Early Years

Page updated on: 14/08/2024

Every Local Authority has a designated officer known as the 'Early Years Additional Learning Needs Lead Officer' ('EYALNLO') who will have the responsibility for co-ordinating the Local Authority's strategic responsibilities in relation to children under compulsory school age (0-5) who are not attending maintained schools.
The role of the Early Years ALNLO is:

To work with parents/carers, early years settings, health professionals and all other agencies who are working with children below compulsory school age (0-5) who have emerging or identified Additional Learning Needs (ALN).
To support the development of plans for children with severe and complex needs.
To raise awareness of ALN systems and to promote early intervention.
To provide ALN awareness raising training and advice in pre-school settings.
To support children who have emerging or identified ALN with enhanced transition planning when entering settings and schools.
To work collaboratively with partner services such as Health and Children’s Services.
Please contact the Early Years Additional Learning Needs Lead Officer for further information if required: Tracey Davies, email: TJDavies@carmarthenshire.gov.uk

Early Years Inclusion Panel 

The Panel focuses on children in the Early Years, under 5 years old, who are not yet attending school and who have emerging or identified Additional Learning Needs (ALN). The role of the panel is to work in a multi-disciplinary way to look at what advice / strategies or Additional Learning Provision is needed to best support the child, at that time. Health Visitors can refer your child to the Early Years Panel via the S64 form.

Possible outcomes:
Intervention: a period where a child may access additional intervention to support with social, communication and play skills.
Intervention support staff: children may gain access to intervention support staff in their childcare setting. The support is used to help children work toward their person-centred outcomes.
Family Support: this could take place in the form of workshops, groups or individually, which can be home based.
Transition support: information will be shared with the childcare setting / school to support a positive transition experience, facilitated by the Early Years Additional Learning Needs Lead officer (EYALNLO) or Designated Co-ordinator (DesCo). This will be done via a ‘Transition Meeting’. A transition meeting takes place during the term before a child starts a new school. The meeting will be a person-centred planning meeting with parents, professionals involved around the child, the early years setting and school the child is due to attend. A transition meeting is held to ensure that there is discussion about how the child will be supported and provide an opportunity for the parent/guardian to share key information that will help the new school support the child. A One Page Profile (OPP) will be developed for the child. If it is recognised that a child does have additional learning needs which requires additional learning provision then an Individual Development Plan (IDP) will be developed for the child.

The following websites may be useful for more information:

Education & Schools

Bilingual education

Find a school

School Admissions and Changing Schools

Additional Learning Needs

School transport

Emergency school closures

Home schooling - Elective Home Education (EHE)

Adult Learning

Adult Learning Courses

School term dates

Road safety

School meals

ParentPay

Pendine Outdoor Education Centre

Youth Support

Participation and children's rights

School sport & leisure

Financial Support

Miss school : Miss out

School budgets

School governors

Carmarthenshire's Modernising Education Programme

Education Sir Gâr 2022-2032

Our behaviour impacts everything and everyone

Multiply

More from Education & Schools