• Director - Senior Speech Pathologist - Senior Feeding Therapist

    Julie Hunt is a founding member of Next Challenge and has been working with children for over 25 years. As a Speech and Feeding therapist, she is deeply committed to helping children and their families improve their communication, language, and feeding skills. With her collaborative and empowering approach, Julie ensures that everyone involved feels valued and supported in achieving their goals. She loves the fact that she gets to laugh so much with so many little people every day - especially now that two of her four children are adults!

    As a Director, Julie's value lies in her genuine care for her team and her ability to provide them with opportunities to gain a broad range of clinical, leadership, and project management experience. She understands the importance of a well-rounded approach to service delivery and intervention and is committed to supporting the Next Challenge team as they grow and develop professionally. Julie is always impressed by her staff's ability to make a positive impact and values their contributions immensely.

    Clinical Interests:

    • Speech Fluency (stuttering)

    • Infant and Toddler Feeding

    • (Breastfeeding, Bottle Feeding, Transition to solids)

    • Picky Eating / ARFID

    • Oral-motor development

    Approaches commonly used:

    • Get Permission

    • Responsive Feeding TherapyDescription text goes here

  • Senior Manager - Senior Speech Pathologist

    Michelle is a passionate senior speech pathologist who loves helping children and their families. She has previously served as a Senior Lecturer at Curtin University and has published eight papers on different topics, including childhood language and clinical education. Michelle loves her job at Next Challenge, where she gets to work in a dynamic team and be a part of each child's developmental journey. She also considers herself fortunate to have gained valuable insights into life, child development, and the greatest challenge of all, parenting, from her two young daughters.


    As a Senior Staff Manager, Michelle takes on various roles to assist the General Manager and ensure the smooth running of organisational processes and staff management. Michelle is dedicated to fostering community awareness of her profession, maintaining efficiency and staff job satisfaction at Next Challenge, and delivering the best possible family-centred, holistic therapy to all children.

    Clinical Interests:

    • Language Development

    • Early years (0-3 years old)

    • Student supervision

    • Early literacy

    • Speech sounds

    • Fluency

  • Senior Speech Pathologist - Coordinator for Student Placements

    Catherine is an experienced Senior Speech Pathologist who strongly believes in the importance of helping children learn to communicate and interact with the world and the people around them. Her passion for improving children's reading and writing abilities is driven by her expertise in speech and language development, as well as her previous experience as a children's librarian. As a mother of two young children, Catherine feels privileged to be part of the therapeutic process and highly values the relationships she builds with the children and parents she works with.


    Aside from her role as a Senior Speech Pathologist, Catherine is also responsible for coordinating university students' placement at Next Challenge. She is passionate about creating a productive learning environment for students and providing them with valuable learning opportunities to enhance their clinical knowledge and skills. Catherine is dedicated to supporting and guiding students throughout their placements, ensuring that they feel confident and prepared as they embark on their careers in allied health.

    Clinical Interests:

    • Literacy and Language development

    • Speech clarity

    • School-based support

    Approaches commonly used:

    • Book share

  • Senior Speech Pathologist

    Michelle is a highly skilled Senior Speech Pathologist who is committed to fostering the language development of young children.


    She has a strong ability to engage with children of all abilities and is dedicated to working collaboratively with families to ensure that their child's specific needs are met.


    Michelle is sensitive to the emotional and physical challenges that parents face and strives to provide them with compassionate and supportive assistance.

    Clinical Interests:

    • Disability, Autism

    • Language Development

    • Early years

    Approaches Commonly Used:

    • Hanen: It takes two to talk

    • Hanen: More Than Words

  • Senior Speech Pathologist, Feeding Therapist​

    Nikki is an experienced Senior Speech Pathologist who specialises in working with children of all ages, particularly in the areas of speech, language, and feeding.


    She has helped many children with complex speech and language difficulties and feeding issues. Nikki has also worked in the UK, where she provided support to children with cleft lip and palate, assisting them with speech sounds, language development, and feeding skills.


    Nikki and her husband, James, have five children together - this makes for a rather hectic but fun home life! Things that make Nikki feel happy include spending time with her family, travelling, learning more about child development, a glass of champagne and a really great book.

    Clinical Interests:

    • Early Speech and Language Development

    • Speech Fluency

    • Literacy

    • Infant/Toddler Mealtimes

    • Oral motor development

    • Breast & Bottle Feeding

    • Picky Eating

  • Senior Speech Pathologist

    Kim is an experienced Speech Pathologist who specialises in early language intervention and speech delays/disorders.

    With a Master's Degree in Speech Pathology and extensive teaching experience, Kim is well-equipped to work with children and families effectively. She strongly believes in building positive and collaborative relationships with children, parents, caregivers, therapists, and teachers, which she considers vital to providing the best possible outcomes for her clients across school and clinic settings.

    Clinical Interests:

    • Fluency

    • Early language development

    • Speech clarity

  • Senior Speech Pathologist

    Hannah is a dedicated Speech Pathologist who is enthusiastic about helping children of all ages and their families to achieve their speech and language goals. She grew up in the South West and worked there for four years before moving to Perth.

