Special education provision we expect from places of learning
Communication and interaction: speech, language and communication needs
Children and young people with speech, language and communication needs (SLCN) have difficulty in communicating with others. This may be because they:
- Have difficulty saying what they want to
- Have difficulty understanding what is being said to them
- Do not understand or use social rules of communication
The profile for every child with SLCN is different and their needs may change over time. They may have difficulty with one, some or all the different aspects of speech, language or social communication at different times of their lives.
Our full Provision Expected at SEN Support (PEaSS) guidance describes the difficulties and learning profiles a child might have with:
- Attention and listening
- Understanding
- Spoken language
- Speech sounds
- Social communication and interaction
- Learning and cognition
It describes what the whole school or setting can do to support children. It also describes the approaches a classroom teacher can use and the strategies a SENDCo can use. These can include:
- How to best give verbal instructions
- Actively teaching a child strategies for what to say and do if they don’t understand
- Using symbols to support spoken language and text
- Allowing extra time to complete tasks
- Identifying lead professionals within a setting and ensuring they have the right training
- How to access specialist professional support
Read the full PEaSS guidance document to find a full list of the different aspects of SLCN and the suggested approaches for support in the classroom, school, and for the SENDCo.
You can access the guidance document from the Schools and Learning Providers website.