Graduated Approach Pathway for Early Years Settings SEND Local Offer
Assess: First discuss the child with your colleagues and the parents/carers and start some assessment / observation together
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Assess: First discuss the child with your colleagues and the parents/carers and start some assessment / observation together
Torbay Early Years Graduated Approach Toolkit (TEYGAT) aims to provide a one-stop-shop, for all early years providers to promote inclusive practice and support the additional needs of early years children at a targeted level. For some children universal provision may not meet all of their needs. The importance of early identification and intervention with appropriate multi agency support is key to addressing young children’s needs.
This practice guidance aims to support all practitioners working with children in the Early Years who have special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND).
Individual Learning and Development Plans (ILDPs) aim to identify small step targets to support children’s learning and development. They identify how children learn and what support is needed that is additional or different to the typical provision. Having Individual Learning Development Plans are crucial to evidencing the Graduated Approach cycle of support (SEND Code of Practice 2015). It is anticipated that all children with SEND have ILDPs in place.
Writing small step targets are integral to the Graduated Approach response for children with SEND.
Assessment summaries are useful for sharing information about children with other professionals.
Open Ended Play means that children are allowed the time and space to play with resources, following their own creative ideas and interests. This Open Ended Play activity sheet can be useful to note observations and achievements during Open Ended Play.
Children receiving SEN Support must be on the setting’s ‘SEND Register’.
This risk assessment template will help you identify potential risks in your setting.
Torbay Early Years Commitment for Transition Timeline - Transition - Torbay Council
Activity Led Funding for Inclusion (ALFI) is additional funding provided to Early Years education providers (School-based nurseries, PVI (Private, Voluntary and Independent) settings and Childminders) to deliver support for individual children with identified Special Education Needs and/or Disabilities (SEND).
PVI (Private, Voluntary and Independent) & School-based nurseries are invited to apply for Activity Led Funding for Inclusion (ALFI) to help support individual children with needs by completing the relevant forms below.
Childminders are invited to apply for Activity Led Funding for Inclusion (ALFI) to help support individual children with needs by completing the relevant forms below.
In addition to Activity Led Funding for Inclusion (ALFI), Early Years settings may be able to receive DAF for eligible children attending their setting. The Disability Access Fund is money that is available for eligible children to a nominated childcare provider once per year to aid access to Early Years places for children with special educational needs (SEN) or disabilities.
Early years South West stronger practice hub | Stronger Practice Hubs
Makaton Places encompasses both Makaton Aware and Makaton Friendly organisations across the country. These pathways aim to create welcoming environments where everyone's voice is heard and understood, boosting inclusion and accessibility for all. For more information about both the schemes and how to achieve the standard of practice and award, go to Makaton Places - Makaton Friendly
About the EYSEND Partnership
The NPA Stamp of Approval Scheme is an award given to early year’s settings who have demonstrated they deliver inclusive early years education based upon Portage Principles.
The Early Years Autism Competency Framework New Addition Early Years Competency Framework | Neuroinclusive Education Network
The DfE assessment resources provide a suggested way of working when assessing children with SEND in the early years. Whether you are a school-based provider, group-based provider or childminder, these resources can be used to support your children with potential or known SEND. You may want to use everything, or choose which specific elements will be helpful for your setting.
Adapted from the book Raising a Sensory Smart Child: The Definitive Handbook for Helping Your Child with Sensory Processing Issues copyright (c) Lindsey Biel, OTR/L, MA, and Nancy Peske, 2005, 2009, 2018 and beyond
View Guidance for using STAR Charts for Behaviour and then download the blank Star Chart template for use.
Child's Progress checker - Speech & Language UK
Although the DfE Early Support Programme is no longer currently running, all the materials remain relevant and up to date, apart from a few of the links.
This guidance provides early years practitioners with practical tips on how to support young children from multilingual backgrounds. There is a comprehensive description of the stages of English acquisition and how to support each stage and a useful assessment checklist of English Proficiency, to use with individuals.
This tool outlines key milestones in speech, language and communication development to support identification of children’s needs in the Early Years Foundation Stage.
A one-page profile captures the essence of the child's character and needs, and acts as a starting point in getting to know them. It isn’t designed to replace the reports written by health and educational professionals, but should be a representation of the child’s own thoughts and views. A profile needs to be included when requesting an EHCP needs assessment for a child.
Talking Mats is an interactive communication resource that uses picture symbols to help children express their feelings and views.
Engagement is crucial before targeted learning can happen. The engagement model aims to provide a ‘better fit’ way of noticing and acknowledging children’s responses to their world when other ways of doing this are not working well. For further information, guidance, blank template and exemplars please see the following documents in the downloads section on the right hand side of this webpage:
Statutory guidance on the special educational needs and disability (SEND) system for children and young people aged 0 to 25.
Advice for early years providers that are funded by the local authority.
A guide for parents and carerson the special educational needs and disability (SEND) system for children and young people aged 0 to 25.
