SEND Learning at Little Learners UK! Part One!

Children with SEND (Special Educational Needs or Disabilities) number over 1.5 million in the UK, meaning it is vital that children’s activity providers, particularly those that focus on education, consistently review their provision, ensuring that no child is excluded. At Little Learners UK we value all children and strive to make our sessions as accessible, creating wonderful learning opportunities for EVERY child!

At Little Learners, we take so many steps to make sure that all children and families are welcome – this could take the form of amending our services or creating new ones which focus on children with additional needs or disabilities.

Find out how our class leaders across the UK support SEND learning in their classes…

SEND Specific Events

Susan from Little Learners West Edinburgh and Livingston creates specific events for those with additional needs, ensuring that all participating children have the best experience possible. Susan says…

‘We run a separate SEN event ensuring the children get the same level of activities as our other classes. However, we do make some alterations to make sure our learners get the most from the session. We run our SEND sessions at reduced numbers to allow for additional space and to help limit noise. I also make information available to parents about what they should expect and where the quieter zones are likely to be.’

Messy play sessions can of course be… messy. But our franchisees find that preparing each parent, whether they are joining a specific SEND session or otherwise, is the best way to make sure that classes go smoothly.

‘Talking each parent/child through the layout on arrival and explaining to everyone that they are welcome to try things at their own pace really goes a long way!’

With any class, things can always be improved and refined. Susan always asks for feedback from parents, making sure that each new events just gets better and better!

Business as usual!

Children with additional needs are of course welcome to any Little Learners class and many of our franchisees run sessions that are a real mix of families and children. Lene, from Little Learners Basingstoke, has welcomed children with learning needs in to her weekly classes. ‘Mum called in advance and explained that her son was a little nervous as this was his first messy play session. So, we arranged to have the family come a few minutes early to scope out the room and get settled before the rest of the class arrived. Her son had a wonderful time and has joined us ever since!’

Simialrly, Joanna from Little Learners Wakefield had a Mum sign up for class with a daughter who has autism. Joanna explains…

‘I reached out to Mum and asked what her daughter’s triggers were, explained the class in a little more detail and gave a heads up to what activities I had planned. She said she had never been asked before and was so thankful. Her daughter had a great time and loved the session. It’s so simple to make minor adjustments to our classes, sometimes you just need to make it known that you’re here to help!’

SEND Partnerships!

Our team at Little Learners Playspace Ashington work closely with Northern Lights Northumberland – a charity which supports children and families with disabilities and additional needs. Northern Lights regularly attend sessions at Playspace, making their mark and exploring our dedicated sensory space. As Playsapce is a dedicated Little Learners venue, we are also able to expand our age range for these very important sessions, ensuring that even older children can be supported.

We are also very proud to announce our Home Ed and SEND session at Playspace, hosted by Rachael Beattie – The Neurodivergent Cheerleader. You can read more about these sessions HERE!

If you’d like to work with Little Learners Playspace or any of our franchisees, please always do reach out. You can find all local classes in your area using our search function HERE!

Next time, we will be talking to Kim and Natalie, who will give their insights!

See you soon!