EARLY YEARS DESCRIPTORS
OF
SPECIAL EDUCATIONAL
NEEDS PROVISION
GUIDANCE FOR PRACTITIONERS IN ALL EARLY YEARS EDUCATION SETTINGS
1
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The services and agencies involved in the production of these descriptors were:







2
Senior officers of the Targeted Services Division
Representatives of the Starting Life Well team
A specialist educational psychologist
The Parent Partnership Service
Representatives of the Inclusive Learning Service
A representative from an early years setting
A representative from the Portage Service
TABLE OF CONTENTS
PAGE
Introduction
Table of local authority support services
Moderate Learning Difficulties descriptors
Severe Learning Difficulties descriptors
Profound and Multiple Learning Difficulties descriptors
Behaviour, Emotional and Social Development (BESD) descriptors
Autistic Spectrum Disorder descriptors
Visual Impairment descriptors
Hearing Impairment descriptors
Physical Impairment descriptors
Specific Language Impairment descriptors
Appendix 1: The role of the setting SENCO
Appendix 2: Inclusive practice
Appendix 3: Funding for children with Special Educational Needs
Appendix 4: Information on Local Authority support services
3
1
INTRODUCTION
This document sets out Salford Children’s Services’ expectations for a graduated response to
provision for children in Early Years/pre-school settings with special educational needs and
includes criteria for considering whether the child’s needs should be met at Early Years Action,
Early Years Action Plus and/or whether the Local Authority should undertake statutory
assessment of the child’s special educational needs.
The tables included in it provide details of arrangements and activities in which the setting may
be engaged in responding to the child’s needs. At Early Years Action and Early Years Action
Plus, the setting should plan to meet the child’s needs from the range of resources normally
available to them. Intervention should be graduated to reflect the principle that those with the
greatest needs should receive the most help, with records of interventions and progress over
time in response to those interventions recorded on an Individual Education Plan (IEP),
provision map or other individualised planning document.
This guidance is based on the Education Act 1996, the SEN Code of Practice 2001, Removing
Barriers to Achievement, DfES 2004 and amendments to regulations through the Programme
of Action for Meeting Special Educational Needs, DfES 1998 that require local Authorities to set
out their detailed arrangements for special educational provision settings might normally
provide from their budgets under Early Years Action and Early Years Action Plus.
The 2001 SEN Code of Practice expects intervention for children at Early Years Action or Early
Years Action Plus to be additional to or different from the differentiated provision made for all
children. The Salford Early Years Descriptors are therefore intended to outline the provision
that is additional to or different from what is available to all children. In making such
provision, settings are expected to draw upon their ‘normally available resources’.
The descriptors link with other important documents:




Salford’s Strategy for children and young people with SEN 2011-2016
These documents are available to settings through the Salford County Council website.
4
WHAT IS MEANT BY EARLY YEARS ACTION AND EARLY YEARS ACTION PLUS?
The SEN Code of Practice provides guidance for early years settings on how they should
approach the identification of, assessment of and intervention for young children with special
educational needs. All early years education settings in receipt of government education
funding must have regard to this Code of Practice when responding to the needs of children.
The Code indicates that intervention at Early Years Action should be triggered when the child’s
parents or the practitioner has concerns when the child, despite receiving appropriate early
educational experiences:





makes little or no progress even when teaching approaches are particularly targeted to
improve the child’s identified area of weakness
continues working at levels significantly below those expected for children of a similar age in
certain areas
presents persistent emotional and/or behavioural difficulties, which are not ameliorated by
the behaviour management techniques usually employed in the setting
has sensory or physical problems, and continues to make little or no progress despite the
provision of personal aids and equipment
has communication and/or interaction difficulties, and requires specific individual
interventions in order to access learning.
The triggers for referral for seeking help from outside agencies could be that, despite receiving
an individualised programme and/or concentrated support, the child:





continues to make little or no progress in specific areas over a long period
continues working at an early years curriculum substantially below that expected of children
of a similar age
has emotional or behavioural difficulties which substantially and regularly interfere with the
child’s own learning or that of the group, despite having an individualised behaviour
management programme
has sensory or physical needs, and requires additional equipment or regular visits for direct
intervention or advice by practitioners from a specialist service
has ongoing communication or interaction difficulties that impede the development of social
relationships and cause substantial barriers to learning.
THE DESCRIPTORS
5
The descriptors are set out in the following tables. They indicate provision that the LA expects
settings to make at Early Years Action and Early Years Action Plus for children with:









moderate learning difficulties
severe learning difficulties
profound and multiple learning difficulties
behaviour, emotional and social development needs
autistic spectrum disorders
visual impairments
hearing impairments
physical impairments
language impairments
For each group of pupils detailed information is then given about the LA’s expectations at Early
Years Action and Early Years Action Plus in terms of:




assessment, planning and review
teaching environment and grouping
curriculum and teaching methods
resources
The descriptors will be used for monitoring provision made for children at Early Years Action
and Early Years Action Plus
THE ROLE OF THE SETTING SEN COORDINATOR (SENCO)
Early education settings in both the maintained and the non-maintained sectors are required to
identify a member of staff to act as the special educational needs coordinator (SENCO). The
Code of Practice on the Identification and Assessment of SEN, published by the DfES in
November 2001, gives clear guidance on the role of the Setting SENCO. This information is
provided as Appendix 1.
Parents should always be consulted and kept informed of the action taken to help the child, and
of the outcome of this action.
The Code of Practice also notes that “The setting’s management group and the head of the
setting should give careful thought to the SENCO’s time allocation in the light of the Code and
in the context of the resources available to the setting. Settings may find it effective for the
SENCO to be a member of the senior management team.” In non-maintained settings, where
there may be no senior management team, the SENCO needs to have sufficient experience
and influence to fulfil the role effectively.
WHAT IS MEANT BY AN INCLUSIVE SETTING?
6
An inclusive setting is one in which the diversity of individuals and communities is valued and
respected. No child or family is discriminated against. The Early Years Foundation Stage
documents provide information on the issues that settings need to consider to work towards
this.
The Equality Act 2010
Early Years Providers of any sort providing childcare to pre school children have the same
duties as other service providers with regard to the Equality Act.
Although not considered to be education institutions, all providers in receipt of the nursery
education grant and regularly inspected by Ofsted. are required to follow the Early Years
Foundation Stage Framework and the SEN Code of Practice.
Nursery schools maintained by the local authority are covered by the education duties under
Part 6 of the Act. Early years services provided by independent schools are also covered by the
education duties, as are early years services provided by maintained schools.
Users of service must not be discriminated against.
Obligations under the Act relate to anything that is either:

a service to the public

a service to a sector of the public

the exercise of a public function
What does this mean in practice?
All actions need to be non-discriminatory and this may require regular reviews of practices,
policies and procedures to ensure they do not discriminate against people with a protected
characteristic.
The protected characteristics in education are:

age

disability

race

sex

pregnancy, maternity and breastfeeding

gender reassignment

religion or belief

sexual orientation
The equality duties help to ensure all activities are non-discriminatory. For example, settings
already carry out equality impact assessments under race, disability and gender equality duties
and these will provide a useful platform on which to meet legal responsibilities towards people
with the range of protected characteristics under the Act.
Settings also need to put in place accessibility strategies to ensure that disabled pupils can
participate in the curriculum, and that improvements are made to the physical environment,
7
thereby increasing the extent to which disabled children are able to take advantage of
education and benefits, facilities or services provided or offered by the setting.
Statutory Framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage
It is a specific legal requirement in the Statutory Framework for the Early Years Foundation
Stage that settings promote equality of opportunity and anti-discriminatory practice and ensure
that every child is included and not disadvantaged because of ethnicity, culture or religion,
home language, family background, learning difficulties or disabilities, gender or ability.
Settings must have and implement an effective policy about ensuring equality of opportunities
and for supporting children with learning difficulties and disabilities.
The policy on equality of opportunities should include:

information about how the individual needs of all children will be met

information about how all children, including those who are disabled or have special
educational needs, will be included, valued and supported, and how reasonable
adjustments will be made for them

a commitment to working with parents and other agencies

information about how the SEN Code of Practice is put into practice in the provision
(where appropriate)

the name of the Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator (in group provision)

arrangements for reviewing, monitoring and evaluating the effectiveness of inclusive
practices

information about how the provision will promote and value diversity and differences

information about how inappropriate attitudes and practices will be challenged

information about how the provision will encourage children to value and respect others
Additional information
The Statutory Framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage provides further details about
the context and legal responsibilities of early years providers with regard to equality, as well as
welfare requirements and education and development requirements, and how equality must be
considered in everything an early years provider does.
ADDITIONAL FUNDING FOR CHILDREN WITH IDENTIFIED SEN
All settings are expected to make provision for children with SEN from within their normally
available resources. In some cases, additional funding may be available. Describe…
SUPPORT SERVICES
There are a number of services available in Salford Early Years practitioners to meet the needs
of children with SEN. Contact details are given in Appendix x.
NEXT STEPS: FROM EARLY YEARS ACTION TO EARLY YEARS ACTION PLUS
8
The vast majority of children who receive intervention at Early Years Action will make
satisfactory progress and will have their needs met at this level of intervention. For a small
number of children, this intervention will not result in the child making adequate progress. In
these cases, the setting will need to consult with the child’s parents and any external agencies
already involved to consider whether it is necessary to request the involvement of one of the
Local Authority’s specialist support services. The table on page x summarises the access route
for each service. Information on the Local Authority’s Early Years SEN Panel is given in
Appendix x
NEXT STEPS: FROM EARLY YEARS ACTION PLUS
For most children, intervention at Early Years Action Plus will meet the identified need and
ensure that satisfactory progress is made. For a very small number of children this intervention
will not produce this result and the setting will need to consult with the child’s parents and the
external agencies involved to consider whether it is necessary to request a statutory
assessment of the child’s special educational needs. The Local Authority provides guidance on
the criteria for statutory assessment and this is available from
(web link)
Requests for statutory assessment are considered by the LA’s Statutory Assessment Part 4
Panel.
STATUTORY ASSESSMENT
Statutory assessment requests are usually made by the setting. To do so, the setting must
always consult with parents/carers and the external agencies already involved before the
request is made. Requests can also be made by the parents/carers and referrals can be made
by another service such as the Health Authority or Social Care services. The same range of
evidence is considered and the same criteria applied irrespective of the source of the request.
All requests are considered by the Part 4 Early Years Panel, the terms of reference for which
are set out in the document ‘Protocols for SEN Panels’. The proforma that practitioners are
requested to complete (Educational Advice) is attached as Appendix x.
Process Criteria
An Early Years setting must demonstrate that its actions have been purposeful, relevant and
sustained at School Action Plus. In the vast majority of cases, children eligible for a statutory
assessment of their needs will have been supported at Early Years Action/Early Years Action
Plus with resources available within the setting for some time. Actions taken by the setting to
differentiate the activities undertaken with the child, provide quality experiences and learning
opportunities and additional interventions will be clearly evident in provision maps, IEPs and/or
other appropriate planning documents. These documents need to demonstrate the
identification of the child’s special educational needs, review of the child’s progress in response
to those interventions and to support the child in achieving the targets.
9
The Part 4 Panel will need to have clear evidence of the impact of interventions in enabling the
child to make progress and the effect the review process had on subsequent
interventions/strategies. IEPs/provision maps etc. are expected to run for a minimum of half a
term.
The following evidence will be taken into account when a request for statutory assessment is
considered:






