School transitions guidance for children and young people with SEND

Transitions can be a challenging and stressful time for any child or young person, but especially for a child or young person with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).

In education, transition refers to moving from one stage of a process to another. It also includes the planning and supporting of young people for life after education, in preparation for adulthood.

Transitions can be large, moving from a year 6 class at primary school to secondary school. Or they can be smaller, for example moving from one classroom to another.

Transition will not only occur within an education setting, but throughout other services. For example, moving children or young people from child to adult social care, or within health services.

Successful transition for children and young people with SEND is everyone’s responsibility.

About this guidance

This guidance has been co-produced with children and young people, parents and carers, education providers and wider professionals. It was written in 2024 in response to our drive for consistent inclusion across all services, including education and health and social care.

This framework can be used by all education providers, to ensure that every child and young person in Barnsley has an offer of inclusive opportunities. It's aimed for collaborative use between children and young people, parent and carers, education providers and wider professional services.

 

People Holding Arrow

Principles, features and good practice

Key principles for transition

  • Successful, planned and coordinated transition should happen for all pupils regardless of need.
  • Knowing and understanding the needs of each individual pupil and promoting independence is crucial.
  • Transition is a process. The key to its success lies in the preparation and planning beforehand, and the settling in and follow up afterwards.

Features of a good transition

  • It is based on a collaborative and multi-agency approach, ensuring all the professionals involved in the child or young person’s education, health and social care work together to share information, coordinate services, and provide consistent and coherent support.
  • It is based on an holistic and person-centred approach. This means that the child or young person is at the centre of the planning and decision-making process, and their views, preferences and feelings are respected and valued.
  • It is based on a flexible and responsive approach. This means that the transition plan is regularly reviewed and updated to reflect the child or young person’s changing needs, circumstances and aspirations. Any issues or concerns should be addressed promptly and effectively.
  • It is based on a positive and empowering approach. This means that the child or young person is encouraged and supported to develop their confidence, independence, and self-advocacy skills to participate in meaningful and enjoyable activities that enhance their learning and wellbeing.

Schools/settings good practice

Feeder schools/settings

  • Start early - forward planning is key.
  • Communicate with pupils.
  • Work with parents and carers. Remember, transition can also be a stressful time for these as well.
  • Share all paperwork in a timely manner, eg SEND support plans (SSPs), EHC plans, specialist reports etc.
  • Use a pupil passport to drill down for further information. For example, ensuring reasonable adjustments are in place.
  • Promote independence and resilience to reduce reliance on personalised support.
  • Collaborate with the receiving setting to build positive relationships.
  • Prepare the pupil for changes in their environment and the curriculum, and meet new staff and peers.

Receiving schools/settings

  • Ensure all paperwork is received, eg EY graduated response document, EHCP, school support plans, pupil profiles, relevant past and current reports (such as professional reports, provision maps and attendance data).
  • Obtain reading age information.
  • Provide an inviting experience for parents or carers.
  • Ensure you have information about any medical needs, necessary adaptations, and reasonable adjustments.
  • Create opportunities to get to know pupils before they join you.
  • Prepare parents and carers for change.
  • Ensure continuity of experiences and expectations.
  • Consider pupils' sensory needs, eg clothing, food, noise etc.
  • Identify any trigger points throughout the day. Get a plan together of how this will be overcome.
  • Prepare staff so they are aware of and understand the needs of pupils.

 

 

Nursery school children and teacher

Nursery until primary school transitions

Nursery to foundation stage

  • Share relevant documents and information, including the early years graduated response and early years developmental progress tool. Ensure that copies of the 2 year progress check and subsequent integrated review meetings are shared with the next setting.
  • Introduce key staff and build a transition profile - photographs are effective.
  • Use social stories to explain new situations.
  • Consider visits to the new setting, and key staff could visit children in their existing setting.
  • Prepare parents and carers for the changes in routines and expectations of school.
  • Talk to parents about the changes in ratio from the early years setting to school.
  • Provide key contacts for parent and carers.
  • Share inclusion grant information.
  • Ensure that equipment and support aids are passed onto the next setting or school.

Useful links

Foundation stage to year 1

  • Share relevant documents and information, including the early years graduated response and early years developmental progress tool. Ensure that early years foundation stage profile outcomes are shared with the class teacher and relevant staff.
  • Visit the new classroom or space.
  • Use social stories to explain new situations.
  • Introduce key staff and build a transition profile - photographs are effective to show the new setting, staff, uniform, book bags etc.
  • Consider the year 1 environment. What does this look like? What reasonable adjustments need to be in place?
  • Consider the curriculum and what adaptions will need to be in place. Consider visual timetables; now and next etc.
  • Prepare parent and carers for the changes in year 1.
  • Provide details of key contacts for parents.

