How your early education provider can support your child

All early years settings (childminders, preschools, nurseries) must follow the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS). The EYFS is a document to help them support learning and development, from birth to five years old.

The EYFS is split into:

birth to three years old
three to four years old
four to five years old

Each band has suggestions about what your child might be doing and how you can help them. It's important to remember that children develop in different ways and at different speeds. Changes don't always follow a pattern.

The Development Matters website includes some checkpoints, however this is not to be used as a checklist for every child. Sometimes children may have early difficulties, which with the right support they can catch up with others their age. Some children will have longer term difficulties. It is important to identify what their needs are and get the right support.

You might find it helpful to look at the Parents guidance to the Early Years Foundation Stage.

Early years key person

Your child will have a 'key person' at their early years setting. They are responsible for working with you and meeting your child's individual needs. In a nursery, one of the childcare staff will be your key person. If you are using a childminder, they are the key person.

If you have concerns about your child, you can talk to your child's key person. They will discuss how they can help and what can be done.

Special Educational Needs Co-ordinators (SENCO)

Every early education provider has a SENCO to make sure the needs of the child with additional needs and disabilities are met.

The SENCO should have responsibility for:

Advising and supporting the keyperson and the wider team.
Making sure everyone in the setting understands their responsibilities to children with additional needs and disabilities.
Supporting staff in identifying and meeting individual needs.
Involving parents and making sure their views are included in the Surrey Support Plan (a document that describes what support your child needs).
Communicating with health and education support services (e.g speech and language therapist and Portage).

Early years graduated response

All early years, professionals (childminders, SENCO, setting managers and nursery teachers) follow the Early Years Graduated Response. This document describes how they can work best with your child, from birth to 5 years old. It suggests specific strategies and support.

The Graduated Response works with the SEND Code of Practice, which contains the legal requirements all early year professionals must follow. It is used alongside the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) curriculum. This includes ways to help children with additional needs and/or disabilities.

This approach should help families and early years settings have the right support at the right time. By making reasonable adjustments, knowing the child's needs, and working closely with health and education partners, most children with additional needs and/or disabilities can achieve their outcomes without the need for an Education Health and Care Plan (EHCP).

If your child has additional support, the early years setting should monitor this through an Assess, Plan, Do, Review cycle. This is documented in a Surrey Support Plan.

Early Years settings are required by law to make necessary changes to meet health needs. A child does not need an EHCP to have their health needs met. If your child has a long term illness or medical condition you can speak to the early years setting about an Individual Health Care Plan.

Developmental reviews

Early years foundation stage progress check at 27 months

If your child goes to Ofsted registered childcare, their key person will review their development between 2 and 3 years old. Any strengths or areas of development are recorded. Your provider will discuss this with you and put support in place if needed.

Read more about this on our Health and Development Reviews page.

Health and development review at age 2

All children are invited to a health and development review by their health visiting team at the age of 27 months. At this review you can talk to your health visitor about your child's progress and ask any questions you might have.

Read more about this on our Health and Development Reviews page.

Early Years Inclusion Pathway Planning (EYIPP)

In Surrey it is expected that all children have the right to access provision within their own community, with their friends and siblings. This includes children with additional needs. Surrey will support children to attend a local, mainstream early years setting (where appropriate) chosen by the parent.

We want to make sure that children's needs are seen and considered as soon as possible, without the need for a diagnosis. An Early Years Inclusion Pathway Planning (EYIPP) meeting can start to plan your child's education journey to adulthood; without the need for an EHCP. It is an effective way to support children. The plan is based on early identification, making sure that any support put in place is well planned and effective.

Sometimes a child has complex needs that require special arrangements throughout the day. In this case, the best choice may be a specialist nursery. That is only for children with specific additional needs or disabilities. Different nurseries provide for different needs and the teaching will be tailored to the pupil. The specialist nurseries are:

We have recorded a short video to explain the EYIPP process for you to watch:

Education, Health and Care (EHC) plans

If your child has additional support, and their Surrey Support Plan shows they require an Education, Health and Care (EHC) needs assessment, there is a process to follow for this request. The early education setting or parent or carer can ask for an assessment. This might result in an EHC plan being issued for your child, but not always. Instead, your child's early education setting or school may be able to use the information gathered to meet their needs without one.

Your child does not need a diagnosis to have an EHC needs assessment.
Most children with an EHC plan go to mainstream schools.
Having an EHC plan does not automatically mean your child will go to a specialist school, it depends on the individual child's situation.

Further information about the EHC needs assessment process

You can find more information on the Local Offer about the EHC needs assessment process.
Surrey County Council's Learners Single Point of Access (L-SPA) process all requests for EHC needs assessments.
There are four SEND teams who work with families in a specific area. Each team has SEND Case Officers who deal with specific children, who have an EHC plan or need the assessment. They deal with everything related to the EHC plan and the legal processes. If your child is going through assessment or already has an EHC plan your Case Officer will be able to provide you with information and guidance.