Schools, early years and childcare

A child’s teacher is responsible for working with them on a day-to-day basis but may decide to write down the actions or help for that child in an Individual Education Plan (IEP).

The IEP should say:

• what special help is being given,
• how often the child will receive the help,
• who will provide the help,
• what the targets for the child are,
• how and when the child’s progress will be checked,
• what help parents can give their child at home.

The child’s teacher should discuss the IEP with the parents and the child if possible. IEPs should be reviewed at least twice a year.

IEPs will usually be linked to the main areas of language, literacy, mathematics, behaviour and social skills. Sometimes the school or early education setting will not write an IEP but will record how it is meeting the child’s needs in a different way, perhaps as part of the lesson plans and will record the child’s progress in the same way as it does for all the other children. The school should always be able to tell parents how it is helping their child, what progress they are making and explain why it has not written an IEP.

Remember – it is how a child is helped that is important and not the way in which the school writes it down.

If a child does not make enough progress, the teacher or the special educational needs co-ordinator (SENCO) will talk to their parents about asking for advice from other people outside the school. They might want to ask for help from, for example, a specialist teacher, an educational psychologist, a speech and language therapist or other health professionals. This kind of help is called Early Years Action Plus or School Action Plus.

The SENCO should try to include parents in any discussions and should consider their views in making any decisions about how best to help their child, keeping them informed about their child’s progress.

The SEN Code of Practice is very clear about the importance of early education settings, schools, the council and parents working together. Parents should have plenty of opportunities to find out what is happening.

Parents are very important at all times.

Talking through any worries or concerns they might have with the people at the early education setting, the class teacher, the SENCO or the head teacher should sort out any concerns or misunderstandings.

^ (back to top)