Involvement of parents/carers and the child
Relevant and purposeful intervention at School Action Plus, including the drawing up
and implementation of at least 2 IEPs that conform to the requirements set out in the
Salford SEN Recording System Guidance document, or individualised provision maps or
other appropriate planning documents
Monitoring by the setting of the child’s progress over a period of time (covering at least 2
reviewed provision maps or IEPs) and with the involvement of a specialist service
whose advice is clearly incorporated into the 2 provision maps or IEPs, evidence of any
changes in strategies/programmes/approaches as a result of the monitoring
Clear indication of the impact of the strategies in place on the child’s learning and/or
behaviour
Evidence of appropriate use of internal expertise and support
Evidence of advice having been sought and acted upon from specialist services
Threshold Criteria
Although the four broad categories of needs as set put in the SEN Code of Practice will form
the basis for decision-making, the LA recognises that there is a wide spectrum of special
educational needs which are frequently interrelated. While threshold criteria have been set for
each category of need, reference may be made by the Panel to more than one category of
need. In line with national expectations, the cumulative effect across the main presenting needs
will be to identify approximately 2% of the total population of children in Salford whose needs
are severe and complex.
There may be some exceptional circumstances where it may be possible for a combination of
less severe special educational needs to have a cumulative effect on a child’s educational
progress. A statutory assessment will be considered if the cumulative effect may call for special
provision that cannot reasonably be provided within the resources normally available to
mainstream settings in the area.
10
The tables that follow cover:
 Cognition and Learning
 Early Years Action and Early Years Action Plus: Moderate Learning Difficulties
 Early Years Action and Early Years Action Plus: Severe Learning Difficulties
 Early Years Action and Early Years Action Plus: Profound and Multiple Learning
Difficulties
 Behaviour, Emotional and Social Development (BESD)
 Early Years Action and Early Years Action Plus
 Communication and Interaction Needs: Autistic Spectrum Disorder
 Early Years Action and Early Years Action Plus
 Sensory and Physical Needs
 Early Years Action: Visual Impairment
 Early Years Action Plus: Visual Impairment
 Early Years Action: Hearing Impairment
 Early Years Action Plus: Hearing Impairment
 Early Years Action: Physical Impairment
 Early Years Action Plus: Physical Impairment
 Specific Language Impairment
 Early Years Action Plus
Each table has been structured to focus on:
Threshold criteria
The threshold element of the table relates to the level and description of difficulty regarding
attainment and progress. No specific attainment thresholds are given for early Years
Action/Action Plus. It is acknowledged that the point at which the child may need additional or
different action will vary between settings.
Process Criteria
The process section of the table presents the following four strands of action as a framework:
Assessment, Planning and Review
The SEN Code of practice defines assessment as a fourfold process that focuses not only on
the child’s characteristics but also on the learning environment, the task and the teaching style
Teaching Environment and Grouping
Grouping depends on the teaching styles adopted and on the children’s preferred learning
styles. Where grouping involves spending time outside the classroom, it should always be in
the context of an inclusive curriculum.
11
Curriculum and Teaching Methods
Guidance given in the tables builds on the graduated response to meeting children’s needs
Resources
The SEN Code of Practice emphasises that human resources form the major resource in
enabling children to learn but it encourages settings to consider ‘support’ in the wider sense
and promotes an examination of the accessibility of the learning environment, adult/child
relationships and staff training needs.
Decision-making
Whatever the level of the child’s difficulty, the Code of Practice advises that inadequate
progress should be the key to deciding whether additional or different action should be taken.
However, not all children will progress at the same rate so there needs to be a judgement in
each case about what it is reasonable to expect the child to achieve.
‘Adequate’ progress is progress which:







12
Closes the attainment gap between the child and their peers
Prevents the attainment gap growing wider
Is similar to that of peers starting from the same attainment baseline, but less that the
majority of peers
Matches or betters the child’s previous rate of progress
Ensures access to the full curriculum
Demonstrates an improvement in self-help, social or personal skills
Demonstrates improvements in the child’s behaviour
ADDITIONAL FUNDING FOR CHILDREN WITH IDENTIFIED SEN
All settings are expected to make provision for children with SEN from within their normally
available resources. In some cases, additional funding may be available. The availability and
sources of funding vary, depending upon whether the setting is maintained or non-maintained.
Information on this is given as Appendix x
SUPPORT SERVICES
There are a number of support services available in Salford to support early year’s practitioners
to meet the needs of children with special educational needs. The table on page x provides
guidance on which services are available to which settings.
Contact details for all the support services listed are given in Appendix x
13
LOCAL AUTHORITY EDUCATION SUPPORT SERVICES AVAILABLE FOR VERY YOUNG
CHILDREN WITH SPECIAL EDUCATIONAL NEEDS
14
PHASE
EARLY YEARS FOUNDATION STAGE
SUPPORT
SUPPORT
THE CHILD
TO
SUPPORT
TO
THE FAMILY
AT HOME
NON - MAINTAINED SECTOR
MAINTAINED SECTOR
Starting Life Well / LSS
Starting Life Well /LSS
Starting Life Well /LSS /EPs
Access through Early Years Panel
Access through Early Years
Panel
Direct referral
Starting Life Well /LSS
Starting Life Well/LSS /EPs
Starting Life Well/ LSS /EPs
Access through Early Years Panel
Access through Early Years
Panel
Direct referral
– continuing work with children already
on caseload
SUPPORT
TO
THE SETTING
Starting Life Well /LSS
Starting Life Well /LSS /EPs
Starting Life Well / LSS /EPs
Access through Early Years Panel
Access through Early Years
Panel
Direct referral
SSPSCSEN Support Service For Pre-school Children with SEN
SSVI Support Service for Children with Visual Impairment
BSS Behaviour Support Service
DAIS Derbyshire Advisory & Inspection Service
SSDHI Support Service for Children with Hearing Impairment
EYIO Early Years Improvement Officers
Impairment
SSSEN
Support
Service
for
Special
Educational
Needs
15
EPS Educational Psychology Service
LIO Local Inlcusion Officers
SSPI Support Service for Children with Physical
Early Years Action and Early Years Action Plus
Cognition and Learning: Moderate Learning Difficulties
Level and Description of Difficulty
The child’s current rate of progress is inadequate (12 to 18 months discrepancy between attainments and chronological age) and, despite
receiving structured Early Years experiences, the gap between his/ her performance and that of other children the same age is widening.
Assessment , Planning and
Review
Teaching Environment and
Grouping
Curriculum and Teaching
Methods
Resources
On entry to the setting and
throughout the child’s time in the
setting, assessment must include
information and advice from
parents / carers and
professionals already working
with the family.
Consideration should be given to
incoming transition arrangements
and advice and information
should be freely available to
parents / carers to allow them to
prepare the child for the move.
The child should have access to
all areas of the Early Years
Foundation Curriculum.
ADVICE
At Early Years Action Plus, the
setting must implement any
assessment advice from external
agencies.
The setting will work
collaboratively with the other
16
The child should have an
inclusive and nurturing learning
environment with access to their
full entitlement of attendance.
The child should have access to
the whole range of learning
environments available in the
setting including outdoor and
indoor play.
There should be appropriate
Suitably differentiated curriculum
and teaching methods will reflect
the need for ongoing
assessment, recording and
planning.
Advice will be available from the
setting SENCO and may be
available from specialist support
services. (See page 8)
STAFFING
There should be flexibility within
the staffing arrangements to
allow for support for children with
Strategies to support the child to additional support needs, which
regulate their emotions should be use the setting’s normally
in place.
available resources in the most
effective way.(including, for
maintained settings, the
Assessment , Planning and
Review
Teaching Environment and
Grouping
Curriculum and Teaching
Methods
Resources
agencies involved with the child.
This may involve contributing to
or initiating the Common
Assessment Framework process.
differentiation of equipment and
resources to enable the child to
achieve success. Clear routines
supported by consistent
language and visual clues should
be in place.
Specific teaching strategies, as
suggested by advice givers
should be implemented (e.g.
Signing environment, visual
supports )
delegated Special Educational
Needs budget)
There should be the opportunity
for individual and small group
work enabled by the flexible use
of staffing, in order to promote
independent learning.
There should be access to
appropriate IT hardware and
programmes
Opportunities should be made
available to work in partnership
with parents to promote the
learning environment at home.
There should be increased
flexibility within the timetable to
create opportunities to address
the child’s learning needs and to
build on strengths and interests.
The child’s strengths and
difficulties will be identified
through a range of activities –
structured observation,
developmental checklists,
dialogue with staff, curriculumrelated assessment, criterionreferenced assessment, nonstandardised tests and/or
diagnostic tests and may be
supplemented by standardised
tests.
The setting will maintain a profile
of the child’s developmental level
in line with the Early Years
Foundation Stage.
Identified targets for the child
should reflect individual learning
styles and appropriate teaching
strategies.
Consideration should be given to
identification of key member/s of
staff with responsibility for the
child.
All setting practitioners are
responsible for working with the
child on a regular basis through
flexible groupings.
It is important that a key worker
is identified to facilitate liaison
with parents / carers and other
professionals.
There may be access to
specialist support services
RESOURCES
In planning for the child, there
should be a recognition of the
child’s learning styles and
17
Adults and children should have
clearly identified ways of
Additional equipment may be
necessary to support the
Assessment , Planning and
Review
agreement about appropriate
teaching strategies
Teaching Environment and
Grouping
Curriculum and Teaching
Methods
Resources
celebrating success.
assessed needs of the child
ADAPTATIONS
The setting’s planning for the
child will include SMART targets
at a developmentally appropriate
level, specifying teaching
arrangements and resources.
Targets should be reviewed
through family friendly meetings
at least 3 times a year. Parents /
carers should be invited in order
to ensure targets are supported
in the home. Imaginative ways of
including the child’s views should
be explored.
There should be celebration of
small steps in progress
A comprehensive Health Care
Plan and / or Risk Assessment
18
The requirements of the
Disability Discrimination Act
(DDA) need to be considered.
The school or setting will make
reasonable adjustments to its
environment, and some building
adaptations may be necessary.
This may be particularly relevant
to this group of children with
regard to personal care facilities.
TRAINING
Settings should have a coherent
professional development policy
that addresses the needs of
children with moderate learning
difficulties in order to increase
the expertise of staff, so that
settings maximise their
effectiveness.
Assessment , Planning and
Review
Teaching Environment and
Grouping
Curriculum and Teaching
Methods
Resources
should be in place where
appropriate and regularly
reviewed.
Early Years Action and Early Years Action Plus
Cognition and Learning: Severe Learning Difficulties
Level and Description of Difficulty
Children with severe learning difficulties can be characterised as :

