The resources below can be used to support and extend your practice and provision, but all settings must also have regard to relevant legislation and regulation.
If you can't find what you are looking for please contact the Family Information Service.
The Ordinarily Available Inclusive Practice guide - Section 2 Annex for Early Years settings highlights some of the tailored approaches that can be used to support children in the early years.
From January 2025, the Early Years Individual Support Plan (EYISP) has been replaced with the Information gathering form as part of the SEND under 5 process. You should delete any old EYISP templates.
The information gathering form will be submitted to the Special Education Needs Assessment Team (SENAT). If the incorrect paperwork is submitted it will be rejected.
If a child has received an outcome of information gathering from SEND under 5 you will need to use this form to collate all the information. This form will be submitted to SENAT and used to decide at Considerations Panel whether a child will go forward for an Education, Health, and Care Needs Assessment (EHCNA). It is not a needs assessment request.
This action plan for inclusion document is embedded in the Information gathering document. It can still be accessed and used in isolation for children you are not gathering information for. It uses the Assess, Plan, Do, Review cycle to monitor children’s progress.
This supported transition plan should be used to help plan a supported transition for a child with SEND.
Inclusion Funding can be awarded to support the inclusion and participation of children with severe/complex needs and/or a disability that are accessing an Early Years Funded Entitlement (EYFE) place with an Early Years provider.
Visit our Inclusion Funding web page for more information.
The SEND Under 5s process seeks to establish proactive, practical support for families at an early stage, as well as identification of the support needed throughout their early years and into school. The process will be overseen by the Early Years and Childcare Advisers who provide inclusion support within pre-school settings.
For more information and to refer a child, visit the Send Under 5's referral page.
Children with SEND who are likely to go on to need additional support in school should be referred to the local authority in which they live. For information on referral processes in a neighbouring local authority, visit their website:
The Speech and Language Therapy Service and SaLSS therapists liaise with the Early Years and Childcare advisors to ensure appropriate support is available to Early Years settings.
Where individual transition planning will be beneficial for children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), we have developed materials in conjunction with partner organisations. These can assist practitioners in schools and early years settings, health professionals, parents and carers to work together to ensure a smooth transition into a new setting.
The following documents from the Transition Plan above, are provided here in Word to adapt for your setting:
This approach is based on the values of inclusion and helps adults plan the support a child needs to be included and involved in their community (which includes you as their childcare setting).
This pack is intended to provide the tools needed to plan for children who have an identified special educational need or disability (SEND), or where there is a concern about the child’s learning and development. It also provides support in meeting the principles of the Special Educational Needs and Disability Code of Practice (January 2015).
The following parts of the pack are provided in Microsoft Word format to adapt for your own setting:
The Early Years Pupil Premium (EYPP) is additional funding for early years settings to improve the education they provide for disadvantaged 3 and 4 year olds.
A child who is being looked after by their local authority is known as a child in care. They might be living with foster parents, at home with their parents under the supervision of social services, in residential children's homes, or other residential settings like schools or secure units. They might have been placed in care voluntarily by parents struggling to cope, or children's services may have intervened because a child was at significant risk of harm.