Child Language Teaching and Therapy 26(1) 61–76 © The Author(s) 2010 Reprints and permissions: http://www. sagepub.co.uk/journalsPermissions.nav DOI: 10.1177/0265659009349975 http://clt.sagepub.com ‘It’s just so lovely to hear him talking’: Exploring the early-intervention expectations and experiences of parents Rena Lyons and Mary Pat O’Malley National University of Ireland, Galway Patricia O’Connor and Una Monaghan Health Services Executive West, Galway, Ireland Abstract Little research to date explores parental experiences of early intervention. This study uses action research over a six-month period to explore the expectations and experiences of parents whose children attended an early-intervention group for speech/language impairments. This intervention programme was facilitated by a speech and language therapist and a psychologist and took place in the West of Ireland. Two focus groups were conducted with the parents of these children: one pre- intervention and one post-intervention. The focus groups were facilitated by two of the authors who were unfamiliar to the participants. Following each focus group, a summary of themes that emerged from the discussion was discussed with the clinical staff. Two changes were subsequently implemented: the timing of the group and clarification of parents’ roles. Thematic network analysis was conducted in accordance with the processes outlined by Attride-Stirling (2001). Three global themes of progress, uncertainty and dissatisfaction emerged from the analysis pre- and post- intervention. In addition the global theme of certainty emerged pre-therapy and the global theme of satisfaction emerged post-therapy. The findings of this study highlight the importance of both service users and clinical staff co-constructing a shared frame of reference so that they can engage more fully in the therapy process. Keywords early intervention; parents’ experiences; shared frames of reference; partnership approach Corresponding author Rena Lyons, Discipline of Speech and Language Therapy, School of Health Sciences, National University of Ireland, Galway, Ireland. Email: rena.lyons@nuigalway.ie