having significant delay in two or more areas of development, with attainment levels two thirds or more below chronological age, with the
profile widening between the child and his / her peers.
 making very slow progress in response to teaching strategies and target setting.
 Having difficulty in accessing the curriculum without specific input.
The child is likely to require input at Early Years Action Plus.
Assessment, Planning and
Review
On entry to the setting and
throughout the child’s time in the
setting, assessment must include
information and advice from
parents / carers and
19
Teaching Environment and
Grouping
Curriculum and Teaching
Methods
Resources
Consideration should be given to
incoming transition arrangements
and advice and information
should be freely available to
parents/carers to allow them to
The child should have access to
all areas of the Early Years
Foundation Curriculum.
ADVICE
There should be a recognition
Advice will be available from the
setting SENCO and may be
available from specialist support
Assessment, Planning and
Review
professionals already working
with the family.
At Early Years Action Plus, the
setting must implement any
assessment advice from external
agencies.
The setting will work
collaboratively with the other
agencies involved with the child.
This may involve contributing to
or initiating the Common
Assessment Framework process.
The child’s strengths and
difficulties will be identified
through a range of activities –
structured observation,
developmental checklists,
dialogue with staff, curriculumrelated assessment, criterionreferenced assessment, nonstandardised tests and/or
diagnostic tests and may be
supplemented by standardised
20
Teaching Environment and
Grouping
Curriculum and Teaching
Methods
Resources
prepare the child for the move.
that the child’s behaviour may be
typical of his / her developmental
level, and there should be
consistent use of strategies that
reward positive behaviour
services. (See page 8)
The child should have an
inclusive and nurturing learning
environment with access to their
full entitlement of attendance.
The child should have access to
the whole range of learning
environments available in the
setting including outdoor and
indoor play.
There should be appropriate
differentiation of equipment and
resources to enable the child to
achieve success. Clear routines
supported by consistent
language and visual clues should
be in place.
There should be the opportunity
for individual and small group
work enabled by the flexible use
of staffing, in order to promote
independent learning.
Opportunities should be made
available to work in partnership
STAFFING
There should be flexibility within
There should be consistent
the staffing arrangements to allow
modelling of language at an
for support for children with
appropriate level for the child –
additional support needs, which
for example using single words or use the setting’s normally
short phrases
available resources in the most
effective way.(including, for
There should be consistent use
maintained settings, the delegated
of visual support for spoken
SPECIAL EDUCATIONAL NEEDS
language - Makaton gestures and budget)
symbols, photographs, or objects
of reference appropriate to the
level of the child
All setting practitioners are
responsible for working with the
Staff should ensure positioning to
child on a regular basis through
maximise the child’s attention,
flexible groupings.
and access to play
Suitable resources for the child
and opportunities for multi
sensory play should be provided
regularly/
It is important that a key worker is
identified to facilitate liaison with
parents / carers and other
professionals.
Assessment, Planning and
Review
tests.
The setting will maintain a profile
of the child’s developmental
level in line with the Early Years
Foundation Stage
In planning for the child, there
should be a recognition of the
child’s learning styles and
agreement about appropriate
teaching strategies
The setting’s planning for the
child will include SMART targets
at a developmentally appropriate
level, specifying teaching
arrangements and resources.
Targets should be reviewed
through family friendly meetings
at least 3 times a year. Parents /
carers should be invited in order
to ensure targets are supported
in the home. Imaginative ways of
21
Teaching Environment and
Grouping
Curriculum and Teaching
Methods
Resources
with parents to promote the
learning environment at home.
Staff should have the ability to
differentiate activities across the
whole curriculum
There may be access to specialist
support services
Staff should use modelling and
prompting appropriately to
facilitate the child’s access to
learning opportunities.
The requirements of the Disability
Discrimination Act (DDA) need to
be considered. The school or
setting will make reasonable
adjustments to its environment,
and some building adaptations
may be necessary. This may be
particularly relevant to this group
of children with regard to personal
care facilities.
Staff should consistently employ
appropriate moving and handling
techniques.
ADAPTATIONS
RESOURCES
Additional equipment may be
necessary to support the
assessed needs of the child
Opportunity to access literature:Disability Discrimination in Early
Years, The Autism Friendly
School File, The Language
Friendly School File, Early
Support Programme Information
Assessment, Planning and
Review
Teaching Environment and
Grouping
Curriculum and Teaching
Methods
including the child’s views should
be explored.
Resources
Booklets
TRAINING
There should be celebration of
small steps in progress
Settings should have a coherent
professional development policy
that addresses the needs of
children with severe learning
difficulties in order to increase the
expertise of staff, so that settings
maximise their effectiveness.
A comprehensive Health Care
Plan and / or Risk Assessment
should be in place where
appropriate and regularly
reviewed.
Early Years Action and Early Years Action Plus
Cognition and Learning: Profound and Multiple Learning Difficulties
Level and Description of Difficulty
Children with profound and multiple learning difficulties can be characterised as having:
o severe communication delay – typically functioning at a pre-verbal level of communication
o severe cognitive delay
In addition the children will typically have severe physical and / or sensory impairment. In view of all this, the children are likely to make slow
progress, to lose skills, to have frequent illnesses and they may have a limited life expectancy.
Because of the severity of the needs of children with Profound and Multiple Learning Difficulties, it is likely that they will reach the threshold
for Statutory Assessment at an early age. They are, therefore, unlikely to be in settings at Early Years Action or Early Years Action Plus.
22
Assessment, Planning and
Review
On entry to the setting and
throughout the child’s time in the
setting, assessment must include
information and advice from parents
/ carers and professionals already
working with the family.
At Early Years Action Plus, the
setting must implement any
assessment advice from external
agencies.
The setting will work collaboratively
with the other agencies involved
with the child. This may involve
contributing to or initiating the
Common Assessment Framework
process.
Assessment of children with
Profound and Multiple Learning
Difficulties must be holistic.
Observation of the child, effective
23
Teaching Environment and
Grouping
Curriculum and Teaching
Methods
Resources
Consideration should be given to
incoming transition arrangements
and advice and information
should be freely available to
parents / carers to allow them to
prepare the child for the move.
The child should have access
to all areas of the Early Years
Foundation Curriculum. The
child should be able to access
a sensory curriculum which:
ADVICE
The child should have an
inclusive and nurturing learning
environment with access to their
full entitlement of attendance.
The child should have access to
the whole range of learning
environments available in the
setting including outdoor and
indoor play.
The child’s learning environment
should be comfortable and take
account of the child’s level of
mobility and need for rest
periods.
There should be appropriate



encompasses the
development of all the
senses including body
awareness
is interactive and practical
helps to establish channels
for learning to take place
In order to build up a profile of
how the child learns and
responds, it is important for an
adult to build a close
relationship with the child.
Individual guidance and
support within small groups is
likely to be required for the
majority of learning
experiences.
Advice will be available from the
setting SENCO and will need to
be sought from specialist support
services. (See page 8)
STAFFING
There should be flexibility within
the staffing arrangements to allow
for support for children with
additional support needs, which
use the setting’s normally
available resources in the most
effective way.(including, for
maintained settings, the
delegated Special Educational
Needs budget)
There should be access to staff
that are skilled in developing very
finely graded developmental
programmes for children with
severe and complex learning
Assessment, Planning and
Review
communication and joint working
with parents, liaison with other
professionals and the appropriate
use of structured assessments will
be required.
The child’s strengths and difficulties
will be identified through a range of
activities – structured observation,
developmental checklists, dialogue
with staff, curriculum-related
assessment, criterion-referenced
assessment, non-standardised tests
and/or diagnostic tests and may be
supplemented by standardised
tests.
Some appropriate assessment
schedules include:



