

Gabrielle Alphonse 

Speech Language Pathologist

Gabrielle is an energetic and empathic speech pathologist who has experience working with both adults and children in a range of environments. Her paediatric experience extends across home and school settings, private practice and community health centres. She enjoys working with families from a variety of culturally diverse backgrounds. Gabrielle holds the belief that open collaboration and building therapeutic relations with clients and their families are essential to providing high-quality care. She has a particular passion for working with children and adolescents who stutter. Her clinical area is focused on children and adults who stutter. 

Catherine Nader

Speech Language Pathologist

Catherine is a warm and compassionate speech pathologist who has experience working with both adults and children across a range of clinical settings including regional community centres, schools, childcares and homes. She has experience working with children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), Down syndrome, Global Developmental Delay (GDD) and other complex genetic disorders, targeting speech, language, literacy, pragmatics, swallowing and implementing alternative augmentative communication (AAC). She has a particular interest in early intervention and feeding therapy for picky eaters and problem feeders. Catherine is passionate about collaborating with families to ensure successful client outcomes and encouraging growth in quality of life. She adopts a play-based approach to therapy to ensure sessions are enjoyable, engaging and tailored to the individual’s needs and interests.

Sindura Pather

Speech Language Pathologist

Sindura is a dedicated and skilled speech-language pathologist who has worked with adults and children in a variety of settings such as private practice, schools, and clients' homes. She has experience working with children and adults of all ages in areas such as language, speech, fluency, literacy, and pragmatics. As well as Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), Selective Mutism, Intellectual Disability, and Global Developmental Delay (GDD). Sindura is most passionate about assisting school-aged children and young adults in developing functional communication skills in order to break down barriers to their independence and help them achieve personal, academic, and work-related goals.

Penny Wallace 

Administrator 

Penny is a friendly and experienced administrator, who has worked within corporate and community organisations. She has experience in disability support services supporting young adults in developing life skills. She is a mother of three, who has volunteered for many years as a local playgroup coordinator, member of sporting groups and on school committees. She likes to keep informed of the latest parenting styles and will regularly attend talks from different parenting and family experts.