1. POLICY STATEMENT

This policy is written in line with all legislation including Working Together 2013 and 0-25 Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) of Practice (2014) and will be reviewed ANNUALLY.

We believe that every child deserves the best possible start in life and the support that enables them to reach their full potential, all children will be admitted according to our admissions policy. We are committed to working in partnership with children, families and outside professionals to identify and plan for children and their families needs at the earliest opportunity. (It is widely recognised that early intervention and identification of a child’s need is crucial in the prevention of the child having further difficulties in later years). We will promote self-esteem, honesty, mutual respect and take great care to treat each individual as a person in their own right, with equal rights and responsibilities to any other individual, whether they be an adult or child. Our service is fully inclusive in meeting the needs of all children who attend, special attention is however placed on children who:

• Are under or over achieving (including those who are gifted or talented)
• Have disabilities/additional/special educational needs
• (Who’s) home language is not English
• Are from disadvantaged backgrounds

We celebrate the diverse strengths, abilities and needs of each and every child (see Learning and Development policy); working with children and their families everyone will be included, valued and supported. Staff will work together with children individually and in groups to support their specific needs.

We take positive action in removing disabling barriers; reasonable adjustments (including adapting ratios, practice, provision, activities, equipment or environment) will be made for all children with specific needs (including any of those groups noted above) so that all children can participate and be supported to reach their full potential. Even within a fully inclusive environment there will remain a small number of children whose individual needs are such that they cannot access early education without Local Authority (LA) /Health Authority (HA) support or an improved adult to child ratio. When providing additional support staff we will do this with an inclusive ethos, staff support the needs of all children so that they do not become solely dependent on one adult.

We welcome other professionals into our setting to work with us and support all children. Where a child has numerous professionals involved in their care visits may be restricted to one per week in the best interests of the child (to ensure the child can “enjoy” their play and learning experiences).

All of our observations, assessments, concerns and strategies are based upon:

• Information provided by parents/carers/other professionals
• Staff experience and knowledge of child development
• Progress trackers, EYFS Development Matters, National Strategies and OfSTED early years outcomes guidance.
• Mary Sheridan’s ‘Birth to Five-Children’s’ and any other specific reference materials.
• Northumberland Local Authority’s Speech and Language (SALT) and Inclusion toolkits, Occupational Therapy (OT) Screening Tool and Multi-agency Threshold Documents

• Specific criteria set by relevant LA or healthcare professionals
• Education, Health And Care  plans (EHCP)* and/or Individual Education (I.E.P) Plans
• Early Help Assessment (EHA) formerly known as Common Assessment Framework (CAF).

*Education, Health And Care (EHCP) plans replace statements of SEN and learning difficulty assessment. EHA is used throughout the LA and helps children, families and professionals identify any ‘needs’ from the earliest opportunity, access the correct support and ensures professionals all work together to set actions necessary to support the child and its family.  A single category known as SEN support replaces Early Years Action/Early Years Action Plus.

NORTHUMBERLAND INCLUSION TOOLKIT

Helps practitioners begin the process of identifying and planning for children’s individuals needs. Information gathered can be shared with other professionals (if/ when they may become involved in the child’s care).

Section1 provides information about the toolkit.

Section 2 provides guidance on using the toolkit.

Section 3 is the inclusion pathway and is used where there are some initial concerns regarding a child’s progress.

Section 4 provides guidance about gathering information about the child’s needs where there are ongoing concerns.

Section 5 provides summary assessment prompts (these are filled in by parents and key workers).

Section 6 provides Activity guidance (suggestions of activities to help adults observe and make simple assessments).

Section 7 is the Inclusion wheel and is used to record a summary of what is known about the child and targets and actions to support the child (these are completed with parents). All children who have an identified additional need/special educational need or disability will have an inclusion wheel.

Section 8 is the recording and reviewing action paperwork (filled in by Lisa Lowes) and agreed with parents and other professionals (where relevant).

Section 9 regards planning for transitions to other setting where the child has an ongoing need.