Sensory Interactive Profiles
Kidderminster
Affective Communication
Assessment
The setting will maintain a profile of
24
Teaching Environment and
Grouping
differentiation of equipment and
resources to enable the child to
achieve success The child should
be able to access a multisensory
environment including access to
soft play areas, specialist
computer programmes, etc.
Flexible group arrangements will
be needed to take account of the
variations in the child’s level of
awareness, etc during the day
and over time.
The child should have access to
lively social situations with a
consistent group of people
including other children. The child
should have opportunities to
experience a wide range of social
situations
Opportunities should be made
Curriculum and Teaching
Methods
Resources
difficulties.
Adults will need to use objects
of reference and interactive
signing as part of home /
setting routines to help
communicate needs and
support the development of
anticipation and understanding
of routines.
Adults will need to make
consistent and imaginative use
of IT to support communication
and learning.
Joint working with other
professionals will be essential.
All setting practitioners are
responsible for working with the
child on a regular basis through
flexible groupings.
It is important that a key worker is
identified to facilitate liaison with
parents / carers and other
professionals.
There may be access to specialist
support services
RESOURCES
Additional equipment may be
necessary to support the
assessed needs of the child
Specialist equipment will be
Assessment, Planning and
Review
the child’s developmental level in
line with the Early Years Foundation
Stage.
The setting’s planning for the child
will include SMART targets, linked to
a sensory curriculum, written in the
context of the child’s overall slow
progress and should acknowledge
the significance of experience of a
range of possibilities which may
constitute significant achievements
for children (for example,
encountering, being aware of,
responding to something that is
going on, etc. )
In planning for the child, there
should be a recognition of the child’s
learning styles and agreement about
appropriate teaching strategies.
Teaching Environment and
Grouping
available to work in partnership
with parents to promote the
learning environment at home.
Curriculum and Teaching
Methods
Resources
required for moving and handling,
sitting and standing.
Specialist IT equipment will be
required.
ADAPTATIONS
The requirements of the Disability
Discrimination Act (DDA) need to
be considered. The school or
setting will make reasonable
adjustments to its environment,
and some building adaptations
may be necessary. This may be
particularly relevant to this group
of children with regard to personal
care facilities.
TRAINING
Targets should be reviewed through
family friendly meetings at least 3
times a year. Parents / carers
25
Settings should have a coherent
professional development policy
that addresses the needs of
Assessment, Planning and
Review
Teaching Environment and
Grouping
Curriculum and Teaching
Methods
Resources
should be invited in order to ensure
targets are supported in the home.
The child’s progress is likely to be
slow and may not be reflected in
developmental schedules. Adults
working with the child need to be
sensitive to the impact of small
steps to learning on the family.
children with profound and
multiple learning difficulties in
order to increase the expertise of
staff, so that settings maximise
their effectiveness.
Children with Profound and Multiple
Learning difficulties have limited
means to contribute to reviews of
their progress. Adults working with
them need to be familiar with and
sensitive to the repertoire of the
child’s responses to ensure that
feedback from the child is
incorporated into the review process
.
There should be celebration of small
steps in progress
A comprehensive Health Care Plan
and / or Risk Assessment should be
in place where appropriate and
26
Assessment, Planning and
Review
regularly reviewed.
27
Teaching Environment and
Grouping
Curriculum and Teaching
Methods
Resources
Early Years Action and Early Years Action Plus
Behaviour, Emotional and Social Development (BESD)
28
Level and Description of Difficulty
The child has social, emotional or behavioural difficulties which may prevent them from:
 developing positive and appropriate relationships with family members and other significant adults.
 developing appropriate early play, social and language skills.
 accessing the Early Years Curriculum.
These difficulties may be caused by developmental delay, social, psychological or medical factors, or interactions between all of them.
The behaviours may be overt ones that pose management problems in the home or various settings and create barriers to learning for
themselves and other children, or they may be withdrawn behaviours that affect the development of the individual child. When these
behaviours happen despite exposure to a caring and nurturing environment, provided by key adult carers in a consistent manner, further
intervention through Early Years Action will need putting in place.
Even though there have been carefully planned interventions at Early Years Action, if the social, emotional and behavioural difficulties have
not improved, interventions will be needed at Early Years Action Plus. External agencies will need to become involved, requiring careful coordination with the family and the Early Years setting.
Assessment, Planning and
Review
On entry to the setting and
throughout the child’s time in the
setting, assessment must include
information and advice from parents
/ carers and professionals already
working with the family.
29
Teaching Environment and
Grouping
Curriculum and Teaching
Methods
Resources
Consideration should be given to
incoming transition arrangements
and advice and information
should be freely available to
parents / carers to allow them to
prepare the child for the move.
The child should have equal
and inclusive access to all
areas of the Early Years
Foundation Curriculum.
ADVICE
There should be recognition in
the curriculum that the child’s
Advice will be available from the
setting SENCO and may be
available from specialist support
services. (See page 8)
Assessment, Planning and
Review
The setting will work collaboratively
with the other agencies involved
with the child. This may involve
contributing to or initiating the
Common Assessment Framework
process.
At Early Years Action Plus, the
setting must implement any
assessment advice from external
agencies
The child’s strengths and difficulties
will be identified through a range of
activities – structured observation,
developmental checklists, dialogue
with staff, curriculum-related
assessment, criterion-referenced
assessment, non-standardised tests
and/or diagnostic tests and may be
supplemented by standardised
tests.
The setting will maintain a profile of
the child’s developmental level in
line with the Early Years Foundation
30
Teaching Environment and
Grouping
Curriculum and Teaching
Methods
The child should have an
inclusive and nurturing learning
environment with access to their
full entitlement of attendance.
behaviour may be typical of his
/ her developmental level. This
needs to encompass cognitive,
emotional, social and
developmental levels.
The child should have access to
the whole range of learning
environments available in the
setting including outdoor and
indoor play. There should be
appropriate differentiation of
equipment and resources to
enable the child to achieve
success.
Clear routines supported by
consistent language and visual
clues should be in place.
There should be the opportunity
for individual and small group
work enabled by the flexible use
of staffing, in order to promote
independent learning.
Resources
STAFFING
There should be flexibility within
the staffing arrangements to allow
for support for children with
A positive relationship
additional support needs, which
between the child and key
use the setting’s normally
adults in the setting is essential
available resources in the most
effective way.(including, for
The required behaviour should
maintained settings, the
be taught, through role
delegated Special Educational
modelling, visual cues, stories,
Needs budget)
talking and praise. These
behaviours may need to be
constantly revisited and
All setting practitioners are
reinforced.
responsible for working with the
Children’s routines need to be child on a regular basis through
flexible groupings.
taught within the settings,
using visual cues, role
modelling, prompts and
through praise and reward
It is important that a key worker is
systems.
identified to facilitate liaison with
parents / carers and other
All the key adults will be
professionals.
required to implement basic
and additional behaviour
Assessment, Planning and
Review
Stage
Teaching Environment and
Grouping
Opportunities should be made
available to work in partnership
In planning for the child, there
with parents to promote the
should be a recognition of the child’s learning environment at home.
learning styles, behavioural needs
and agreement about appropriate
teaching strategies
The setting’s planning for the child
will include SMART targets at a
developmentally appropriate level,
specifying teaching arrangements
and resources.
Targets should be reviewed through
family friendly meetings at least 3
times a year. Parents / carers
should be invited in order to ensure
targets are supported in the home.
Imaginative ways of including the
child’s views should be explored.
Curriculum and Teaching
Methods
Resources
management strategies in a
consistent way, within the
delivery of the Early Years
Foundation Curriculum.
There may be access to
specialist support services.
There should be consistent
use of positive recognition for
any improvement in behaviour.
Rewards should be relevant to
the child and can be given
through verbal praise, physical
prompts or tangible e.g. as
stickers or time at a chosen
activity. . Success needs to be
communicated to parent /carer
for them to reinforce the
praise.
RESOURCES
Additional equipment may be
necessary to support the
assessed needs of the child
ADAPTATIONS
The requirements of the Disability
Discrimination Act (DDA) need to
be considered. The school or
setting will make reasonable
adjustments to its environment,
Positive recognition needs to
and some building adaptations
be given as soon as the
may be necessary. This may be
positive behaviour is displayed, particularly relevant to this group
and on a regular basis.
of children with regard to
personal care facilities.
There should be celebration of small
steps in progress
TRAINING
A comprehensive Health Care Plan
and / or Risk Assessment should be
31
Settings should have a coherent
Assessment, Planning and
Review
in place where appropriate and
regularly reviewed.
Teaching Environment and
Grouping
Curriculum and Teaching
Methods
Resources
professional development policy
that addresses the needs of
children with behavioural,
emotional and social difficulties in
order to increase the expertise of
staff, so that settings maximise
their effectiveness.
All staff in the setting need to be
aware of advice around Physical
Restraint. Training / advice is
available from the Behaviour
Support Service for staff in
maintained early years education
settings.
32
33
34
Early Years Action and Early Years Action Plus
Communication and Interaction Needs: Autistic Spectrum Disorder
Level and Description of Difficulty
The child has difficulties with communication, interaction and imagination which impede on play skills, social skills and their access to learning
within the whole of the early years curriculum. These difficulties persist despite the use of alternative strategies to aid communication and
learning.
The difficulties may include impaired early interaction skills and impaired communication skills including the use of gesture, turn taking, eye
contact and the understanding and use of speech. There may be inflexible thought and resistance to change with a dependency on routine
and context.
Assessment, Planning and
Teaching Environment and
Grouping
Curriculum and Teaching
Methods
Resources
Assessment must include
information and advice from parents
/ carers and professionals already
working with the family.
There should be consistency
within the setting in terms of
organisation, structure, routines
and staffing.
Throughout the Early Years
curriculum there should be an
emphasis upon the promotion
of social interaction,
communication and emotional
well being of the child.
ADVICE
Assessment should include
observations in a range of situations
and with a range of different people
throughout the child’s day both at
Consideration should be given to
the clarity of layout and the effect
change may have on the child.
The child should have access
to support in using different
STAFFING
Review
35
Advice will be available from the
setting SENCO and may be
available from specialist support
services. (See page 8)
There should be flexibility within
Assessment, Planning and
Review
Teaching Environment and
Grouping
home and in the setting.
Consistency should be given to
the use of visual supports to aid
Recording of the child’s strengths
understanding and
and weaknesses and special
communication; this may include
interests may be by photographs
objects of reference,
and written observations, video
photographs, signs and symbols.
recording may also be used. A
These supports should be at the
recording system, such as ‘Autism in appropriate symbolic level.
the Early Years’, may be used for
observational assessment.
Assessment of the child’s symbolic
level of understanding should
precede the use of visual support
material.
In planning for the child’s I.E.P.
there should be recognition of the
child’s level of tolerance of adult
interaction, their motivators and
rewards and awareness of their
wider sensory and emotional needs.
Space and layout should
accommodate the child’s needs
to explore a room independently
and explore their own interests.
The adult should have an
awareness of the child’s variable
level of tolerance of other
children, and other factors in the
environment such as sound,
movement.
There should be opportunities to
36
Curriculum and Teaching
Methods
Resources
means of communication for a
range of purposes and to a
range of people in varied
situations.
the staffing arrangements to allow
for support for children with
additional support needs, which
use the setting’s normally
available resources in the most
effective way.(including, for
maintained settings, the
delegated Special Educational
Needs budget)
The setting should provide
help in using augmented
communication strategies to
support the child’s
understanding of the
environment and routine.
The staff should observe and
use the child’s strengths and
interests to support learning
and provide flexibility in
teaching arrangements /
materials to do so.
The setting should establish
clear visual routines, structured
tasks and immediate reward
systems that are founded upon
the child’s observed levels of
Support may be required to
implement strategies to promote
the child’s emotional well being.
All setting practitioners are
responsible for working with the
child on a regular basis through
flexible groupings.
It is important that a key worker is
identified to facilitate liaison with
parents / carers and other
professionals.
Assessment, Planning and
Review
Planning should ensure consistency
of approach by all adults involved
with particular emphasis on the
emotional relationship between
parent / carer and child.
Strategies within the Individual
.Education Plan should reflect the
child’s preferred learning style e.g.
use of visual cues, the use of
context and the need for
consistency of language.
Planning and reviewing Individual
.Education Plans should be at least
termly, should include success
criteria and involve parents / carers
and other professionals
A comprehensive Health Care Plan
and / or Risk Assessment should be
in place where appropriate and
regularly reviewed.
37
Teaching Environment and
Grouping
Curriculum and Teaching
Methods
develop relationships with adults,
individually if appropriate, and
facilitate and support
relationships with other children.
attention, symbolic
understanding and motivation.
Opportunities to experience small
group activities should be
available as appropriate.
Opportunities should be made
available to work in partnership
with parents to promote the
learning environment at home.
The child may need its own
restructured individual
timetable within the context of
an inclusive curriculum.
Specific Individual .Education
Plan targets should be
addressed though individual
and small group work within
the curriculum framework with
clear progression to extend
and generalise their skills
within a wider context (i.e.
home, setting, environment).
Approaches such as
Treatment and Education of
Autistic and related
Communication handicapped
Children (TEACCH), Picture
Exchange System (PECS) and
Resources
There may be access to
specialist support services
RESOURCES
Additional equipment may be
necessary to support the
assessed needs of the child
Staff should refer to the
Derbyshire File for Autism
Friendly Schools.
Appropriate access to IT facilities
providing symbols for visual
timetables and augmentative
communication systems should
be made available.
Appropriate adaptations should
be made to ICT so that the child
can access hardware and
Assessment, Planning and
Review
Teaching Environment and
Grouping
Curriculum and Teaching
Methods
Resources
social stories may be used to
software that facilitate learning.
support the child to access the
curriculum, understand social
situations and to communicate. Assessment of the child’s
sensory needs should inform the
setting in suitable resources so
Staff should use clear,
that the child can access the
consistent and appropriate
curriculum.
language that is aimed at the
child’s level of understanding
using visual clues as
ADAPTATIONS
appropriate.
The requirements of the Disability
Discrimination Act (DDA) need to
be considered. The school or
Staff will use routines and
setting will make reasonable
structured tasks in general
adjustments to its environment,
activities to develop peer
and some building adaptations
awareness, proximity and
may be necessary. This may be
interaction as appropriate.
particularly relevant to this group
of children with regard to
personal care facilities.
TRAINING
Settings should have a coherent
professional development policy
38
Assessment, Planning and
Review
Teaching Environment and
Grouping
Curriculum and Teaching
Methods
Resources
that addresses the needs of
children with autism spectrum
disorder in order to increase the
expertise of staff, so that settings
maximise their effectiveness.
Training to support smooth
transition should be provided,
both on entry to the placement
and on leaving.
Where a child is in two centres,
training should centre on
consistent use of strategies.
Parents should be involved in
training, particularly regarding
use of augmentative
communication systems and
specific behaviour strategies.
39
40
41
Early Years Action
42
Sensory and Physical Needs: Visual Impairment
Level and Description of Difficulty
The child has a level of Visual Impairment which requires some modification to be made to materials presented, the nursery or playgroup
environment or the management of the child, e.g. positioning in group, use of equipment etc
Impaired functional vision in the setting is the key criterion. While it is difficult to categorise these pupils they may include those with:






