Assessment, identification and monitoring

The management of the early years setting ensures that: 

• there are procedures in place for the management team to assess how effectively staff are meeting learning/developmental needs
• there are assessments, tracking and target setting procedures in place for all children that allows staff to identify any children not achieving or making the expected progress, as early as possible (please see Identification section for more details). 
• there is a system in place to further assess these children to identify the barriers to learning and to baseline the skills causing concern in order to inform intervention (please see SEN support in setting information for more details).
• within the setting, there is an emphasis on meeting the needs of all children rather than diagnosing conditions and this message is effectively communicated to parents/carers.
• adults in the setting clearly differentiate between when a child can complete tasks with support and independently
• adults in the setting are aware of the limitations of the assessment checklist used within the setting
• informal assessment happen every day but formal assessment are completed no more than 3 times a year
• risk assessments (link) and care plans (link), where required, are in place and regularly reviewed
• there are processes in place to monitor and record identified children’s progress more closely such as Review meetings using the principles of Assess, Plan, Do Review which includes setting staff, parents/carers and the child (please see SEN Support in Settings section for more details).
• children with SEND make at least expected progress
• parents/carers know who to approach in the setting if they have concerns or information regarding their child’s development
• there are processes in place for sharing information with all staff regarding individual children development.

A Celebratory Approach to SEND Assessment in the Early Years  provides a comprehensive, positive assessment framework for early years settings to use.