Useful links

Year 1 to year 2

  • Share relevant documents and information, such as EHCPs, SEN support plans (SSPs), provision maps, and intervention data.
  • Give children an opportunity to visit their new classroom, accompanied by a familiar adult.
  • Allow opportunities to meet key staff, such as their teacher, teaching assistant and any support staff who will work with them.
  • Prepare parents and carers for changes in the curriculum and the routines and expectations of year 2.
  • Ensure that parent and carers know who to contact should they need to speak to someone.

Useful links

Year 2 to year 3 (key stage 1 to key stage 2)

As previous years, plus:

  • Share with parents and carers the changes in the curriculum, staffing, expectations and routines of year 3, and the differences between key stage 1 and 2.
  • Give children the opportunities to build independence. Support parents and carers to promote independent skills.
  • Allow opportunities to pre-plan and organise child-centred multi-agency meetings, particularly if an early help assessment (EHA) is open and current. Transition should be woven through this.
  • Prepare children for the changes in curriculum, eg visual timetables, check-ins etc.
  • Ensure that any additional support that has been received is communicated, eg phonic/reading interventions, support during year 2 statutory assessments etc.

Useful links

 

 

Primary school children and teacher

Primary school transitions

Year 4

  • Share relevant documents and information, such as EHCPs, SEN support plans (SSPs), provision maps, and intervention data.
  • Give children an opportunity to visit their new classroom, accompanied by a familiar adult.
  • Allow children the opportunity to meet key staff, such as their teacher, teaching assistant and any support staff who will work with them.
  • Prepare parent and carers for changes in the curriculum, routines and expectations of the new year group.
  • Ensure that parents and carers know who to contact should they need to speak to someone.

Year 5 and year 6

  • Involve parents or carers and young people in transition planning.
  • Primary settings should share relevant documents and information such as EHCPs, SEN support plans (SSPs), provision maps, intervention data, early help assessment (EHA) and safeguarding information.
  • Share reading age data with the new setting.
  • Ensure that meetings are set up in a timely manner to discuss the individual needs for all pupils.
  • Secondary SENCOs should be invited and contribute to the final primary school EHCP review.
  • Link together pupils who don't have significant primary peer links.
  • Utilise the virtual school tour offers that are accessible online.
  • Identify a key person or place that pupils can go to if they have worries or problems.
  • Organise a child-centred multi-agency meeting.
  • Use transition booklets.
  • Visit the new setting environment, offer of additional SEND focus visits, and pre-plan and prepare for reasonable adjustments.
  • Prepare parents and carers for the expectations of changes to the curriculum and the teaching and learning expectations of the school.
  • Highlight key people - mentor, form tutor, SENCo, who and how to ask for help. Use photos and the names of roles of key staff.
  • Travel training.
  • Consider the systems for organisation that are in place. Use of planners, diary, timetables etc.
  • Homework – prepare pupils by providing clear expectations and explanations.

Useful links

 

 

Secondary school pupils

Secondary school transitions

Year 7 to year 8

  • Share relevant documents and information, such as EHCPs, provision maps and relevant reading assessments - including reading age.
  • Create consistent opportunities and use the pupil's voice to inform support and set achievable outcomes.
  • Maintain and establish contact with parents and carers as soon as possible.
  • Consider who is involved in day-to-day pastoral support and behaviour management. Check that these systems link with SEND information.
  • Ensure the key staff (SENCo, inclusion team, pastoral staff, head of years) share relevant information to teaching and support staff about what works well and any identified triggers or barriers to learning.
  • Offer a safe space for pupils to use that is consistent and available.

Useful links

Year 8 and year 9

  • Ongoing assessment of the young person's educational, health and social care needs, and the identification of the outcomes and provision that will enable them to achieve their potential.
  • A good transition from secondary school to further education starts early, when the young person and their parent or carer are introduced to the post-16 options available. This includes further education, training, apprenticeships, employment or independent living.
  • Involvement and engagement of the young person and their parent or carer throughout the transition process is key, through regular meetings.
  • High quality and personalised support, both in school and in the community, that meets the young person's needs and preferences and prepares them for the next stage of their education and life.
  • The development and implementation of provision on an education, health and care (EHC) plan or SEND support plan.

