Working together to build a community of support

Introduction

Parents are key to developing a community of support. You need to work in partnership with parents, who will be expert on their children – even if they may feel uncertain. You will explore ways of working with parents caring for children with additional support needs (ASN) and examine the possible effects of being given a diagnosis and accessing specialist support. Although it is not necessary to have a diagnosis when responding to children with ASN. You may be working alongside other professionals and drawing on a range of expertise or practical resources to provide support for a child.

Every child and every parent is unique and you need to be open to where each relationship will take you. What you learn from parents, and your developing knowledge of their child, will influence what resources and support you seek, whether they are within your setting, local authority, health board, voluntary sector or from the wider community. Together you will be building a community of support.

In Week 4 you will explore how to work with parents in caring for children, focusing on transitions and communication. You will reflect on the experience of seeking specialist support and gaining a diagnosis. You will consider the varied ways in which an early years practitioner can gain help from national and local initiatives. Early years settings are part of communities.

Figure 4.1  Communicating together in an early years setting

The content of Week 4 links to module learning outcomes (LO) 3 and 4:

  • LO3  Explain the need for all staff to take responsibility to support children with ASN (not just those with specialist training).
  • LO4  Be aware of the sources of support for ELC staff working with children who need additional support.

By the end of Week 4 you will be able to:

  • explain the need for all staff to take responsibility to support children with ASN (not just those with specialist training)
  • be aware of the sources of support for ELC staff working with children with ASN.

Continue to 4.1  Building relationships [Tip: hold Ctrl and click a link to open it in a new tab. (Hide tip)] .

4.1  Building relationships