All Early Years Providers are required to have arranagements in place to identify and support children with SEND (Special Educational Needs and Disabilities). It is our duty to promote equality of opprtunity and ensure all our young wards can access the learning.

Did you know that we have two SENCOs in our setting? We have a dynamic team comprising of Bex and Hannah; both Level 3 and SENCO trained. They are an excellent balance of skills: while Bex is more outward facing, liaising with external professionals and families and ensuring the paperwork is up to date and in line with statutory processes, Hannah's role focuses more specifically on interacting with the children, offering varied opportunities to play and thrive, which she reviews and adapts to support their development.

In their own words:

Bex: I work closely with external agencies ensuring that we are providing the best opportunities and support for children with (potential) additional needs. I liaise with local SEND teams at Luton and Central Bedfordshire, to also ensure I am using the most relevant documentation and following correct procedures to obtain relevant support for children and their families. I write personalised targets together with the families, my team colleagues and with input from the SEND teams where necessary; these are reviewed every month to 6 weeks. The role of the child's key person is essential, so we can work with the children's interests to achieve the best possible outcomes. I also work with the parents, signposting them to support and advice resources, and involving them so that they can support their children at home. It is so important to capture as holistic a picture as possible of the children at home and in the setting to be able to meet their needs and enable the children to flourish.

Hannah: I help children who may have additional needs, and my role is more one to one play moments, when we might share experiences with sensory toys, or in the cosy corner, or in the sand tray, or might play games to build that bond, help regulate emotions and develop supportive interactions. I try to build trust and help them feel safe in whichever way works for them. I might play games to help develop some language and communication skills, or social interaction skills such as turn-taking. These experiences help me assess how a child reacts in different situations, which can help prepare for other experiences and ensure the child's needs are met. Sometimes we use games or books or quiet time to express our feelings, and we can do this with non-verbal children as well, using a range of resources. I work with the team to observe interests and incorporate these into our interactions, and seeing how to use these to support communication in different forms. I document what I see, share this with the team and the key person and with parents, and this can feed back into individual plans for the children, which the parents are also involved in creating.

As ever, if you have any concerns, please do come and talk to us!