What to do if you are worried about your child's progress and development
All children make progress and develop at different rates and at different ages. There is a wealth of information available which is useful as general guidance about childhood milestones, but remember, your child is unique and you know them best.
Speech, language and communication needs
Family drop ins, information sessions and advice line
There are several different ways to speak with a specialist regarding concerns you may have about your child’s speech and language development. Visit the Community Children’s Health Partnership website to find the most up to date drop in sessions available, and details of information sessions and their advice line.
I CAN helping children communicate
I CAN gives parents/carers the information they need to help children develop their speech, language and communication skills. If a child has difficulty understanding language or speaking, they may struggle in nursery or school. If the problem persists, they might require support, but with the right help, they can develop the skills they need.
I CAN has developed a range of resources and factsheets to help children with speech, language and communication needs. To find out more visit the I CAN website.
For more information about your child’s speech, language and communication needs, visit our article Speech, language and communication needs (SLCN).
Further help and support
If you have any questions or concerns at all about your child, contact your local Health Visitor service. Your local Health Visitor service offers support for parents of all children (from pregnancy to age five), whatever their circumstances.
Visit the Community Children’s Health Partnership website to find out how to contact your local Health Visitor.
The document What to expect, when on The Foundation Years website and produced by the Department for Education provides valuable information for parents.
If you have concerns about your child’s progress, then pinpoint what your specific worries are and discuss them with either your GP or Health Visitor.
If your child is in an early years setting, either a pre-school, nursery or child minder, then discuss your concerns with them. In a setting, your child will have a Key Worker who will know them well. Talk over any concerns you may have with them and they will be able to give you advice and strategies to support your child. Your childminder will be able to do this too.
All settings have a SENCO (Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator) who is responsible for implementing the SEND Code of Practice in the setting. Childminders are also SENCOs. If your child is delayed then they will discuss this with you and put agreed measures in place to provide extra support for your child. You can do lots of activities at home too so you work in partnership. This process is called the Graduated response and it will be reviewed regularly with you, usually every 6 – 8 weeks. All the information and strategies will be recorded on a support plan which all parties sign and a copy will be shared with you. Often this extra support is enough to successfully help your child take those developmental steps. If not, then the SENCO will talk to you and agree the next steps to support your child in their learning.
All early years settings undertake observations and assessments of the children in their care. These will be shared regularly with you and you are encouraged to share any home learning that your child achieves. Many settings use electronic recording systems such as Tapestry or 2Simple. You will be given access to your child’s page only, which will let you see what they have been doing and you can add that important home learning onto their profile too. Children enjoy sharing these pages with their family.
Further support and advice is available to all early years’ settings and childminders from the South Gloucestershire Early Years’ Service. With your permission, a SENCO can contact them for more support. Someone from the team may visit the setting to observe your child and discuss support strategies with the staff.
For further information about support and services available, visit our SEND Local Offer page.