    Hannah has a keen interest in motor speech sound disorders, literacy and school-age language. Her goal is to empower children to become confident communicators who can express themselves and advocate for their own needs.

    When Hannah is not working, she enjoys spending quality time with her family, going to the beach, or practising Pilates.

    Clinical Interests:

    • Complex speech sound disorders

    • Early language development

    • Literacy and Narrative

    • Disability and Neurodivergence

    Approaches commonly used:

    • Child-led

    • Neuro-affirming

    • PROMPT

    • Sounds~Write

  • Senior Speech Pathologist

    Lauren is passionate about supporting neurodivergent children and their families and ensuring every child can communicate in the ways that work best for them, including through AAC.

    Lauren believes that communication thrives when children feel safe, regulated, heard and supported. With a child-led, neurodiversity-affirming approach, she focuses on building strong connections, celebrating each child’s unique strengths, and working closely with families to provide practical strategies that support communication in everyday routines and meaningful interactions. 

    Clinical Interests:

    • Disability & neurodivergence

    • Gestalt Language Processing (GLP)

    • Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC)

    • Language development

    Approaches commonly used:

    • Child-led play 

    • Multimodal communication

    • Neurodiversity-affirming 

    • Regulation and connection-focused

    • Parent and stakeholder upskilling

    Facilitator trained in:

    • Hanen: More Than Words

  • Speech Pathologist

    Sienna is a caring and dedicated speech pathologist who loves working with children! She's passionate about providing holistic and strengths-based services to help every child she works with achieve their communication goals and feel confident in their abilities.

    Sienna values empowering families with the necessary knowledge and tools to promote communication development and values staying up-to-date with the latest research and best practices.

    Throughout her clinical experience, Sienna has developed a particular interest in the field of communication and AAC. When she’s not working, Sienna enjoys staying active, dancing, and spending time with her family and friends. ​

    Clinical Interests:

    • Literacy

    • Disability and Neurodivergence

    • Alternative and Augmented Communication (AAC)

    • Early language development

    • Gestalt Language Processing (GLP)

    • School-based supports

    • Speech sounds

    Approaches commonly used:

    • Child-led therapy

    • Sounds Write

    • Neuroaffirming practice

  • Speech Pathologist

    Emily is an enthusiastic and dedicated speech pathologist who deeply values providing therapy in natural, play-based environments. She is passionate about providing holistic, individualised services to support children to achieve their goals across all areas of their lives. She appreciates the importance of working with and empowering parents and teachers to implement strategies within the home and school environments to support their child to flourish. Emily loves building strong relationships with the children and families she works with – celebrating their strengths, passions, and unique interests.


    Outside of work, you can find Emily at netball, spending time with her friends and family, or enjoying an acai bowl by the beach.

    Clinical Interests:

    • Speech sound disorders and Childhood Apraxia of Speech

    • Disability and Neurodivergence

    • Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC)

    • Language development

    • Early literacy

    Approaches Commonly Used:

    • Child-led

    • Neuro-affirming

    • Dynamic Temporal and Tactile Cueing (DTTC)

    • Rapid Syllable Transition Treatment (ReST)

    • Multimodal communication

  • Speech Pathologist

    Abbey is a passionate and dedicated speech pathologist. She has a special interest in early intervention and loves working with neurodivergent children and their families. Abbey believes that every child deserves to be heard, and she works closely with families to support communication in meaningful, everyday ways. Abbey uses a child-led and neurodiversity affirming approach  to create a fun, supportive environment where children can connect, play and communicate in their own way.

    Clinical Interests: 

    • Early Years (0–3 years old)

    • Disability & Neurodivergence

    • Gestalt Language Processing (GLP)

    • Language Development

    • Alternative and Augmented Communication (AAC)

    • Speech Fluency (stuttering)

    Approaches Commonly Used:

    • Child Led

    • Total Communication

    • Relationship Focused

    • Multimodal Communication

    • Neurodiversity Affirming

    • Natural Language Acquisition (NLA)

  • Speech Pathologist

    Hannah is an enthusiastic Speech Pathologist who graduated from Curtin University with a Bachelor of Speech Pathology (Honours). She is interested in all areas of Speech pathology practice and strongly values a holistic and strengths based approach in therapy.

    Hannah is passionate about working closely with families, teachers and other important individuals in her client's lives to build their communication skills across meaningful contexts.

    Clinical Interests:

    • Speech Sounds 

    • Complex Speech Sound Disorders

    • Early Language/ Early Intervention

    • School Aged Language and Literacy

    • Paediatric Feeding

  • Speech Pathologist

    Liz is a dedicated speech pathologist who loves supporting children and their families to build confident, meaningful communication. She works closely with parents, carers, and educators to support learning in ways that feel practical and achievable in everyday life. Liz has a particular passion for early intervention and enjoys working with neurodivergent children using a child-led, neurodiversity-affirming approach. Her sessions are playful, supportive, and guided by each child’s interests, creating a space where children feel safe to connect, play, and communicate in their own way. She focuses on sharing simple, meaningful strategies families can easily use at home, helping communication grow beyond the therapy room.

    Clinical interests:

    • Language development 

    • Disability and Neurodivergence

    • Alternative and Augmented Communication (AAC)

    • Early literacy 

    • Speech sounds