A Unique Child: Integrated Review - Deep thinking

The Integrated Review, taking place as it does between a child’s second and third birthdays, is an ideal time to consider if the child is progressing well and their development as a life-long learner is being supported effectively.

A key advantage of the Integrated Review is that it brings together information from the child’s parents, early years practitioners and health professionals. This enables all involved to consider a child’s progress from different perspectives and to share celebrations as well as any concerns about the child’s development.

Under the Progress Check at Two, early years practitioners provide parents with a summary of their child’s development in the three Prime areas. As there is no required format for this summary, many settings also now include details of the child’s development in relation to the Characteristics of Effective Learning, as this helps them to communicate more clearly their understanding of a child’s engagement in learning. However, when it comes to the Integrated Review, other professionals may not feel as confident with this terminology, so early years practitioners need to communicate clearly its meaning and importance in providing an overview of a child’s development.