Services, Settings and Support

This part of the Early Years Blog introduces the range of services, settings and support that families and professionals may work with in the early years. It helps you understand who does what, how support is accessed, and how different agencies can work together to meet children’s needs. Whether you’re in a childminding setting, a private nursery, a maintained nursery school, a school-based early years class, or an out-of-school club, partnership working is a core part of effective practice.

Early years provision in the UK comes in different forms, with different structures and expectations. Some settings are small and home-based, like childminders. Others are larger, like day nurseries or pre-schools. There are also maintained nursery schools and nursery classes within primary schools. Each setting has its own routines and staffing models, but all share common responsibilities around safeguarding, inclusion, and supporting children’s learning and development. Understanding how these settings operate helps you communicate clearly with families and other professionals.

Support for children and families can be universal, targeted or specialist. Universal support includes the everyday help most families receive, such as health visiting services, early years provision, and general advice and signposting. Targeted support may be offered when families need extra help for a period of time—for example, support with speech and language, behaviour, sleep, or accessing funded childcare. Specialist support is usually for more complex or ongoing needs and may involve multi-agency assessment and planning.

A key theme across this category is “early help”. Early help means noticing concerns early and offering support before problems escalate. This might involve practical adjustments in the setting, additional conversations with families, or bringing in advice from other professionals. Early help works best when it is respectful and collaborative. Families are more likely to engage when they feel listened to and when the focus is on strengths as well as needs.

Many learners find it useful to understand the roles of different professionals. Health visitors and school nurses support child health and development, including immunisations, growth, and early identification of concerns. Speech and language therapists support communication needs. Occupational therapists may support sensory processing, motor skills and daily living skills. Educational psychologists can help settings understand learning and behaviour and plan support. Social workers and safeguarding teams become involved when there are concerns about a child’s safety or welfare. In early years settings, the SENCO often coordinates additional support for children with SEND, working closely with families and outside agencies.

Information sharing is an important part of joining up support. It needs to be lawful, necessary and proportionate, and guided by your setting’s policies. In practice, this means sharing relevant information with the right professionals at the right time, and keeping records accurate and secure. Families should usually be informed and involved, unless doing so would place a child at risk. When in doubt, follow your safeguarding procedures and seek advice from your DSL.

It can help to think about what good support looks like from a family’s perspective. Clear explanations, predictable steps, and honest timelines make a difference. So does practical help—such as supporting a parent to fill in a form, explaining what an assessment means, or offering meetings at a time they can attend. A warm, non-judgemental approach matters, especially when families are worried or have had negative experiences with services in the past.

For example, in a school nursery you may notice a child is struggling to follow instructions and becomes upset during group times. After gathering observations and talking with parents/carers, you might agree small adjustments in the room and involve the SENCO to consider targeted strategies. If needed, the setting may seek advice from speech and language therapy. In a childminder setting, a parent might share concerns about sleep and behaviour at home; you could support by keeping routines consistent, sharing what helps the child settle with you, and signposting to appropriate local services if the family wants extra support.

The links on this page explore common services and pathways in more detail, including how to work effectively with other professionals and how to support families through change. Used well, multi-agency working is not about “handing over” responsibility. It is about making sure the right people share the right information, so children get consistent support across home, setting and any specialist services.