Years 9, 10 and 11

As previous years, including:

  • Share and prepare the young person and parents or carers for the changes in the curriculum (options choices), routines and the expectations for key stage 4 (years 10 and 11).
  • Create an offer of support for emotional and mental health needs. Consider links to wider services for further advice and support.
  • Maintain and establish relationships and lines of communication between the young person and key staff, including new teachers. The young person’s voice is key, and all staff need to know and understand key information outlined in their SEND plan, EHCP, one page profile, etc.
  • Consider access arrangements and ensure that the accessibility for GSCEs is understood for the young person.
  • Ensure the preparation for adult offer is in place.
  • Offer opportunities to investigate further education offers. Link with post-16 providers ready for transition to the post-16 phase of education.
  • Liaise with post-16 providers for the young person, to share any SEN support plans and any other information deemed appropriate. An example of this would include copies of exam arrangements, suspension and exclusion data, external agent involvement and current reading ages. This should be given in plenty of time for the college to process.

Useful links

 

College Students With Books And Folders

Transitions post-16

Post-16

  • Share information with teachers and support staff, ensuring they have the knowledge to meet the needs of the young person they're teaching.
  • Create a person-centred planning approach that meets the young person's needs. Curriculum offers should be flexible and varied, with a wide range of qualifications available. All staff working with a young person with SEND should be skilled and confident to provide a good quality of education which will help them progress.
  • Maintain positive relationships with the young person, their family and other professionals involved, to ensure that preparation for post-16 options is thorough and robust.
  • Establish new and positive relationships, encouraging a 'key' named member of staff to work with the young person and their parent or carer.
  • Ensure that the young person is continued to be supported throughout their further education journey and that their SEND needs are met. Promote wherever possible independence and preparation for adult life. Work closely with other professionals from health and social care, to ensure that the young person and their parent or carer are aware of the changes that will take place and are supported throughout this process.
  • Offer experiences that will develop knowledge of higher education, employment and independent living, such as guest speakers, work experience and providing 'life skills' education such as opening a bank account and budgeting.

Useful links

Transition from child to adult services

  • Working with parents and carers to ensure they understand and have knowledge of any changes to health and social care services.
  • Ensuring thorough discussion of transitioning between children and adult social care at the EHCP Year 11 annual review.

Useful links

 

Students And Maths Symbols

More information

Role of parents and carers

There are many ways parents and carers can support transitions for children and young people. Here are some ideas:

  • Meeting with transition staff from education providers and/or other professional services to share any concerns and strengths.
  • Visit the environment with or without the child or young person.
  • Establish links with a key contact person.
  • Promote independence wherever possible, eg practising the independent journey to school.
  • Using calendars to support the countdown to a new start.
  • Exposing and familiarising the child or young person with a new uniform.
  • Share key information about their child or young person, through completion of transition documentation.
  • Complete the parent and carer checklist for transition.

Useful links

Transition and the curriculum

  • Maths and functional numeracy, eg time telling, bus or train timetables, money.
  • Problem solving activities and games, eg What if I lost my bus pass, was late to school, etc?
  • Orienteering or finding their way around the school.
  • Building as much independence as possible in class.
  • Spot the difference activity eg for uniform errors.
  • Discussion of expectations regarding key rules and routines within secondary settings.
  • Teamwork tasks that promote communication and working with others, especially others that may be outside of a child's friendship group.

Services offering transition support

Transitions and social, emotional and mental health needs (SEMH)

Supporting a child or young person's transition back into mainstream school must be a team effort. Open communication is crucial. The young person, parents and carers, educational settings and external services must work together to share information and to create an effective transition package.

Useful links

Transitions for children and young people with social, communication and interaction needs

The Barnsley Council Social Communication and Interaction team offer support for children and young people during key transition periods.

The service works collaboratively to help raise awareness of strengths and needs, and coproduce actions and next steps to help the child or young person work towards a smooth transition.

See the useful links section to access resources to help to support children and young people with autism at key phase transitions.

Tips to support transition

  • Use transition packs and personal profiles.
  • Use new environment booklets outlining what to expect, eg maps, lockers, bells etc.
  • Provide a map of the new school building(s). Colour code subject rooms and highlight important areas such as the cafeteria, toilets, assembly hall and form rooms.
  • Set new expectations around breaks, lunchtime, and transition between classes.
  • Familiarise new vocabulary such as 'tutor group', 'head of year', and subject-specific vocabulary.
  • Outline key people - the child's mentor, form tutor, SENCO, and who/how to ask for help.
  • Outline where the quiet area is. Eg library or allocated area for regulation and calming.
  • School timetable – provide support on how to use it, formatted for the child or young person's understanding.
  • Have systems for organisation in place - diary, checklists for materials and books.
  • Discuss homework, the expectations and explanations.
  • Use a transition workbook to provide a step-by-step approach.

Useful links

 

Laptop, Files And Documents

 Resources

Documents

Support services

Useful links

Books

Foundation stage

Primary (between classes)

Primary to secondary

Secondary

Post-16