Skip to content ↓

SEND

Our local authority, Central Bedfordshire Council, has a local offer website which contains a range of useful information including advice, guidance and support services for children, young adults and families.

 

Central Beds SEND local Offer Link - Welcome to the Central Bedfordshire SEND Local Offer

What is a SENCo?

Michelle Watts, our Pre-school Deputy Leader, is our designated Special Educational Needs and Disability Co-ordinator (SENCo) for The Saplings Pre school.

As SENCo, Michelle will work closely with parents/carers and external agencies to meet the individual needs of each child.

 

For SENCo related enquiries please contact

email: michelle.watts@firslower.org

Mrs Michelle Watts
Pre-school Deputy Leader

How will the setting support my child?

As part of our settling in process, we offer each family a home visit prior to your child starting at The Saplings Preschool. This is an ideal opportunity to share any information you may feel relevant about your child before they begin their journey with us. 

Your child’s keyworker will work closely with you and your child, so they are able to identify any individual needs your child may have. 

How will The Saplings Pre-school identify whether my child needs extra support?

At The Saplings Pre-school each child is allocated a key person who will work closely with your child, carrying out regular observations to assess each child’s developmental milestones in line with the EYFS. These observations will allow us to quickly identify or highlight any gaps in your child’s learning. 

Your child’s keyworker will complete a two year progress check, this will highlight any areas of concern and will be discussed with the parent/carer. 

At The Saplings Preschool we have regular morning briefings and team meetings where we discuss children’s individual needs and development. 

Who will be involved in my child's learning?

Your child will be allocated a keyworker, who you will be able to make initial contact with, however all of The Saplings team will be involved in supporting your child’s learning including the SENCo. 

What other agencies do we work with?

We work closely with a range of outside agencies who may be able to offer additional support to your child. These include;

  • Our Child Development Officer
  • Speech and Language Therapist (SALT) 
  • Our Community Nursery Nurse
  • Early Years Send Team
  • Childhood Development Centre 

We put suggestions up on our main entrance window giving parents guidance/support that is available locally. This could include speech and language drop in sessions and other services which may be suitable for our Preschool age children.

We offer 'Lift off to Language' sessions every half term which are suitable for all children.

More information on this can be found on the ‘Lift off to Language’ tab, in 'Our Learning'