TOM Scale

What is TOM?

TOM (Therapy Outcome Measures) is an evidence-based, validated outcome measurement tool used widely in education and NHS services. It is used to measure the impact of a therapy intervention.

TOM is endorsed by the Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists and the therapy team at Northern Counties school have worked with the author of TOM this year to develop our own measurement scale which has been published in the latest edition of the TOM manual.

The team recently won a NASS (National Association of Special Schools) Innovation award at their 2025 conference for this development project.

How did we develop the scale?

We researched best practice and the range of tools available to use before developing our own bespoke scale that best reflected the needs of our learners.

We arranged workshops with a range of professionals to gather feedback on the scale and liaised with the author of TOM, Pam Enderby.

We provided training to our therapy teams in how to use the scale and competed validity and reliability tests.

The new scale, ‘Paediatric Learning Disability and Complex Needs MDT’, measures the impact of therapy on 4 different areas: impairment, activity, participation and wellbeing.

Benefits

We now use the TOM scale to measure the effects on day-to-day functioning, well-being, independence, and participation in activities. The TOM aims to capture the progress of learners in achieving meaningful goals and increasing the quality of life.

The TOM scales are designed to be clear and accessible, and their language is understandable to all stakeholders.

The TOM scales are also designed to be used as a reflective tool, enhancing clinical reasoning, goal setting reviews, and positively influencing the quality of therapy the learner receives.

An award-winning tool

Do you want to find out more?

If you are interested to know more about our award-winning TOM scale tool, please contact Louise Allport (Assistant Head, Therapy) on 01912815821 / l.allport@percyhedley.org.uk