The Special Educational Needs Code of Practice (SEN Code)

This will guide what will happen when you express your concern about your child’s speech in any nursery or other pre-school receiving funding from the government. If your child is placed with a childminder for example, then the SEN Code of Practice also applies, and the childminder will be part of a network, usually under the auspices of the local authority, that provides access to an advisor on special educational needs. You can get a copy of the SEN Code from the Department for Education (DFE). It explains how assessment and support will be made for your child and every educational setting must have a clear policy on this. Often your pre-school will have a copy of this on display.

Gifted and talented children who stammer

There is more understanding now of the need for pre-schools to identify children who are gifted and/or talented so many pre-schools will have a separate policy on this, or may include that policy within the general policy on special educational needs.

Additional support

The SEN Code outlines the stages by which your child can receive additional support according to his individual needs. It can be very helpful for a child who stammers and it is important that parents do express their concerns using the Code as a guide. Many parents do worry that if their child is supported by the SEN Code and placed on the pre-school SEN register, as having special educational needs, that this will label their child in a detrimental way. This is not the case at all, as the information is only available to the parents and the relevant professionals. Also the Code is intended to operate flexibly so that the child may be removed from the SEN register once his identified need has been met. The SEN Code is a helpful mechanism for making it clear that a child has identified needs that require additional support, usually temporarily for many children who stammer.

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Text for this page: The Special Educational Needs Code of Practice (SEN Code)
Text for this whole section: How to get support for learning for your child who stammers