Poor visual acuities (for example 6/12 to 6/18)
Ocular motor difficulties
Visual field loss
Difficulties where patching is significantly reducing vision
Progressive conditions where the present impairment is very slight
Difficulties with lighting levels, glare etc.
Where a child exhibits more than one of these difficulties it is likely that they will be at Early Years Action Plus.
If the child has visual perception difficulties this will compound any access issues associated with all of the above.
Similarly, those children who have a dual sensory loss (i.e. both visual and hearing needs) will have compounded difficulties. They are likely
to be at least at Early Years Action Plus.
Assessment, Planning and
Review
On entry to the setting and
throughout the child’s time in the
setting, assessment must include
43
Teaching Environment and
Grouping
Curriculum and Teaching
Methods
Resources
Consideration should be given to
incoming transition arrangements
and advice and information
The child should have access
to all areas of the Early Years
ADVICE
Advice will be available from the
Assessment, Planning and
Review
information and advice from parents
/ carers and professionals already
working with the family.
Teaching Environment and
Grouping
Curriculum and Teaching
Methods
Resources
should be freely available to
parents / carers to allow them to
prepare the child for the move.
Foundation Curriculum.
setting SENCO and may be
available from specialist support
services. (See page 8)
The child should have an
inclusive and nurturing learning
The setting should receive advice
from the Support Service for Visually environment with access to their
full entitlement of attendance.
Impaired children with ongoing
assessment of the child’s functional The child should have access to
vision in the setting. The setting will the whole range of learning
environments available in the
facilitate the assessment, providing
setting including outdoor and
space, liaison time, and details of
indoor play.
their own observations.
At Early Years Action Plus, the
setting must implement any
assessment advice from external
agencies.
The setting will work collaboratively
with the other agencies involved
with the child. This may involve
contributing to or initiating the
Common Assessment Framework
process.
44
There should be appropriate
differentiation of equipment and
resources to enable the child to
achieve success.
There should be the opportunity
for small group work enabled by
the flexible use of staffing, in
order to promote independent
learning. In group activities,
adults must ensure the child is
able to access materials visually.
Social interaction with other
children may need to be
Staff must have regard to
advice submitted by the
Support Service for Visually
Impaired children as well as
parents, health professionals
etc in how they present
materials.
As visual impairment is about
access and not cognitive
difficulty, expectations of the
child’s achievement should
remain high
STAFFING
There should be flexibility within
the staffing arrangements to allow
for support for children with
additional support needs, which
use the setting’s normally
available resources in the most
effective way.(including, for
maintained settings, the
delegated Special Educational
Needs budget)
All setting practitioners are
responsible for working with the
child on a regular basis through
flexible groupings.
It is important that a key worker is
identified to facilitate liaison with
Assessment, Planning and
Review
The child’s strengths and difficulties
will be identified through a range of
activities – structured observation,
developmental checklists, dialogue
with staff, curriculum-related
assessment, criterion-referenced
assessment, non-standardised tests
and/or diagnostic tests and may be
supplemented by standardised
tests.
The setting will maintain a profile of
the child’s developmental level in
line with the Early Years Foundation
Stage
In planning for the child, there
should be a recognition of the child’s
learning styles and agreement about
appropriate teaching strategies
The setting’s planning for the child
will include SMART targets at a
developmentally appropriate level,
specifying teaching
arrangements and resources, and
45
Teaching Environment and
Grouping
Curriculum and Teaching
Methods
Resources
encouraged through sensitive
grouping.
parents / carers and other
professionals.
Opportunities should be made
available to work in partnership
with parents to promote the
learning environment at home.
There may be access to
specialist support services
RESOURCES
Additional equipment may be
necessary to support the
assessed needs of the child
The child may benefit from using
specialist equipment e.g.
 Sloping reading/ writing
boards
 Dark pens/ pencils
 Bright PE equipment
In general, expensive specialist
items will be provided by
Derbyshire County Council via
the Support Service for Visually
Assessment, Planning and
Review
Teaching Environment and
Grouping
Curriculum and Teaching
Methods
Resources
will incorporate advice from the
Support Service For Children with
Visual Impairment
Impaired children, while smaller
and /or consumable items will be
provided by the setting.
Targets should be reviewed through
family friendly meetings at least 3
times a year. Parents / carers
should be invited in order to ensure
targets are supported in the home.
Imaginative ways of including the
child’s views should be explored.
ADAPTATIONS
There should be celebration of small
steps in progress.
The setting will facilitate monitoring
by the Support Service For Children
with Visual Impairment as
appropriate. This will include liaison
time with relevant staff. Setting staff
will monitor the pupil’s progress and
their visual access to the curriculum
on an ongoing basis. Any concerns
will prompt a request for additional
advice or intervention from the
Support Service For Children with
46
The requirements of the Disability
Discrimination Act (DDA) need to
be considered. The school or
setting will make reasonable
adjustments to its environment,
and some building adaptations
may be necessary. This may be
particularly relevant to this group
of children with regard to health
and safety issues in getting
around the building with low
vision.
TRAINING
Settings should have a coherent
professional development policy
that addresses the needs of
children with visual impairment in
order to increase the expertise of
Assessment, Planning and
Review
Teaching Environment and
Grouping
Curriculum and Teaching
Methods
Visual Impairment
Resources
staff, so that settings maximise
their effectiveness.
A comprehensive Health Care Plan
and / or Risk Assessment should be
in place where appropriate and
regularly reviewed.
Early Years Action Plus
Sensory and Physical Needs: Visual Impairment
Level and Description of Difficulty
The child has a significant level of Visual Impairment which may require modifications to be made to materials presented, the nursery or
playgroup environment and the management of the child, e.g. positioning in group, use of equipment etc. They may require the provision of
some specialist equipment.
Significantly Impaired functional vision in the setting is the key criterion.
The child will usually have a poor visual acuity (sharpness of vision) - for example 6/18 or worse. This may be compounded by other problems
such as visual field loss, monocular vision, ocular motor impairment, light sensitivity, visual perception difficulties or the presence of
degenerative conditions. The child’s visual and educational needs are also likely to be severely compounded if they have a hearing
impairment in addition to their visual impairment.
Assessment, Planning and
Review
47
Grouping for Teaching
Curriculum and Teaching
Methods
Resources
Assessment, Planning and
Review
Grouping for Teaching
Curriculum and Teaching
Methods
Resources
On entry to the setting and
throughout the child’s time in the
setting, assessment must include
information and advice from parents
/ carers and professionals already
working with the family.
Consideration should be given to
incoming transition arrangements
and advice and information
should be freely available to
parents/carers to allow them to
prepare the child for the move.
The child should have access
to all areas of the Early Years
Foundation Curriculum. All
areas of the curriculum should
be accessible with appropriate
adaptation or modification
where necessary.
ADVICE
The child should have an
inclusive and nurturing learning
The setting should receive advice
from the Support Service for Visually environment with access to their
full entitlement of attendance.
Impaired children with ongoing
assessment of the child’s functional The child should have access to
vision in the setting. The setting will the whole range of learning
environments available in the
facilitate the assessment, providing
setting including outdoor and
space, liaison time, and details of
indoor play.
their own observations.
At Early Years Action Plus, the
setting must implement any
assessment advice from external
agencies.
The setting will work collaboratively
with the other agencies involved
with the child. This may involve
contributing to or initiating the
Common Assessment Framework
48
There should be appropriate
differentiation of equipment and
resources to enable the child to
achieve success. Clear routines
supported by consistent language
should be in place. Staff should
ensure the child is able to see all
visual material.
There should be the opportunity
for small group work enabled by
the flexible use of staffing, in
Advice will be available from the
setting SENCO and may be
available from specialist support
services. (See page 8)
STAFFING
Staff must have regard to
advice submitted by Support
Service for Visually Impaired
children as well as parents,
health professionals etc in how
they present materials.
As visual impairment is about
access and not cognitive
difficulty, expectations of the
child’s achievement should
remain high
There should be flexibility within
the staffing arrangements to allow
for support for children with
additional support needs, which
use the setting’s normally
available resources in the most
effective way.(including, for
maintained settings, the
delegated Special Educational
Needs budget)
All setting practitioners are
responsible for working with the
child on a regular basis through
flexible groupings.
Assessment, Planning and
Review
Grouping for Teaching
process.
order to promote independent
learning. The child may require
extra time or 1:1 support to
complete tasks made more
difficult by their visual impairment,
e.g. with practical skills or for
additional hands on experience.
The Support Service for Visually
Impaired children will teach
additional skills to the child but
they will still require
reinforcement. The Support
Service for Visually Impaired
children will provide guidance and
advice for this.
The child’s strengths and difficulties
will be identified through a range of
activities – structured observation,
developmental checklists, dialogue
with staff, curriculum-related
assessment, criterion-referenced
assessment, non-standardised tests
and/or diagnostic tests and may be
supplemented by standardised
tests.
The setting will maintain a profile of
the child’s developmental level in
line with the Early Years Foundation
Stage
Opportunities should be made
available to work in partnership
In planning for the child, there
with parents to promote the
should be a recognition of the child’s learning environment at home.
learning styles and agreement about
appropriate teaching strategies
The setting’s planning for the child
will include SMART targets at a
developmentally appropriate level,
specifying teaching arrangements
49
Curriculum and Teaching
Methods
Resources
It is important that a key worker is
identified to facilitate liaison with
parents / carers and other
professionals.
There may be access to
specialist support services
RESOURCES
Additional equipment may be
necessary to support the
assessed needs of the child
The child may benefit from using
specialist equipment e.g.

Sloping reading/ writing
boards
 Dark pens/ pencils
 Bright PE equipment
In general, expensive specialist
items will be provided by DCC via
SSVI, while smaller and/or
consumable items will be
Assessment, Planning and
Review
and resources, and will incorporate
advice from the Support Service For
Visually Impaired Children
If the child has a hearing loss in
addition to their visual impairment
there will be a need for the Support
Service for Visually Impaired
children and the Support Service for
Deaf and Hearing Impaired children
to be involved jointly in the planning
of provision for the child.
Grouping for Teaching
Curriculum and Teaching
Methods
Resources
provided by the setting.
Some learning materials or
equipment may need to be
modified. The Support Service for
Visual Impairment can advise on
this.
ADAPTATIONS
Targets should be reviewed through
family friendly meetings at least 3
times a year. Parents / carers
should be invited in order to ensure
targets are supported in the home.
Imaginative ways of including the
child’s views should be explored.
The requirements of the Disability
Discrimination Act (DDA) need to
be considered. The school or
setting will make reasonable
adjustments to its environment,
and some building adaptations
may be necessary. This may be
particularly relevant to this group
of children with regard to
personal care facilities.
There should be celebration of small
steps in progress.
Some adaptations to the setting
environment may be necessary
e.g. vertical blinds, highlighting of
hazards etc.
50
Assessment, Planning and
Review
The setting will facilitate monitoring
by the Support Service for Visually
Impaired children as appropriate.
This will include liaison time with
relevant staff. Setting staff will
monitor the pupil’s progress and
their visual access to the curriculum
on an ongoing basis. Any concerns
will prompt a request for additional
advice or intervention from the
Support Service for Visually
Impaired children.
A comprehensive Health Care Plan
and / or Risk Assessment should be
in place where appropriate and
regularly reviewed.
51
Grouping for Teaching
Curriculum and Teaching
Methods
Resources
TRAINING
Settings should have a coherent
professional development policy
that addresses the needs of
children with visual impairment in
order to increase the expertise of
staff, so that settings maximise
their effectiveness.
Early Years Action
Sensory and Physical Needs: Hearing Impairment
Level and Description of Difficulty
The child may have:





