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What are special educational needs
All parents want to give their child the best possible start and see them develop into a happy, confident and successful adult. However, there may be times when your child seems to be having difficulty in mastering a new skill or seems slow in a particular area of development. As a parent you will want to know whether this is normal or whether it is something you should be concerned about. It can be particularly worrying if other children you know seem to be developing more quickly than your child. It is important to remember that all children develop at different times.
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What are special educational needs
Special Educational Needs (SEN) means that your child has a difficulty in learning or has emotional, behavioural, sensory or physical problems, or has problems with communication. For many, the difficulties are temporary but a small number of children have difficulties that are more complex and long-term.
If your child has significant SEN the community paediatrician will ask your permission to inform the local authority (LA). The LA will then decide whether to make a statutory assessment of your child’s SEN. The purpose of this would be to make a detailed assessment of all your child’s difficulties and may result in an Educational Health and Care Plan (EHCP).
If the LA decides to make an assessment of your child’s SEN, they will arrange for an educational psychologist to visit them, either at home or at their school.
Some children’s difficulties only become noticeable as they go through primary or occasionally even secondary school. Your child’s school will take steps to identify what the difficulties are and may give your child extra help. For most children this is sufficient to enable them to learn effectively.
What types of difficulties could be SEN?
Children may have difficulties in one or more areas. Here are some examples:
- Thinking, understanding and learning: these children may find all learning activities difficult, or have particular difficulties with some learning activities such as reading and spelling.
- Emotional and behavioural difficulties: these children may have very low self-esteem and lack confidence. They may find it difficult to follow rules or settle down and behave properly in school.
- Speech, language and communication: these children may have difficulty in expressing themselves or understanding what others are saying to them. They may find it hard to make friends or relate to others. They may find it difficult to make sense of the world around them or to organise themselves.
- Physical or sensory difficulties: these children may have a disability or a medical condition that has an impact upon their learning. They may have a visual or hearing impairment.
Spotting the signs
Parents know their child better than anyone else and will usually be the first people to notice that something is not quite right. These are some of the things parents say:
- My child seems different from other children
- They always play with the same things or plays on their own most of the time
- They seem to be behind and is not as independent as other children and I can see the gap widening between them and their friends
- My child is not able to do the things my older child did at this age
- They tend to wander around a lot and doesn’t seem to settle to anything
- We can’t understand things they say
- They struggle to listen when the whole group is asked to do something
- My child seems to be unable to share
- They want my attention all the time
- My child often gets upset and is difficult to console or has meltdowns
- My child doesn’t seem able to hold a paintbrush or build with bricks like other young children
When should I be worried?
If you have any worries about your child or have noticed any of the things described above, speak to your health visitor, doctor, early years staff at nursery or toddler group or their school teacher. Make some notes before speaking to staff or professionals so that you have clear examples of what you are worried about. It is important to check out if the difficulties are significant and, if so, how your child can be helped.
Health visitor checks
Your child will be offered regular developmental checks at 18 months and three years, as well as the normal programme of regular visits. During these checks your health visitor may notice that your child seems to have greater difficulty in some areas of development than other children of the same age; or, your child may appear to have some difficulties with hearing or vision, a physical difficulty or behaviour problems. If the health visitor is concerned about anything she notices or anything you tell her about your child, she will arrange for your child to be seen by a specialist to find out more.
Getting support
There are many kinds of specialist services available. These include community paediatricians who specialise in child development, a sleep and behaviour clinic, an eye unit, an audiology clinic, speech and language therapy and occupational therapy, to name just a few. Specialist services are usually very busy and you may have to wait a little while for an appointment. When you get an appointment time, do keep it because you may have to wait a long time for another one. When you see the specialist, pass on as much information as you can about your child. As a parent you may have noticed something which others are not aware of. If further action is needed the specialist will be able to arrange this or may make suggestions as to how you can help your child at home.
You should be told if the school thinks your child has or may have SEN and how the school will be helping your child. Your views are very important and so are your child’s own views. The school should make sure that you are involved in all decisions that affect your child because you have a vital role in supporting your child’s education. Please make an appointment to speak to your school SENCO to discuss what support is available.
What is an educational psychologist?
An educational psychologist is a qualified psychologist who is a specialist in understanding how children learn. They work very closely with schools and early years settings, advising about SEN, observing and assessing children who have difficulties and suggesting suitable learning programmes. You will be asked to give written permission before the educational psychologist assesses your child and will have a chance to talk to him/her after the assessment.
Further resources
If you would like further support and advice, call our helpline on 0808 800 2222 or email us at askus@familylives.org.uk. You can talk to us online via our live chat service or message us via WhatsApp on 07441 444125 to connect with experienced professional family support workers and highly-trained volunteers. You may find it helps to find out how other parents and carers have coped with this on our online forums. We also have a range of free self-guided online parenting courses that can help through the ages and stages of parenting.
Our online parenting information is written by experienced parenting professionals. Find out more about our content authors, how it is produced, reviewed and edited.
Other organisations that can help
If you need legal or educational advice, please contact CORAM Children’s Legal Centre.
IPSEA - provides Independent Parental Special Education Advice on all educational matters for SEN.
Special Needs Jungle - provides parent-centred information, news, special needs resources and informed opinion about SEND and disabilities.