Whole school autism competency approach for EYFS settings

An estimated 20% of the population is neurodivergent, with many remaining undiagnosed.

(Nerenberg, 2021)

Educating children about neurodiversity from Early Years and having supports available as the norm will benefit all learners including those without a diagnosis, as practitioners will be empowered to notice and act upon the apparent needs of the children in their setting without waiting for a clinical diagnosis as validation to do so.

 Adopting neurodiversity-affirming practice in the education setting therefore involves changing perspectives at a whole-school level, with neurodivergent practitioners, children and families at the centre of the setting’s inclusion process.

Neurodiversity-affirming principles and approaches should be embedded into all aspects of Early Years culture and across the curriculum. Incorporating age-appropriate programmes such as NeuroBears or Teifi and Friends may help children to recognise that there are different but equally valid ways of doing things, and promote acceptance of individuality and difference within the classroom, along with the modelling of neurodiversity-affirming language and practices at a schoolwide level.

The Middletown EYFS Supportive Setting Evaluation Framework was created to support educational settings in achieving best practice by reflecting, measuring, and evaluating the use of inclusive practices across their setting.

The following key principles were identified to support best practice for inclusive provision in the EYFS setting:

Teaching and learning

• The setting identifies the holistic needs of all learners.
• The setting uses a holistic approach to assessment that includes the child’s sensory needs, emotional wellbeing, and preferred  way of communicating, interacting, playing, and learning. 
• The setting supports child-led, play-based learning.
• The setting demonstrates equality of access to activities for all learners. 
• The setting demonstrates how it effectively plans for induction and end of year transitions to support  all children and their parents.

Environment

• Staff use an Environmental Checklist to identify adaptations required to support children and young people across environments.
• You create enabling environments based on the individual child and through making reasonable adjustments accordingly. 
• The setting provides and promotes environments conducive to supporting the wellbeing of learners.  
• The setting shows evidence of individualised visual supports which provide meaning, context, and clarity within the learning environment.  
• The setting demonstrates its understanding of the sensory modulation needs of all learners and makes accommodations where relevant.   

Strengths and Needs

• The setting has procedures in place to gather information directly from the child, parents/carers and other relevant agencies to ensure collaboration and sharing of ideas. 
• The setting can demonstrate that information gathered from parents is used to motivate and engage children in their learning and development.   
• The setting actively engages children in making decisions about their own learning.
• The setting develops and implements targeted child-centred support plans in partnership with the child and parents. These are regularly reviewed to monitor progress. 
• The setting supports the continuous professional development of staff and creates time for staff to reflect on, discuss and evaluate their practice.

Culture of Inclusion

• The setting has robust policies and procedures – e.g.  inclusion policy, equal opportunities policy, SEN policy and co-ordinator.
• The setting respects all children equally, nurturing each child’s identity and sense of belonging. 
• The setting ensures that children of all abilities have equal access to culturally and developmentally appropriate play-based educational activities, both indoors and outdoors. 
• The setting provides a curriculum and materials that reflect the identities of all children and recognises their abilities and interests.
• The setting supports children to celebrate diversity and feel comfortable with difference.

Supporting Families

• The setting provides information in accessible formats to families who may have differences in literacy; visual impairment; may be deaf/hard of hearing, or may have English as an additional language.
• The setting provides an open door policy whereby parents can come to you to discuss sensitive issues relating to their child. 
• The setting  engages and builds up trust with parents/carers to establish and develop ways of communicating and sharing information, ideas, and progress.  
• The setting actively listens to and involves parents/carers in contributing to decisions about their child’s education and future aspirations. 
• The setting works collaboratively with health, social care, and other professionals to improve educational experiences and outcomes for all children.