a mild hearing loss
a hearing loss which comes and goes (fluctuating loss)
a hearing loss in one ear only (monaural)
glue ear
grommets
The child may be prescribed with hearing aids, but some will not.
Mild fluctuating loss is very common in early years: about 25% of all children will have this condition. The child’s hearing will be worse when
they have a cold. Some children will be prescribed hearing aids to be used when hearing is low. Some children will be fitted with grommets.
Where the child also has a visual difficulty as well as a hearing loss there is an expectation that the Support Service for Deaf and Hearing
Impaired and the Support Service for Visual Impairment will work together to support the, child, setting and family. Where this is the case,
although both may be mild the effects on the child will be expected to be greater than of either hearing or vision loss was present alone.
Assessment planning and review
Teaching environment and
grouping
Settings should be aware of children
with mild or fluctuating hearing loss.
This information may come from
Consideration should be given to
incoming transition arrangements
and advice and information
52
Curriculum and teaching
The child should have access
to all areas of the Early Years
Resources
ADVICE
Where there has been a referral
Assessment planning and review
parents or carers, direct from the
hospital or doctor or from the
Support Service for Deaf and
Hearing Impaired.
On entry to the setting and
throughout the child’s time in the
setting, assessment must include
information and advice from parents
/ carers and professionals already
working with the family.
At Early Years Action Plus, the
setting must implement any
assessment advice from external
agencies.
The setting will work collaboratively
with the other agencies involved
with the child. This may involve
contributing to or initiating the
COMMON ASSESSMENT
FRAMEWORK process.
Settings should be up dated with
changes to the hearing loss e.g.
53
Teaching environment and
grouping
should be freely available to
parents/carers to allow them to
prepare the child for the move.
An awareness of the effects of a
hearing loss upon classroom
access will be necessary.
An awareness of when the child’s
hearing loss is at a low level will
be needed. This will involve close
liaison with parents or carers.
The child should have an
inclusive and nurturing learning
environment with access to their
full entitlement of attendance.
The child should have access to
the whole range of learning
environments available in the
setting including outdoor and
indoor play.
All activities should be
undertaken in good lighting to
Curriculum and teaching
Foundation Curriculum.
It is unlikely that the child will
need additional classroom
support, unless the hearing
loss is part of a more complex
need e.g. the child also has
learning difficulties,
behavioural, social and
emotional, physical or visual
difficulties.
Where there has been a
referral to the Support service
for Deaf and Hearing Impaired
advice will be given with regard
to curricular access. In order to
do this the Support Service will
need to be able to observe the
child in the setting and have
access to staff to discuss
progress and access. They will
provide written information and
advice to the setting and
family.
Resources
to the Support service for Deaf
and Hearing Impaired advice will
be given with regard to the use
and maintenance of hearing aids.
In order to do this the Support
Service will need to be able to
observe the child in the setting
and have access to staff to
discuss progress and access.
They will provide written
information and advice to the
setting
STAFFING
There should be flexibility within
the staffing arrangements to allow
for support for children with
additional support needs, which
use the setting’s normally
available resources in the most
effective way.(including, for
maintained settings, the
delegated Special Educational
Needs budget)
Assessment planning and review
Teaching environment and
grouping
Curriculum and teaching
Resources
improvement, hearing aid fitting,
grommet fittings etc. These up dates
are likely to be provided through
parents or carers.
allow the child to follow facial
expressions, body language and
enable better lip reading when
necessary.
All setting practitioners are
responsible for working with the
child on a regular basis through
flexible groupings.
The child’s strengths and difficulties
will be identified through a range of
activities – structured observation,
developmental checklists, dialogue
with staff, curriculum-related
assessment, criterion-referenced
assessment, non-standardised tests
and/or diagnostic tests and may be
supplemented by standardised
tests.
The child’s attention will need to
be gained before speaking to
them.
It is important that a key worker is
identified to facilitate liaison with
parents / carers and other
professionals.
Background noise needs to be
kept to a minimum when talking
to the child or group including the
child.
There may be access to
specialist support services
RESOURCES
The setting will maintain a profile of
the child’s developmental level in
line with the Early Years Foundation
Stage
Where the child wears hearing
aids, the setting should ensure
that an adult has responsibility for
checking / replacing/ supporting
the child to replace them.
In planning for the child, there
should be a recognition of the child’s
learning styles and agreement about Social activities should include
the child and other children
appropriate teaching strategies
should be encouraged to include
54
Should the child wear hearing
ads or have grommets there
should be information about their
use and maintenance provided by
the hospital. This may be in the
form of written materials, or may
be word of mouth, passed on by
parents or carers.
Assessment planning and review
The setting’s planning for the child
will include SMART targets at a
developmentally appropriate level,
specifying teaching arrangements
and resources.
Targets should be reviewed through
family friendly meetings at least 3
times a year. Parents /carers should
be invited in order to ensure targets
are supported in the home.
Imaginative ways of including the
child’s views should be explored.
There should be celebration of small
steps in progress.
The setting staff and parents will
monitor the progress of the child,
their access to all activities, and
social inclusion. If there are
concerns the setting or the parents
or carers can contact the Support
Service for Deaf and Hearing
Impaired for advice and guidance.
55
Teaching environment and
grouping
Curriculum and teaching
Resources
the child in their play activities.
There should be appropriate
differentiation of equipment and
resources to enable the child to
achieve success. Clear routines
supported by consistent language
and visual clues should be in
place.
There should be the opportunity
for individual and small group
work enabled by the flexible use
of staffing, in order to promote
independent learning. Where
there is a small or large group
activity the child may need to be
seated at the front and side of the
group for full access.
The person leading a group
activity should be aware of the
needs of the child and frequently
check that they have heard and
understood.
ADAPTATIONS
The requirements of the Disability
Discrimination Act (DDA) need to
be considered. The school or
setting will make reasonable
adjustments to its environment,
and some building adaptations
may be necessary.
TRAINING
Settings should have a coherent
professional development policy
that addresses the needs of
children who are deaf or who
have hearing impairment in order
to increase the expertise of staff,
so that settings maximise their
effectiveness.
Assessment planning and review
A comprehensive Health Care Plan
and / or Risk Assessment should be
in place where appropriate and
regularly reviewed.
Where there has been a referral to
the Support Service for Deaf and
Hearing Impaired advice will be
given with regard to assessment,
planning and review. In order to do
this the Support Service will need to
be able to observe the child in the
setting and have access to staff to
discuss progress and access. They
will provide written information and
advice to the setting and the family.
56
Teaching environment and
grouping
Opportunities should be made
available to work in partnership
with parents to promote the
learning environment at home.
Where there has been a referral
to the Support service for Deaf
and Hearing Impaired advice
will be given with regard to
grouping and the teaching
environment. In order to do
this the Support Service will
need to be able to observe the
child in the setting and have
access to staff to discuss
progress and access. They will
provide written information and
advice to the setting and the
family.
Curriculum and teaching
Resources
Early Years Action Plus
Sensory and Physical Needs: Hearing Impairment
Level and Description of Difficulty
The child may have:




57
a significant level of hearing loss
hearing aids
delayed spoken language development
delayed understanding of spoken language
 significant impaired functional hearing (the use of hearing)

