Key information for Special Educational Needs Coordinators (SENCOs) in early years settings

This page provides key information and relevant links for SENCOs working in Kent early years settings.

Key legislation for Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND)
Special educational needs and disability code of practice: 0 to 25 years (January 2015) valid from 1 April 2015 Statutory Framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) Equality Act 2010 summary Disabled children and the Equality Act 2010: what Early Years providers need to know and do, including responsibilities to disabled children under the Children and Families Act 2014.

SEND information hub
The SEND information hub offers key information for families about support, services and opportunities available in Kent.

SEND reflection tool (SRT)
The SRT is designed to support settings to evaluate different aspects of their practice in regards to Special Educational Needs and Disabilities. The SRT is fully funded, so free to all Kent settings.

One stop document
The one stop document (coming soon) is useful when thinking about which service a child or family might need. It details the range of professionals available to suit different circumstances and clearly shows you which service provides that support. You may find you have to make referrals to a combination of services. There are some regional variations in the services available. Contact your Early Years Quality Adviser for more details or email EYCQuality@theeducationpeople.org to contact the team.

One stop document

The one stop document (coming soon) is useful when thinking about which service a child or family might need.
It details the range of professionals available to suit different circumstances and clearly shows you which service provides that support.
You may find you have to make referrals to a combination of services.
There are some regional variations in the services available. Contact your Early Years Quality Adviser for more details or email EYCQuality@theeducationpeople.org to contact the team.

STLS Sensory Service
Kent's STLS Sensory Service supports children and young people with hearing impairments, vision impairments or multi-sensory impairments (HI, VI and MSI). The STLS Sensory Service have an open referrals system. Children and young people are usually referred on diagnosis by health professionals, including those from the Newborn Hearing Screening Programme. Parents, preschools, schools and colleges can refer children and young people with diagnosed hearing impairment, vision impairment or deafblindness.

Kent's STLS Sensory Service supports children and young people with hearing impairments, vision impairments or multi-sensory impairments (HI, VI and MSI).
The STLS Sensory Service have an open referrals system. Children and young people are usually referred on diagnosis by health professionals, including those from the Newborn Hearing Screening Programme. Parents, preschools, schools and colleges can refer children and young people with diagnosed hearing impairment, vision impairment or deafblindness.

Education, Health and Care plans (EHCP)
An EHCP is designed to support children with severe and complex needs. An EHCP draws together professionals from education, health and social care to meet the specific needs of a child. For guidance on requesting an Education, Health and Care Needs Assessment, see link above.

SEND Support and Inclusion
Information on EY training, Supporting documents, EY Professional Resource Groups, Kent Portage, and Special Educational Needs Inclusion Fund (SENIF).

Other useful pages on Kelsi

For information about SEND Code of Practice, Statutory Framework, Equality Act 2010, local offer and details of training available to support SEND.