Just after they become 2, your child will have a health review. This is usually done by a nursery nurse or health visitor, and may happen at your home, at a baby clinic or at a Family Hub or Children's Centre.

If your child goes to an early years setting, they will also talk to you about your child's progress. If either or both of the reviews show that your child needs additional support, an Integrated Review will be carried out involving you, your health visitor and your child's key person or SENCOSENCOThe SENCO is responsible for coordinating provision for pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities. Those are children or young people who need more help than is normally available to pupils of the same age. .

All early years settings have to follow the Early Years Foundation Stage Statutory Framework (EYFS). This sets the standards for learning, development and care for children from 0 to 5.

All early years settings and schools in Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole follow a Graduated Response for children with SEND. This uses an 'Assess, Plan, Do, Review' cycle to make sure your child's needs are assessed and met.  You can find more details on the 'I am worried about my child's learning development' pages.

A small number of children with complex, severe and long term needs (about 3% of children) may need more specialist or extensive support through an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP).

If this is the case, it may be necessary for a request to be made to the local authority for an Education, Health and Care needs assessment.

Health to Education Notification (HEN)

If a health provider has recognised that your child may have a special educational need, they can support you by referring your child's details to the BCP Council Early Years Team. This referral is called a 'Health to Education Notice', often known as a HEN.

A HEN will notify BCP Council staff of your child's need and allow them to support your child's educational setting, by providing a personalised learning pathway which will support their future learning and development.

For more information about this and how it will help your child, please view the online leaflet on this page.