The child will usually be prescribed with hearing aids, but some may not.
The child will usually have a hearing loss in both ears. This will be permanent. The loss may be in the middle ear only (Conductive) or occur
in the inner ear (sensori-neural) or may be a mixture of both.
It is likely that the child may have some difficulty in accessing the curriculum through hearing alone, and will have delay in understanding
and/or expressing in spoken language at the same level as their peers. The child may also have difficulties with emerging literacy skills and
accessing any aspects of the curriculum which have a language element.
Where the child also has a visual difficulty as well as a hearing loss there is an expectation that the Support Service for Deaf and Hearing
Impaired and the Support Service for Visual Impairment will work together to support the, child, setting and family. The effects on the child will
be expected to be greater than if either hearing or vision loss was present alone.
Assessment planning and review
Teaching environment and
grouping
Settings should be aware of children
with a hearing loss. This information
may come from parents or carers,
direct from the hospital or doctor or
from the Support Service for Deaf
and Hearing Impaired.
Consideration should be given to
incoming transition arrangements
and advice and information
should be freely available to
parents/carers to allow them to
prepare the child for the move.
58
Curriculum and teaching
The child should have access
to all areas of the Early Years
Foundation Curriculum.
Thought will need to be given
to how the curriculum is
delivered. It is likely that lots of
Resources
ADVICE
The Support service for Deaf and
Hearing Impaired will provide
advice with regard to the use and
maintenance of hearing aids and
other specialist equipment.
Assessment planning and review
Teaching environment and
grouping
An awareness of the effects of a
hearing loss upon classroom
access will be necessary.
On entry to the setting and
throughout the child’s time in the
setting, assessment must include
information and advice from parents
/ carers and professionals already
working with the family.
At Early Years Action Plus, the
setting must implement any
assessment advice from external
agencies.
An awareness of when the child’s
hearing loss is at a low level will
be needed. This will involve close
liaison with parents or carers.
The child should have an
inclusive and nurturing learning
environment with access to their
full entitlement of attendance.
The child should have access to
the whole range of learning
environments available in the
setting including outdoor and
indoor play.
Settings should be up dated with
changes to the hearing loss e.g.
improvement, hearing aid fitting,
grommet fittings etc. These up dates
are likely to be provided through
parents or carers, or the Support
All activities should be
Service for Deaf and hearing
undertaken in good lighting to
impaired (Teacher for the Deaf)
allow the child to follow facial
expressions, body language and
The setting will work collaboratively
enable better lip reading when
with the other agencies involved
59
Curriculum and teaching
practical activities and
activities with a high visual
content will be needed,
especially where there is a
high linguistic content e.g.
story time.
Where the child has delayed
language in particular there will
be a need for all staff to ensure
understanding of all activities,
and ensure attention to health
and safety issues.
The Teacher of the Deaf will
advise and help with adapting
and producing appropriate
materials.
Resources
The Teacher of the Deaf will need
to be able to observe the child
using the equipment in the setting
and have access to staff to
discuss progress, use and
functioning. They will provide
written information and advice to
the setting and family.
The teacher of the Deaf will look
with the setting and family at any
learning materials etc which
might be appropriate for the child
or which could be modified or
adapted to meet the needs of the
child and will advise the setting
accordingly.
STAFFING
Where the child has a signed
language or signed system as
their main mode of
communication e.g. British
Sign Language, all staff at the
setting should be familiar with
There should be flexibility within
the staffing arrangements to allow
for support for children with
additional support needs, which
use the setting’s normally
available resources in the most
Assessment planning and review
with the child. This may involve
contributing to or initiating the
COMMON ASSESSMENT
FRAMEWORK process.
The child’s strengths and difficulties
will be identified through a range of
activities – structured observation,
developmental checklists, dialogue
with staff, curriculum-related
assessment, criterion-referenced
assessment, non-standardised tests
and/or diagnostic tests and may be
supplemented by standardised
tests.
The setting will maintain a profile of
the child’s developmental level in
line with the Early Years Foundation
Stage
Teaching environment and
grouping
necessary.
The child’s attention will need to
be gained before speaking to
them.
Background noise needs to be
kept to a minimum when talking
to the child or group including the
child.
Where the child wears hearing
aids, the setting should ensure
that an adult has responsibility for
checking / replacing/ supporting
the child to replace them.
In planning for the child, there
should be a recognition of the child’s
learning styles and agreement about
appropriate teaching strategies
Social activities should include
the child and other children
should be encouraged to include
the child in their play activities.
The setting’s planning for the child
There should be appropriate
60
Curriculum and teaching
at least everyday words and
phrases and staff working
directly with the child should
have a commitment to
achieving a high level of
competence. Help and support
to achieve this will be provided
by the Teacher of the Deaf.
The Teacher of the Deaf will
be able to provide learning and
support materials to aid this.
The child should be
encouraged to take part in all
social activities and
understanding and flexible
approaches should be
considered for ensuring the
child in involved in friendship
groups etc.
Resources
effective way. (including, for
maintained settings, the
delegated Special Educational
Needs budget).
All setting practitioners are
responsible for working with the
child on a regular basis through
flexible groupings.
It is important that a key worker is
identified to facilitate liaison with
parents / carers and other
professionals.
There may be access to
specialist support services
RESOURCES
The Support Service for Deaf
and Hearing Impaired will
provide advice and guidance
with regard to curricular
Should the child wear hearing
aids, have grommets, or any
other specialist equipment there
should be information about their
use and maintenance will be
Assessment planning and review
Teaching environment and
grouping
will include SMART targets at a
developmentally appropriate level,
specifying teaching arrangements
and resources, and will incorporate
advice from the Support Service For
Deaf and hearing Impaired Children.
differentiation of equipment and
resources to enable the child to
achieve success. Clear routines
supported by consistent language
and visual clues should be in
place.
Targets should be reviewed through
family friendly meetings at least 3
times a year. Parents /carers should
be invited in order to ensure targets
are supported in the home.
Imaginative ways of including the
child’s views should be explored.
There should be celebration of small
steps in progress.
The setting staff and parents will
monitor the progress of the child,
their access to all activities, and
social inclusion. Concerns and
issues should be discussed with the
Teacher of the Deaf, who will
provide advice and guidance.
61
There should be the opportunity
for individual and small group
work enabled by the flexible use
of staffing, in order to promote
independent learning. Where
there is a small or large group
activity the child may need to be
seated at the front and side of the
group for full access.
The person leading a group
activity should be aware of the
needs of the child and frequently
check that they have heard and
understood.
Opportunities should be made
available to work in partnership
with parents to promote the
Curriculum and teaching
access.
The Teacher of the Deaf will
need to be able to observe the
child in the setting and have
access to staff to discuss
progress and access.
Resources
provided to the setting either by
the hospital, family or the
Teacher of the Deaf. This may be
in the form of written materials,
word of mouth, or formal inset,
dependant upon the needs of the
child and setting.
ADAPTATIONS
The Teacher of the Deaf will
provide written and face to
face information and advice to
the setting and family.
The requirements of the Disability
Discrimination Act (DDA) need to
be considered. The school or
setting will make reasonable
adjustments to its environment,
and some building adaptations
may be necessary.
TRAINING
Settings should have a coherent
professional development policy
that addresses the needs of
children who are deaf or have
hearing impairment in order to
increase the expertise of staff, so
that settings maximise their
Assessment planning and review
A comprehensive Health Care Plan
and / or Risk Assessment should be
in place where appropriate and
regularly reviewed.
The Support Service for Deaf and
Hearing Impaired will give advice
and liaise with staff and families with
regard to assessment, planning and
review.
The Teacher for the Deaf will need
to be able to observe the child in the
setting and have access to staff to
discuss progress and access.
The teacher for the Deaf will do an
initial assessment of the child, and
discuss their needs with the setting
staff and the family. On the basis of
this they will agree with the setting
and family the frequency and
content of on-going visits.
Teaching environment and
grouping
learning environment at home.
The Support Service for Deaf
and Hearing Impaired will
provide advice with regard to
grouping and the teaching
environment. In order to do
this the Support Service will
need to be able to observe the
child in the setting and have
access to staff to discuss
progress and access.
The teacher of the Deaf will
look at the environment of the
setting and will particularly be
looking at acoustic conditions.
They will advise the setting of
any changes that need to take
place and where possible will
tell them about possibilities of
funding for the changes.
The Teacher of the Deaf may
provide in-service training to
62
Curriculum and teaching
Resources
effectiveness.
Assessment planning and review
Teaching environment and
grouping
the staff of the setting.
The Teacher of the Deaf may
undertake further assessments from
time to time (dependant upon
needs) for listening skills, or aspects
of language development. The
results of these assessments will be
fed into the monitoring process and
will be communicated with the
settings staff and the family.
The Teacher of the Deaf may need
to spend time with the child either in
the group setting or in withdrawal
room. They will provide written and
face to face information and advice
to the setting and the family.
The Teacher of the Deaf will attend
review and monitoring meetings and
work with the setting, family and
other agencies to assess the needs
of the child in the setting.
63
The Teacher of the Deaf will
provide written and face to face
information and advice to the
setting and the family.
Curriculum and teaching
Resources
Early Years Action
Sensory and Physical Needs: Physical impairment
Level and Description of Difficulty
The child will have a defined physical or medical condition that may be subject to regular medical review / intervention.
Such children may:
 Use specialist aids relating to their disability, i.e. ankle foot orthosis, wrist splint.
 Use limited, low-tech specialist equipment to improve their curriculum access, e.g. rollerball, foot box.
 Require more adult assistance than their peers with practical aspects of the curriculum, self help skills or personal care.
In addition the child’s needs may affect their self-esteem and social relationships.
64
Assessment, Planning & Review
Teaching Environment &
Grouping
Curriculum
Resources
On entry to the setting and
throughout the child’s time in the
setting, assessment must include
information and advice from parents
/ carers and professionals already
working with the family.
Consideration should be given to
incoming transition arrangements
and advice and information
should be freely available to
parents/carers to allow them to
prepare the child for the move.
ADVICE
The setting will work collaboratively
with the other agencies involved
with the child. This may involve
contributing to or initiating the
COMMON ASSESSMENT
FRAMEWORK process.
The child should have an
inclusive and nurturing learning
environment with access to their
full entitlement of attendance.
The child should have access to
the whole range of learning
environments available in the
setting including outdoor and
indoor play.
The child should have access
to all areas of the Early Years
Foundation Curriculum, with
suitable differentiation and
support, particularly in outdoor
activities, use of large play
equipment, practical activities
and Physical Education.
Guidance and advice from
physiotherapy and/or
occupational therapy services
may be required.
Specific skill development or
activities in support of the
child’s identified targets may
be required.
STAFFING
The child’s strengths and difficulties
will be identified through a range of
activities – structured observation,
developmental checklists, dialogue
with staff, curriculum-related
assessment, criterion-referenced
assessment, non-standardised tests
and/or diagnostic tests and may be
supplemented by standardised
tests.
The setting will maintain a profile of
the child’s developmental level in
65
There should be appropriate
differentiation of equipment and
resources to enable the child to
achieve success.
Consideration may need to be
given to the location and layout of
rooms, and the arrangement of
activities and equipment.
Consideration should be given
to the use of low-tech aids or
equipment e.g. specialist
scissors, rollerball.
Advice will be available from the
setting SENCO and may be
available from specialist support
services. (See page 8)
Educational Psychologists,
Physiotherapists or
Occupational Therapists may
provide some occasional advice
on strategies, equipment or staff
training.
There should be flexibility within
the staffing arrangements to
allow for support for children
with additional support needs,
which use the setting’s normally
available resources in the most
effective way.(including, for
maintained settings, the
delegated Special Educational
Needs budget)
Assessment, Planning & Review
Teaching Environment &
Grouping
line with the Early Years Foundation
Stage
There should be the opportunity
for individual and small group
work enabled by the flexible use
In planning for the child, there
of staffing, in order to promote
should be a recognition of the child’s independent learning. Setting
learning styles and agreement about organisation and management
appropriate teaching strategies
facilitates peer friendships.
The setting’s planning for the child
will include SMART targets at a
developmentally appropriate level,
specifying teaching
arrangements and resources, and
will incorporate advice from the
child’s therapists where appropriate.
Opportunities should be made
available to work in partnership
with parents to promote the
learning environment at home.
Curriculum
Resources
All setting practitioners are
responsible for working with the
child on a regular basis through
flexible groupings.
It is important that a key worker
is identified to facilitate liaison
with parents / carers and other
professionals.
There may be access to
specialist support services
RESOURCES
Targets should be reviewed through
family friendly meetings at least 3
times a year. Parents /carers should
be invited in order to ensure targets
are supported in the home.
Imaginative ways of including the
child’s views should be explored.
There should be celebration of small
steps in progress
66
Additional equipment may be
necessary to support the
assessed needs of the child
ADAPTATIONS
The requirements of the
Disability Discrimination Act
(DDA) need to be considered.
Assessment, Planning & Review
A comprehensive Health Care Plan
and / or Risk Assessment should be
in place where appropriate and
regularly reviewed.
Teaching Environment &
Grouping
Curriculum
Resources
The school or setting will make
reasonable adjustments to its
environment, and some building
adaptations may be necessary.
This may be particularly relevant
to this group of children with
regard to personal care facilities.
TRAINING
Settings should have a coherent
professional development policy
that addresses the needs of
children with physical
