These documents have been developed collaboratively by a range of stakeholders across Milton Keynes, including schools/settings, colleagues from the wider SEND Team and health partners. 

Both documents include a detailed range of considerations and provision that might be provided as part of the ordinarily available provision within settings/schools. They are aimed at all setting/school staff and act as a supportive reference point when planning reasonable adjustments as well as targeted support. 

We are offering a short series of online briefing sessions his term to early years providers and schools- these will be used to introduce the document and share its purpose. We will also be focusing on different sections of the document through our SenCo Quadrant and Early Years SenCo meetings over the coming months. 

Please find information on the Ordinarily Available Provision - Early Years

The First Assessment Communication Tool - FACT / FACT+

The First Assess Communication Tool (FACT) has been produced by a range of professionals working with children and young people with speech, language and communication needs (SLCN) in Milton Keynes. It has been created to support the Milton Keynes Inclusion Strategy, with the intention of helping settings and schools to meet learners’ speech, language and communication needs. 

Early Years FACT  - full version 

Early Years FACT Descriptors 

Early Years FACT Plus  - full version 

Early Years FACT Plus Descriptors 

tell it once guidance

tell it once example

Early years SEN Support Plan February 2024

Inclusion Grant Funding Form

Please find the application form to apply for Inclusion Grant Funding 

EHC Needs Assessments; a quick guide for Early Years Providers

We recommend as a Local Area that parents and schools and settings work collaboratively to submit a request for an EHCP assessment as working in partnership will enable all to have relevant evidence and a clear understanding of need.

When submitting an EHC Needs Assessment you should ensure you provide the following:

Up to date SEND Support Plan that evidences the Assess Plan Do Review (APDR) cycle over time, and demonstrates very limited/no impact on the child’s progress despite support at a personalised level being implemented. Within the SEND Support Plan, ensure the following is also up to date:

• Childs views page
• Tell Your Story Once completed with parents
• Attainment data
• Attendance data (if in school)

The most recent relevant reports/communication from external professionals- make sure that evidence of these (recommendations/outcomes made, suggested provision etc) are within the SEND Support Plan.

Detailed timetable of support that demonstrates how additional adult support is being used to provide personalised support for the child

EHC Needs Assessment paperwork 

Please remember that the EHC Needs Assessment request you submit forms part of the appendix bundle if an assessment is undertaken- the maximum number of pages is 100.

EHCP documents for professionals 

• guidelines for assessment for Education, Health and Care Plan - Please check back regularly for updated versions
• additional paperwork for an EHC request 
• Annual review report
• Annual review guidance and template

For additional information please see out EHCP page. 

The EYFS Statutory Framework 2021 places greater emphasis on professional judgement rather than using data and tick boxes to record progress.

Development Matters is non-statutory government guidance that states:

• Assessment is about noticing what children can do and what they know. It is not about lots of data and evidence
• Effective assessment requires practitioners to understand child development. Practitioners also need to be clear about what they want children to know and be able to do.
• Accurate assessment can highlight whether a child has a special educational need and needs extra help.
• Assessment should not take practitioners away from the children for long periods of time.

Development Matters looks at what a child under 3 years might be able to, and compares it to that of a child over 3. It also gives suggestions for how practitioners might support.

SEND assessment guidance and resources

Practical, early years SEND assessment resources that you can use to help children with SEND.  

A Celebratory Approach to Working with Children with SEND: is a DfE funded document that sets out in detail how early years settings might consider the needs of their children with SEND, plan to meet those needs and evaluate their impact on the child’s progress. It states that:

‘Any written documentation should not be a long list of outcomes or a tick box that forms unnecessary data and evidence. It should not take practitioners away from children for long periods of time. It should be a rich and powerful celebration of a child’s individual learning journey or form part of a more specific assessment/referral process’.

In Milton Keynes, the SEND Support Plan seeks to do just this.

For children with the most complex and/or multiple needs it may be necessary to understand their development using a more detailed assessment tool that breaks down learning and progress into smaller steps. Here are some options:

Birth to 5 Matters is a non-statutory guidance written by the early years sector. This breaks down areas of development into smaller age ranges from birth to 5 years.

The Early Years Developmental Journal: this breaks down development into smaller steps. This is a useful tool for families to note milestones and achievements

Cherry Garden School  This is a free to use tool.