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Awards Level 3
EY SENCO
Online learning
Course duration
4 Months
Early Years SENCO Level 3 Overview
The Level 3 Early Years SENCO qualification is for a Level 3 practitioner in a private, voluntary or independent setting. It is also appropriate for Ofsted-registered childminders and Ofsted-registered childminder agencies. This is an important role to ensure the best possible educational outcomes are achieved for children with special educational needs and disabilities.
All early years providers are required to have arrangements in place to identify and support children with SEN (Special Educational Needs) or disabilities and to promote equality of opportunity for children in their care, as set out in the EYFS Framework.
The qualification has been designed to meet the requirements of the EYFS Framework and provide Early Years SENCOs and aspiring Early Years SENCOs with the knowledge, understanding and skills needed to perform the role effectively. The programme is accredited and funded by the Department for Education (DfE).
As a part of the DfE Education Recovery Package, Best Practice Network has been allocated 7,000 funded places. These places will be prioritised in line with DfE’s guidance of the greatest need and impact. Please apply via our website and one of our consultants will contact you to discuss your eligibility and further steps.
What are the benefits?
Completing the Early Years SENCO qualification ensures that children with SEN and disabilities get the support they deserve. Participants learn how to:
- Explain what Special Educational Needs (SEN) are
- Describe the four areas of need and give examples of the difficulties associated with each
- Explain how to identify when SEN is occurring in children with EAL
- Explain how to actively engage the child and the child’s parents/carers in the Assess, Plan, Do, Review process
- Explain the role of the early years practitioner/key worker and that of the SENCO within the cycle
- Explain what an effective support plan should include and why clear outcomes are important
Plus...
On completion of the programme, graduates will receive a certificate as well as a lanyard and badge!
As a setting, you will also be given digital banners and a certificate to proudly display your EY SENCO certified status.
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How is it delivered?
The Level 3 Early Years SENCO qualification is delivered over 4 months through Online Taught Sessions and Online Study Units.
The Online Taught Sessions are 3 hours long and consist of live tutor-led training, incorporating pre-reading tasks, breakout room activities, group discussion and group training. Participants can choose to complete the Online Taught Sessions on either weekday mornings, afternoons or evenings. There will also be a limited number of Saturday sessions available.
The Online Study Units are delivered through the Canvas Virtual Learning Environment. Login details and induction training will be provided before the programme starts.
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Department for Education Announcement
We are delighted with the high level of interest in the Department for Education's Early Years (EY) SENCO training offer. Having more qualified SENCOs in the EY sector will have positive impacts on children with SEND and on the sector as a whole.
Funding is available for 7,000 places in total. Training will be delivered to cohorts of trainees between October 2022 and August 2024. Each cohort will run for four months. Over 3,500 eligible applications have already been received by the Department’s delivery partner Best Practice Network.
We are aware that this could mean long wait times for many applicants before commencing the training. This situation is being managed in the following ways:
- Training places are being offered to applicants in order of date received and each applicant is being given an indication of when they can expect to commence the training.
- A waiting list will come into effect once the 7,000 places have been filled, again operated in order of date received.
- Where an applicant withdraws, applicants will move up the queue.
- Pre-training activities will be offered, aimed at preparing applicants for the training and supporting them in their SENCO role pending training. Activities will include provision of the course induction book and pre-reading, regular newsletter and programme updates and cases studies from SENCOs.
- BPN are expanding the number of places to be made available in early cohorts so that more applicants can take the training sooner.
To undertake the Level 3 Early Years SENCO qualification, you will need to be an Early Years SENCO, or due to take up the role of Early Years SENCO, with an existing Level 3 qualification and the support of an appropriate setting, like private, voluntary or independent Early Years settings, Ofsted-registered childminders and childminder agencies.
Only one eligible SENCO per setting will be offered a training place.
The DfE allocated a limited number of funded places and set out the eligibility criteria for the candidates to maximise the impact of the funding. Please submit your application and one of our consultants will advise you on the following steps. Alternatively, you can contact us for more information.
The Level 3 Early Years SENCO qualification is fully-funded by the DfE for SENCOs, or those due to take up the role of SENCO, working in private, voluntary or independent early years settings, Ofsted-registered childminders and childminder agencies. We anticipate that only one eligible SENCO per setting will be offered a training place.
Please note that we have been allocated a limited number of funded places on the programme. To be eligible, the candidates must meet the criteria outlined by the DfE. After submitting your application one of our consultants will get in touch to explain the next steps.
Early Years SENCO
Level of qualification
In line with the DfE’s published Early Years Level 3 SENCO Qualification Specification, this training is for Level 3 practitioners working in group provision or as a childminder. Those qualified below Level 3 or holding a qualification that is not full and relevant for the purposes of meeting the Level 3 ratio requirements in the Early Years Foundation Stage framework, are not eligible to access the training offer. This approach is to ensure parity between the existing minimum qualification level of trainees and the level of SENCO qualification which they will be awarded.
