EY: Early Years SEND Assessment Guidance and Resources 

Please see message below from the DfE:

The new DfE Early Years SEND assessment guidance and resources, developed by the department for education in partnership with Dingley’s Promise, are now available on the Help for Early Years Providers platform. They have been created to support a child-centred, strengths-based approach to assessing children’s needs and sharing their progress and learning with parents, carers and professionals.  

There is practical advice on assessment, alongside tools and downloadable resources to support early educators in assessing what children with SEND can do, capturing their voice, and setting targets for progress and learning.  

The guidance and resources follow the SEND Code of Practice and align with Early Years Foundation Stage assessment policy. They use best practices and evidence-based methods to provide early educators with practical advice to meet the needs of children with SEND in their care.  

Catherine McLeod, CEO of Dingley's Promise -“We are committed to making sure every child with SEND is able to thrive in the early years and understand that early identification of need is critical for ensuring the best start. This assessment toolkit was developed for the Department for Education in partnership with a range of settings, local authorities, and early years experts, and we are excited about the impact it will have. As the Government rolls out the increased early years entitlements, we hope that every local authority and setting will adopt this process, so that children, families, and practitioners will be confident that needs are being identified and met as early as possible, regardless of where they live in the country”.