Transition into an Early Years setting

A child’s transition begins into an early years setting before they step foot through the door on their first day.

Neither does it finish the moment they step through that door.

It starts before then and carries on afterwards.

It is a process, not an event.

Settings often send out a questionnaire, sometimes called ‘All About Me’. If you feel this is not sufficient to capture everything they need to know about your child, ask for a meeting with the setting Special Educational Needs and Disabilities Coordinator (SENCO).

The more information that a setting has about your child means that they have more chance of getting the provision right.

You may be worried that being open about your child’s requirements means the setting will say they cannot meet need however because the setting is being funded by the LA the following apply –

• Local authorities must ensure that all providers they fund in the maintained, private, voluntary and independent sectors are aware of the requirement on them to have regard to the SEND Code of Practice and to meet the needs of children with special educational needs (SEN) and disabilities. When securing funded early education for two-, three- and four-year-olds local authorities should promote equality and inclusion for children with disabilities or SEN. This includes removing barriers that prevent children accessing early education and working with parents to give each child support to fulfil their potential.
• Code of Practice 5.59; Local authorities must ensure that all providers delivering funded early education places meet the needs of children with SEN and disabled children. In order to do this local authorities should make sure funding arrangements for early education reflect the need to provide suitable support for these children.
• Equality Act 2010 5.10 All early years providers have duties under the Equality Act 2010. In particular, they must not discriminate against, harass or victimise disabled children, and they must make reasonable adjustments,
• This duty is anticipatory – it requires thought to be given in advance to what disabled children and young people might require and what adjustments might need to be made to prevent that disadvantage. All publicly funded early years providers must promote equality of opportunity for disabled children. There is further detail on the disability discrimination duties under the Equality Act in Chapter 1, Code of Practice 2015, Introduction. The guidance in this chapter should be read in the light of the guidance in Chapter 1 which focuses on inclusive practice and removing barriers to learning. Visit SEND code of practice: 0 to 25 years – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) (external link)
• Early years providers must provide information for parents on how they support children with SEN and disabilities and should regularly review and evaluate the quality and breadth of the support they offer or can access for children with SEN or disabilities.

Tell the setting about your child.

• What do they enjoy doing?
• Do they have any specific likes or dislikes?
• What do they prefer to be called?

What things may they need to know about your child.

• How do you comfort your child?
• Are there particular things that they do not like i.e. loud noises, bright lights?
• Are there any medical needs they need to be aware of?

Tell them about your child’s family or carers.

• Family members and/or other adults important to the child?
• Can you tell us about the languages spoken at home?
• Is there any other information that you would like to share?

Get to know your child’s key person, as well as the SENCO, as this relationship is going to be very important

These visits are very important to help the child and family to find things out e.g. where to hang your coat, where are the toilets?  If a child becomes unsure of the new systems then that can affect their learning, however parent/carers and professionals may need to make a judgement in some cases where the needs of the child may be such that visits to setting may not be appropriate or there may be a need to have more visits. 

The parent or carer should be able to go with the child on these transition visits.

Lunchtimes and snack times may be different to those that the child is used to.

Parents / carers knowing routines can make settings aware of any potential problems. This can help make things easier for the child.

If your child is likely to be upset by a setting full of children, you have a couple of options. Ask the setting to arrange a visit for you and your child when there are fewer children in or ask if you could visit after the other children have left.

You do need to bear in mind that settings may have staff meetings / training / setting up for the next day / record keeping happening at the end of the day.

If it would be helpful for your child to have photographs to refer to after your visit, please arrange this through the setting. You will not be allowed to use a camera or the camera function on a mobile phone if any other children are present. This is due to statutory safeguarding procedures that a setting must adhere to.

If there are any agencies or teams involved with your child do let the setting know. You can give written consent for the setting to speak to these professionals. It will be really useful for the setting to know what support is being provided so that they can build this into their provision. Some professionals will also visit the setting to speak to staff and may offer some training in how to support your child.

Portage – if your child is currently receiving support from a Portage Home Visitor, they will provide support for your child’s transition. Please speak to them about this. They have a well-developed process around supporting transitions for children that they are involved with at the time of transition.

If your child has had support previously you will have been given targets sheets or activity plans and a summary of your child’s progress against their developmental profile. It is really useful information for settings so we would advise parents to keep hold of them.

Health – if your child is receiving support from a Health professional for example a speech and language therapist do let both them and the setting know and share any care plans or targets with them. The health professional may carry out future visits in the setting to support staff. Some parents aren’t aware that health professionals can work in partnership with early years settings. They may contact the setting to discuss your child’s needs / arrange a visit / adjust targets to include the setting…. Even if this doesn’t happen you can share any information that the health professional has given you that may help the setting support your child successfully. This information does not belong to the health professional.

You may also want to see what support an early years setting can provide – see SEN Support in Parent/Carers section

There are 3 main avenues of financial support that may be available to enable settings to prepare for the transition of a child with special educational needs and/or disabilities.

• Early year pupil premium
• Disability Access Fund
• Inclusion Funding

These are described in detail on our document about choosing an early years setting (including childminders) Early Years Settings and Special Educational Needs (SEND) information.

You can also access information through visiting North Yorkshire Council’s website Early years funding for 3 and 4 year olds | North Yorkshire Council

Early years settings including childminders must follow the SEND Code of Practice 2015 in the same way that schools do, providing additional and different support for those children identified who have or may have SEND, including seeking specialist advice, referring to the SEND Hub and considering whether the child may require an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) in order to have their needs met. When your child is moving on from a setting, a school cannot refuse to admit them if they have SEND but do not have an EHCP.

For more information about the SEND Hub and what they provide visit SEND hubs | CYPSinfo (northyorks.gov.uk)