Statutory guidance for governing bodies of maintained schools and proprietors of academies in England.
Guide and training package for early years providers on the disability duties in the Equality Act
Disability Living Allowance (DLA) is a tax‑free benefit for children under 16 in England and Wales who have additional care or mobility needs because of a disability or long‑term health condition. It provides financial support to help families manage the extra costs associated with daily care, supervision, or difficulties with getting around.
Attention Autism is a 4 stage step-by-step series of practical attention development activities that enables parents and professionals to get children to engage with them, so they can introduce them to new experiences and progress their learning. Please see embeded documents below that explain the 4 stages in more detail.
Identiplay interventions help children on the autistic spectrum, and those with specific communication disorders, learn to play using a parallel copy and play model with set play scripts. View all on this page and download what you need.
This set of simple activity sheets was created by the Torbay Home Learning and Portage Service for use with parents/carers and early years practitioners. View and/or download any of the 3 guides below and there is a messy play texture hierarchy guide from Dingley’s promise to print.
Resources for Families - Dingley's Promise
Download and/or print "Building blocks of reading"
Download and/or print "Building blocks of writing"
Familiar rhymes and songs with touch and movement to help engage early years children:
Make singing nursery rhymes fun with your child by making a simple song box or bag.
Download and/or print "The Building Blocks of Language"
Any visual communication system using signing, objects, pictures, photos or symbol pictures can be used to provide an alternative or augmentative (AAC) way of communicating with others. AAC can break down steps of an activity or routine throughout the day and offer choices for a child. AAC helps aid understanding for the child and reduce anxiety about what is happening next and to offer choices and control for the child. AAC can provide a way for the child to express themselves more easily.
Makaton is a language programme aimed at supporting understanding and speaking skills. There are a range of free downloadable resources on the Makaton Website.
Singing Hands – for useful examples of Makaton signing in song have a look at a range of Singing Hands YouTube videos to share with children and practitioners, such as this example
Widgit Online create, save and share symbol resources and offer a free 21 day trial to support learning and communication by creating symbol documents, flashcards, activities and timetables in your web browser.
The National Autistic Society has produced a good article to explain how to use social stories. Please see both the Social Stories document and Social Story example below.
Do2learn provides thousands of free pages with social skills and behavioural regulation activities and guidance, learning songs and games, communication cards, academic material, and transition guides for employment and life skills. In addition, we offer premier products including View2do, JobTIPS, FACELAND, books, and apps for purchase.
An object of reference is an object that has a particular meaning, e.g. a certain ball might represent going out to play or a bubble wand might represent coming to blow bubbles. They can be used to
Although the DfE Early Support Programme is no longer currently running, all the materials remain relevant and up to date, apart from a few of the links.
A sensory circuit is a sensory motor skills programme that helps children become more organised andachieve the right level of alertness to help them prepare for the day’s learning. The activities promote self awareness, helping children to make connection to their senses in an active, fun, and enjoyable way.
Familiar rhymes and songs with touch and movement to help engage early years children:
Assessment and monitoring tools for young babies and children with hearing impairment. Although the DfE Early Support Programme is no longer currently running, all the materials remain relevant and up to date, apart from a few of the links.
Assessment and monitoring tools for young babies and children with visual impairment. Although the DfE Early Support Programme is no longer currently running, all the materials remain relevant and up to date, apart from a few of the links.
Here are two practical ways of supporting young children’s sensory differences
The Sleep Talkers project is powered by The Sleep Charity, an award-winning national charity. In Torbay, our Torbay Portage Home Visiting team are Sleep Talker Trained. They are able to run small workshops or deliver bespoke advice through home visiting sessions, to help parents/carers support their child’s sleep hygiene. They are registered trainers and are following the Sleep Talkers advice and guidance.
In Torbay we follow the guidance for toilet training found here:
This simple booklet reminds us of 7 key responses for adults to put into action, when supporting young children’s social and emotional needs: Clear rules, Choices, Countdown, Confidence, Consistency, Control and Comfort.
View Guidance for using STAR Charts for Behaviour and then download the blank Star Chart template for use.
The complete ‘Well-being and Involvement in Care - A process-oriented Self-evaluation Instrument for Care Settings (Sics)’ manual explains the importance of young children’s well-being and engagement in their play and learning. If a child has a high level of well-being and high engagement in their environment then it follows that their social and emotional skills will be robust. It walks practitioners through how to observe and assess well-being and engagement using the Leuvens Five Point Scale and prompts changes in the early years environment to support these skills in young children.
Toddlers have big feelings, but they sometimes struggle to express them.
Please see the following guidance examples below and get MSWord versions of these blank templates from the download button.
This is a tool to help you identify and record the specific behaviours that you observe and then consider the underlying factors that might be causing the behaviours. By doing this you will be more equipped to change the environment or the adult responses to support the child’s emotional needs.
