Last updated: April 2026

Review date: April 2027

At Paint Pots we are committed to the inclusion of children with special educational needs. We believe that all children have the right to be educated and have access to a broad and well-balanced education alongside their peers, no matter what their individual needs.

We provide a positive and welcoming environment where children are supported, ensuring no child is discriminated against or put at a disadvantage as a consequence of their needs. We are dedicated to working in partnership with parents to ensure children have the opportunity to develop to their full potential. Each child’s needs are unique therefore any attempt to categorise children will be deemed inappropriate.

We feel it is paramount to find out as much as possible about a particular child’s needs and the impact it has on their education by:

• Liaising with the child’s parents and, where appropriate, the
• Liaising with any professional
• Reading any reports that have previously been
• Attending any review meetings with the local authority/ external
• Regular monitoring of observations, individual health care plans (IEP) completed on the child’s development.

All children will be given a full settling period when joining the nursery according to their individual needs, (see Settling In policy.)

Special Educational Needs and Disability Code of Practice (2015)

The SEND Code of Practice (2015) defines Special Educational Needs as:

“A child or young person has SEN if they have a learning difficulty which calls for specialist educational provision to be made for him or her. For children aged two or more, a special educational provision is education or training provision that is additional to, or different from, that generally is made for other children of the same age. For a child under the age of two, special educational provision means education provision of any kind. A child under compulsory school age has special educational needs if he or she is likely to fall within the definition shown above when they reach compulsory school age or would do so if special educational provision were not made available to them”.

There is often an overlap between disability and special educational needs. A child can be defined as being disabled, having special educational needs (SEN) or having both a special educational need and a disability (SEND).

The Equality Act (2010) defines disability as:

“a physical or mental impairment and the impairment has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on their ability to carry out normal day to day activities”.

The SEND Code of Practice recommends that a Gradual Approach is adopted in terms of assessment and planning which is led and coordinated by the SENDCo.

Good practice of working together with parents, and the monitoring of children’s individual progress, will help identify any child with special educational needs or disabilities.

Each nursery has a named SENDCo who works alongside parents to assess their child’s needs and plan for suitable support. The SENDCo is responsible for ensuring appropriate records are kept in accordance with the SEND Code of Practice and will abide by responsibilities as laid out in the SENDCo job description.