Every child or young person is a unique individual with distinct strengths, needs, and learning preferences. For educators, developing a deep understanding of each child or young person is essential to making informed decisions about provision, support, and strategies that enable meaningful progress.
This guidance organises strategies and resources into four broad areas of need. However, children and young people rarely fit neatly into these categories. Many experience overlapping needs, and their strengths and barriers may span multiple domains.
The categorisation within the database is intended as a navigational aid, not a rigid framework. While strategies have been grouped to support ease of use, they are not exclusive to any single area of need.
Professionals are encouraged to use the database flexibly, drawing on strategies across different areas to create tailored, responsive support. The most effective plans reflect the whole child, considering not only identified needs, but also their interests, strengths, relationships, and wider context.
By keeping each learner’s uniqueness at the centre, settings can ensure the resource serves its true purpose: to inspire and guide professional judgement, not to constrain it.
Reflective Questions
Use these prompts to guide planning, review, and collaborative decision-making:
- What are the child or young person’s strengths, interests, and aspirations? How can these be harnessed to support engagement and progress?
- What specific barriers is the learner currently facing? Consider academic, social, emotional, sensory, and environmental factors.
- How has universal provision (including high-quality teaching) supported the child or young person so far? What has been effective, and where are gaps emerging?
- Which strategies or adjustments are most appropriate at this stage? Are they evidence-informed, practical, and tailored to the learner’s profile?
- In what ways have the child/young person and their family contributed to planning and decision-making? How are their views, experiences, and priorities reflected?
- How will the effectiveness of these strategies be monitored? What indicators, observations, or data will be used?