impairment in order to increase
the expertise of staff, so that
settings maximise their
effectiveness.
67
Early Years Action Plus
Sensory and Physical Needs: Physical impairment
Level and Description of Difficulty
The child will have a defined physical or medical condition and will usually be subject to regular medical review/intervention.
S/he will have impairment of motor functions, affecting dexterity or mobility within the setting or school, which would, without intervention,
directly obstruct or hamper the child’s access to the curriculum.
The child may:
 Use specialist equipment to help with either curriculum access and/or daily living activities.
 Require Health Care Plans.
 Require a level of adult assistance to access the curriculum, manage their condition, or move with safety around the environment.
 Exhibit fatigue, lack of concentration or motivation due to their condition that is having a marked effect on their development.
In addition the child’s needs may impact on their self-esteem and social relationships.
Assessment, Planning and
Review
On entry to the setting and
throughout the child’s time in the
setting, assessment must include
information and advice from parents
68
Teaching Environment and
Grouping
Curriculum and Teaching
Methods
Resources
Consideration should be given to
incoming transition arrangements
and advice and information
should be freely available to
The child should have access
to all areas of the Early Years
Foundation Curriculum, with
suitable differentiation and
ADVICE
Advice from The Support
Service for Physical Impairment
Assessment, Planning and
Review
/ carers and professionals already
working with the family.
At Early Years Action Plus, the
setting must implement any
assessment advice from external
agencies.
The setting will work collaboratively
with the other agencies involved
with the child. This may involve
contributing to or initiating the
COMMON ASSESSMENT
FRAMEWORK process.
The child’s strengths and difficulties
will be identified through a range of
activities – structured observation,
developmental checklists, dialogue
with staff, curriculum-related
assessment, criterion-referenced
assessment, non-standardised tests
and/or diagnostic tests and may be
supplemented by standardised
tests.
69
Teaching Environment and
Grouping
Curriculum and Teaching
Methods
Resources
parents/carers to allow them to
prepare the child for the move.
support, particularly in outdoor
activities, use of large play
equipment, practical activities
and Physical Education.
and other external support
services should be sought to
inform and/or guide curriculum
adaptation, implementation of
the child’s identified targets and
offer direct support to the child.
The child should have an
inclusive and nurturing learning
environment with access to their
full entitlement of attendance.
The child should have access to
the whole range of learning
environments available in the
setting including outdoor and
indoor play. The outdoor
curriculum and access to large
play equipment will need to be
carefully considered.
There should be appropriate
differentiation of equipment and
resources to enable the child to
achieve success.
There should be the opportunity
for considerable individual and
small group work enabled by the
flexible use of staffing, in order to
promote independent learning.
Individual programmes to
support the child’s identified
targets and external agency
advice will be provided.
There will be focus on the
educational implications of the
physical/medical condition but
there may also be therapy
targeted at these difficulties.
Additional access to
Information Communication
Technology (high and low
technology), specialist aids
and adaptations may be
necessary to facilitate access
to the curriculum.
Multi-agency collaboration will
usually be essential due to the
overlap of educational, social or
health needs.
Practitioners are responsible for
delivering the child’s individual
programme of targets in
conjunction with the SENCO.
STAFFING
There should be flexibility within
the staffing arrangements to
allow for support for children
with additional support needs,
Assessment, Planning and
Review
The setting will maintain a profile of
the child’s developmental level in
line with the Early Years Foundation
Stage
Teaching Environment and
Grouping
The child may require access to
an area for therapy or
developmental programmes
and/or special arrangements for
personal care.
In planning for the child, there
should be a recognition of the child’s Consideration will need to be
learning styles and agreement about given to the location and layout of
rooms, and the arrangement of
appropriate teaching strategies
activities and equipment.
The setting’s planning for the child
will include SMART targets at a
developmentally appropriate level,
Opportunities should be made
specifying teaching
available to work in partnership
with parents to promote the
arrangements and resources, and
learning environment at home.
will incorporate advice from the
Support Service For Children with
Physical Impairment and, wherever
possible, from the child’s therapists. The child will require regular
support for specific activities or
programmes from a member of
the setting staff e.g. for
Targets should be reviewed through
family friendly meetings at least 3
 physiotherapy programmes
times a year. Parents /carers should
 help with physical aids (ankle
foot orthosis, etc)
be invited in order to ensure targets
 personal care
70
Curriculum and Teaching
Methods
Resources
which use the setting’s normally
available resources in the most
effective way.(including, for
maintained settings, the
delegated Special Educational
Needs budget)
All setting practitioners are
responsible for working with the
child on a regular basis through
flexible groupings.
It is important that a key worker
is identified to facilitate liaison
with parents / carers and other
professionals.
There may be access to
specialist support services
RESOURCES
Additional equipment may be
Assessment, Planning and
Review
are supported in the home.
Imaginative ways of including the
child’s views should be explored.
There should be celebration of small
steps in progress
A comprehensive Health Care Plan
and / or Risk Assessment should be
in place where appropriate and
regularly reviewed.
Teaching Environment and
Grouping
 safely moving round the
school or setting
 accessing large equipment
 using equipment such as
scissors and tools
Curriculum and Teaching
Methods
Resources
necessary to support the
assessed needs of the child e.g.
low-tech aids such as scissors
and Dycem or specific ICT
programmes.
ADAPTATIONS
The requirements of the
Disability Discrimination Act
(DDA) need to be considered for
all aspects of the curriculum,
including off-site visits and
extra-curricular activities.
The school or setting will make
reasonable adjustments to its
environment, and some building
adaptations may be necessary.
In drawing up school access
plans, consideration needs to be
given to the accessibility of the
building and provision of
personal care facilities.
71
Assessment, Planning and
Review
Teaching Environment and
Grouping
Curriculum and Teaching
Methods
Resources
TRAINING
Settings should have a coherent
professional development policy
that addresses the needs of
children with physical
impairment in order to increase
the expertise of staff, so that
settings maximise their
effectiveness.
72
Early Years Action Plus
Specific Language Impairment
Level and Description of Difficulty
The setting will have provided a supportive language / communication environment. This will include modelling of speech sounds and
language at an appropriate level, the use of visual support, opportunities for small group work, opportunities to develop listening skills.
Despite this, the child has continuing specific difficulties with speech and / or language, which impede his or her access to learning and the
curriculum. The child has poorly developed receptive and expressive language skills and / or speech sound skills that do not follow the
normal pattern. The degree of social intent may vary, but the child’s social interaction is limited. The child may demonstrate frustration or
stress. The child may possibly have motor difficulties and may be over physical with other children. There is a marked difference between
the child’s understanding and use of language and his or her cognitive, social and adaptive skills.
Assessment, Planning and
Teaching Environment and
Grouping
Curriculum and Teaching
Methods
Resources
On entry to the setting and
throughout the child’s time in the
setting, assessment must include
information and advice from parents
/ carers and professionals already
working with the family.
Consideration should be given to
incoming transition arrangements
and advice and information
should be freely available to
parents/carers to allow them to
prepare the child for the move.
The child should have access
to all areas of the Early Years
Foundation Stage Curriculum.
ADVICE
At Early Years Action Plus, the
setting must implement any
The child should have an
inclusive and nurturing learning
environment with access to their
Review
73
Support and teaching methods
will include a variety of visual
materials to aid
comprehension, support
speaking and the use of
Advice from the Speech and
Language Therapy Service and
other external support services
should be sought to inform
and/or guide curriculum
adaptation, work towards the
identified targets set for the child
and offer direct support to the
Assessment, Planning and
Review
assessment advice from external
agencies.
The setting will work collaboratively
with the other agencies involved
with the child. This may involve
contributing to or initiating the
COMMON ASSESSMENT
FRAMEWORK process.
Teaching Environment and
Grouping
Curriculum and Teaching
Methods
Resources
full entitlement of attendance.
The child should have access to
the whole range of learning
environments available in the
setting including outdoor and
indoor play.
language Examples may
include the use of signing,
symbols and pictures /
photographs.
child.
The physical environment
should be methodically
organised and conducive to
When assessing the child, adults
need to be aware that the child may
take cues from the actions of other
pupils and may not readily ask for
help or clarification.
The child’s strengths and difficulties
will be identified through a range of
activities – structured observation,
developmental checklists, dialogue
with staff, curriculum-related
assessment, criterion-referenced
assessment, non-standardised tests
and/or diagnostic tests and may be
supplemented by standardised
74
good listening and attention.
Identified targets will be
addressed individually, through
small groups and whole group
work within the curriculum
framework. The advice of the
Speech and Language
Therapist will be followed and
will inform teaching and
learning tasks.
There should be appropriate
differentiation of equipment and
resources to enable the child to
achieve success. Clear routines
supported by consistent language
and visual clues should be in
place.
Opportunities to generalise the
skills taught in individual and
small group work will be
provided within the whole
group.
There should be good visual
support routinely available. This
may include the use of symbols,
photographs, signing and visual
Adults should simplify the
language they use, repeating
as necessary, use visual
Multi-agency collaboration will
usually be essential.
STAFFING
There should be flexibility within
the staffing arrangements to
allow for support for children
with additional support needs,
which use the setting’s normally
available resources in the most
effective way.(including, for
maintained settings, the
delegated Special Educational
Needs budget)
All setting practitioners are
responsible for working with the
child on a regular basis through
flexible groupings.
Assessment, Planning and
Review
tests.
The child’s strengths and
weaknesses in expressive and
receptive language and / or speech
sounds are observed recorded and
summarised. This may include
reference to the child’s
understanding and use of
vocabulary, grammatical structure,
conversational skills and speed of
language processing. A speech and
language therapist will be the key
professional involved in this.
The setting will maintain a profile of
the child’s developmental level in
line with the Early Years Foundation
Stage
In planning for the child, there
should be a recognition of the child’s
learning styles and agreement about
appropriate teaching strategies
75
Teaching Environment and
Grouping
Curriculum and Teaching
Methods
Resources
timetables.
support and allow sufficient
processing time.
It is important that a key worker
is identified to facilitate liaison
with parents / carers and other
professionals.
There should be the opportunity
for individual and small group
work enabled by the flexible use
of staffing, in order to promote
independent learning.
Possible fine motor difficulties
will be addressed through
differentiated resources, tasks
and expected outcomes.
There may be access to
specialist support services.
Grouping in class should
provide opportunities for peer
ADAPTATIONS
support, the development of
The requirements of the
Disability Discrimination Act
(DDA) need to be considered.
The school or setting will make
reasonable adjustments to its
environment, and some building
adaptations may be necessary.
This may be particularly relevant
to this group of children with
regard to personal care facilities.
social understanding and
inference together with structured
opportunities for conversation.
Adults will need to make careful
choices of partners to facilitate
social interaction. The partners
will need to change according to
the activity and to provide a
variety of social experiences and
learning.
Adults will plan to address
aspects of the child’s identified
Settings should anticipate that a
child with SLI may be delayed in
the development of toileting
Assessment, Planning and
Review
The setting’s planning for the child
will include SMART targets at a
developmentally appropriate level,
specifying teaching arrangements
and resources. The targets will
focus on developing understanding
and use of language and / or
adaptive communication skills e.g.
the use of Makaton signing.
Targets should be reviewed through
family friendly meetings at least 3
times a year. Parents /carers should
be invited in order to ensure targets
are supported in the home.
Imaginative ways of including the
child’s views should be explored.
There should be celebration of small
steps in progress.
A comprehensive Health Care Plan
and / or Risk Assessment should be
in place where appropriate and
regularly reviewed.
76
Teaching Environment and
Grouping
targets in the child’s everyday
routines.
Opportunities should be made
available to work in partnership
with parents to promote the
learning environment at home.
Adults need to be aware of the
stress and frustration that
children with SLI can
experiences. All the child’s
attempts to communicate should
be acknowledged and rewarded.
The use of a formal reward
system may also be effective.
(Specialist advice may be
required.)
Curriculum and Teaching
Methods
Resources
skills and should make
reasonable adaptations for the
child to have a nappy changed.
RESOURCES
The setting should have access
to the Language Friendly File for
Schools and the Early Support
Programme materials.
The setting would benefit from
access to additional resources
such as a digital camera, Widgit
software, laminator.
TRAINING
Settings should have a coherent
professional development policy
that addresses the needs of
children with Speech and
Language Impairment in order
to increase the expertise of staff,
so that settings maximise their
Assessment, Planning and
Review
Teaching Environment and
Grouping
Curriculum and Teaching
Methods
Resources
effectiveness.
77
Appendix 1
THE ROLE OF THE SETTING SENCO
“The SENCO should have responsibility for:




ensuring liaison with parents and other professionals in respect of children with special
educational needs
advising and supporting other practitioners in the setting
ensuring that appropriate Individual Education Plans are in place
ensuring that relevant background information about individual children with special
educational needs is collected, recorded and updated.”
In addition, the SENCO is expected to act as the lead member of staff for:




78
further assessment of the child’s particular strengths and weaknesses
in planning future support for the child in discussion with colleagues;
monitoring and subsequently reviewing the action taken.
ensuring that appropriate records are kept including a record of children at Early Years
Action and Early Years Action Plus and those with statements.
Appendix 2: INCLUSIVE PRACTICE
79
80
EY SEN DESCRIPTORS
AUTUMN 2011[Type text]
Page 81
Appendix 3
INFORMATION ON LOCAL AUTHORITY SUPPORT SERVICES
EY SEN DESCRIPTORS
AUTUMN 2011[Type text]
Page 82
EY SEN DESCRIPTORS
AUTUMN 2011[Type text]
Page 83
EY SEN DESCRIPTORS
AUTUMN 2011[Type text]
Page 84