Eligible setting types
Within the funding available for this training project, priority has been given to settings where there is the greatest need to increase the number of qualified SENCOs. Training is available to staff identified as a SENCO working in group provision or as a childminder, as required by section 3.68 of the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS). Staff in other settings mentioned in this section of the EYFS (maintained schools and maintained nursery schools, which are covered by other statutory and legal requirements concerning SENCO provision), and other forms of early years care that is not delivering the EYFS are not eligible to access this training offer.
Transferring from another training course
Funding for this contract is provided on the basis that extra Level 3 EY SENCO training places will be offered to EY SENCOs working in group provision or as a childminder. Training places offered under this contract must be in addition to training places that are already available in the market. Training applications will be assessed on a case-by-case basis but individuals who are already enrolled or undertaking training with another training provider may have their application turned down.
At this time, only one eligible person per setting will be offered a training place.
No. This DfE funded project will provide training for SENCOs (or aspiring SENCOS with employer approval) working in private, voluntary and independent settings and in childminder settings.
Yes. The Early Years Level 3 SENCO qualification specification states; The early years SENCO qualification is for a Level 3 practitioner. The DfE, with input from key EY sector stakeholders, compiled two documents (“Early years level 3 SENCO qualification specification” and “Role description of the early years special educational needs coordinator”) which are available on gov.uk.
Yes. You must be an employee of a setting or a serving childminder. The primary objective for this DfE funded project is to increase the number of Level 3 qualified SENCOs, available to children in group-based settings and childminder settings, who have the knowledge and skills to properly fulfil the role of a SENCO described in the code of practice and in the role description.
It depends. As a part of the DfE Education Recovery Package, Best Practice Network has been allocated 5000 funded places over a two year period. These places will be prioritised in line with the DfE’s identification of local authority areas and types of settings with the greatest need and impact of the Covid pandemic. If your setting falls within the area or type of criteria for prioritisation, it is extremely likely that you will be offered a place on our programme. If you are not, there is still a very good chance that you will be offered a place, particularly if you apply before January 2023, however, you may need to be placed on a waiting list or allocated a later starting date.
BPN are required to deliver certain percentages of training to individual government regions identified by the DfE where data indicates the need is greatest need. In addition, we will prioritise training places to settings that meet one or more of these criteria:
- Provide to at least one child with an Education and Health Care Plan or Disability Access Fund indicator.
- Provide to at least one child in receipt of Early Years Pupil Premium.
- Provide to at least one disadvantaged two-year-old.
Yes. Our programme is flexible to enable part-time employees to complete the programme over an extended period. All scheduled training days will follow the standard 4-month programme cycle. However, part-time employees will have up to six months, if required, to complete the online modules and assessment via the eportfolio.
As stated by the DfE, training must result in an accredited Level 3 EY SENCO qualification. Best Practice Network is approved by NCFE to deliver the Level 3 Award for SENCOs in Early Years Settings.
We will offer a range of training sessions to meet the needs of practitioners and their settings. At the point of application candidates will be able to select a training preference (morning, afternoon, evening or Saturday AM). We will endeavour to ensure that candidates are put into training groups according to their preference, however, this cannot be guaranteed. The group will then run at the same time each month.
The Level 3 Early Years SENCO qualification is delivered over 4 months through four Online Taught Sessions and Online Study Units. Each of the 4 Online Taught Sessions are 3 hours long and consist of live tutor-led training, incorporating pre-reading tasks, breakout room activities, group discussion and group training. All learners will have access to our Virtual Learning Environment where they will access the online units.
The EY SENCO qualification specification is clear that the number of Guided Learning Hours (GLH) is 24 and the Total Qualification Time (TQT) is 34, although clearly some individual learners may take more or less hours in terms of TQT. The Guided Learning Hours on our programme equate to 12 hours of taught sessions (4 x 3 hours) and an expectation of a minimum of 12 hours online study.
Total Qualification time will include induction to the programme, initial needs analysis, 2 x 45 minute calls with a mentor, and assessment activity.
The programme is manager by our Programme Leader. Each group will be supported by two tutors. Individuals will also have a mentor and assessor who will provide 1-2-1 support and guidance throughout the programme.
BPN has a large team who will offer support for all aspects of the programme from application to completion. We have a dedicated helpdesk and IT support team who will assist with any technical issues individuals might face.
There are two main types of learning outcome:
- Skills that can be performed
- Knowledge that can be learnt
You will be assessed through an e-portfolio of evidence against these 26 Assessment Criteria. Throughout the course you will upload documents from your work and study, along with an explanation of why you believe the document(s) demonstrate how the assessment criteria is met. Once all 26 criteria have been demonstrated, you will be awarded the qualification (subject to moderation).
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