Nursery World - All SENCOs 'need autism training'

Advanced training in working with children with autism should be a requirement for every special educational needs co-ordinator, according to the National Autistic Society (NAS). The charity has launched a campaign calling for more support in pre-school and educational settings for autistic children aged two to 19.

The charity has launched a campaign calling for more support in pre-school and educational settings for autistic children aged two to 19.

Findings from its policy report, Make School Make Sense, show that one in 110 children has autism, but there are currently no requirements for teachers or SENCOs to undertake training in the field.

Amanda Batten, the charity's head of policy, told Nursery World that the role of SENCOs in early years settings was 'critically important'. She said that it was possible to detect signs of autism in children from 18 months, and that early intervention was vital.

But she expressed concern that SENCOs were not legally required to have any specialist training or experience.

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