There has never been a greater awareness of the need to invest in nurseries to make them accessible and responsive to the needs of children with special educational needs.
However, a recent survey carried out by education resources supplier the Consortium, in conjunction with Nursery World, reveals that lack of finance continues to be a barrier. Many settings have to carry out extra fundraising activities to gain much-needed cash for more complex equipment, particularly that which is designed to help children with mobility problems.
Of the 500 settings polled, 20 per cent said that at least 10 per cent of their children had some kind of special needs, the most common being speech, language or communication difficulties, followed by behavioural, social or emotional problems.
One manager said, 'Some resources have to be physically made to meet individual needs and cannot be shop-bought. These resources always seem to cost a lot more than others'.
Another said, 'Although we feel well equipped to provide an inclusive environment, SEN equipment can be very expensive on a small budget, and this can be an obstacle'.
Under the Children's Plan, the Government has renewed its efforts to support children with disabilities in the early years. The Early Years Capital Grant has an 'access' stream, with funding available to enable local authorities to meet their sufficiency duties, and ensure every child can access suitable facilities. Through this strand money is available to buy special equipment and make adaptions to a setting.
At the same time the revenue funding for training in the EYFS makes provision for training in special educational needs, inclusion and English as an additional language.
However, National Day Nurseries Association chief executive Purnima Tanuku reports that members continue to voice their concern about the lack of money available to support special needs.
She says, 'There seems to be a perception out there that the PVI sector is not widely involved in care for SEN children, but this is not the case. We are working hard to make members aware of what funding is now available for resources, access and training through local authorities, but so far we have little feedback to suggest that the latter are engaging with local providers in this process. Through our networks, members are striving to have early dialogue with their local authorities.'
Ms Tanuku stresses that the cost of taking on extra staff - and upskilling existing ones - is more significant than the expense of equipment. 'Where a child has severe physical disabilities, the cost of special equipment can be very high. But on balance, whatever the nature of the disability, additional staff and training will always be a priority.'
Brand-new nurseries have an advantage in that they can get their design and facilities right from the start. This has certainly been the aim of Rockers & Rollers in Somerset, owned by Liz Chamberlain and Lisa Marner. Ms Chamberlain reports that it took 16 months to refurbish the building, which involved installing ramps to ensure all rooms are flat and accessible.
'Each of our rooms has its own sensory area,' she says. 'We've invested a lot in equipment such as a custom-built investigation table where children can handle and explore different objects, a light table, and a dark den which is a tent made from black out material.
'We have one child here who cannot negotiate steps, but because of the way the nursery is designed he can access all of its areas. We have recently applied to our local council for funding to help buy chairs which will provide greater stability for him. Currently we are in the process of turning our outdoor area into a garden. It already has a ramp that goes all the way round and ends up on a landing platform.'
Ms Chamberlain adds, 'Designing this nursery so that it meets our inclusion policy has not been cheap. The problem with funding is that you have to fight for it, and local authorities never seem to be generous. However, we feel that it has all been worth the extra expense, because now and in the future it can provide a stimulating environment for all children.'
FURTHER INFORMATION
To find out how much your local authority has been allocated, go to www.dfes.gov.uk/localauthorities/documents/content/2908070003
Details of the grants are available at www.dfes.gov.uk/localauthorities/documents/content/2211070003 CASE STUDY
Creating a sensory room need not cost a fortune, as Ros Green, manager of Just Learning in Trowbridge, has demonstrated. When the 100-place nursery found that there was a sharp decline in baby places, she decided to turn its baby space over to a new use.
'While we have three children here who have special educational needs, we felt that a sensory room would benefit all our children and also stand us in good stead for the future,' she says. 'If you opt to kit a room out with high-tech sensory equipment it can cost anything up to £10,000, which was just not within our budget. In the end we managed to equip it for around £500 and we are absolutely delighted with the result.'
Ms Green says that some specialist equipment was purchased, but this was kept to a minimum. 'We gave a lot of thought to alternative materials we could use that would be stimulating to the senses, and also be available on the high street. Touchy-feely walls have been created using materials purchased from shops such as Ikea. We also purchased Ikea's glow-in-the-dark baskets and its stainless steel, reflective containers. UV lighting and flashing flexes can easily be acquired on the high street. Recordings of dolphin and bird songs all add to the relaxing ambience.'
Ms Green says that her nursery has been able to access special needs resources by working closely with its local authority and outside agencies. 'If nurseries go through the right channels, they are often able to acquire the more expensive specialist equipment on loan. We were recently able to borrow a special chair that enabled one of our children to sit up at the table with the others. We have also borrowed wobble boards, which assist with balance.'
She adds, 'Equipment to do with supporting children to be mobile tends to be the most expensive, but again local authorities can assist with this, particularly if the child's progress and needs have been tracked efficiently through multi-agency programmes such as Early Support.'
