This consultation runs from Monday 12 January to Sunday 22 February 2026.
The Council’s vision for the Early Years sector is for all children aged 0-4 including those with additional needs to be able to access high quality Early Years education that meets their needs within their local community. We also believe that families should be able to take up their full entitlement to funded childcare hours in a way that best suits them. In order to achieve our vision, we are proposing to change the model we currently use to support our Early Years children with additional needs.
The Council currently commissions specialist nursery places from Menphys (Sketchley Hill Menphys Nursery School and Wigston Menphys Nursery School), Oasis Retreat in Melton Mowbray and Lift Beacon in Loughborough. Specialist nursery places are available during school term time only. Families choosing to use their funded Free Early Education Entitlement (FEEE) hours at specialist nurseries are therefore not able to access a specialist nursery place during school holiday periods.
Not all children with additional needs in Leicestershire attend a specialist nursery, with many instead successfully attending a mainstream Early Years childcare provider. Children not attending specialist nurseries are supported within mainstream settings by additional Inclusion Funding to enable their needs to be met and by the Council’s Early Years SEND Team who work with settings to ensure children’s needs are appropriately supported.
Proposed changes
In order to create more accessible and inclusive SEND nursery places for children aged 0-4 across the county, the Council proposes to provide extra funding and support for children with additional needs in existing mainstream settings in their neighbourhoods rather than at the four term-time specialist nurseries.
This would include:
- More specialist Early Years SEND Practitioner staff within the Local Authority Early Years Service.
- Increased Early Years Inclusion Funding so children can access mainstream provision in their communities, to include a new funding band of £10 per hour for children with complex needs, on top of their Free Early Education Entitlement (FEEE) funding.
- The opportunity for families to use their full funded FEEE childcare hours in a way that best suits them, stretching hours across the year if they prefer, with the majority of mainstream childcare providers also offering greater flexibility around start and finish times.
The focus on creating specialist places in provisions in local communities means the Council would no longer need to commission places at the four specialist nurseries currently used. However, it is proposed that, should the proposals go ahead, the current Menphys nursery buildings at Wigston and Burbage would look to be repurposed to instead provide much-needed additional SEND school places for children and young people of statutory school age.
Have your say
Please fill in the consultation form by midnight 22 February 2026.
If you have any questions please email childcare@leics.gov.uk
Frequently Asked Questions
What will this mean for my child who is currently attending a specialist nursery?
If the current proposals are agreed, specialist nurseries will be given a 12-month notice period before the changes are implemented. For any child that will still be attending at the end of this notice period, the Early Years SEND Team will work directly with families to find a suitable alternative and to support your child to transition into this setting
When are the proposals likely to be implemented?
Following the consultation, if the proposals are agreed by the Council’s Cabinet, we aim to fully implement the new model for supporting Early Years children with SEND by September 2027.
Why are you reducing SEND provision when we don’t have enough?
At present, specialist nursery places are only available at the 4 specialist nurseries in the county. These sites are not close to home for most children with SEND around the county meaning there is not equitable access for all, and are only available during term time. The proposed model for supporting Early Years children with SEND will create more accessible and inclusive Early Years places in Leicestershire Communities. This will result in more equitable access to support for children with SEND, and ensure they are able to access high quality support within their local community.
As part of this proposal, we are investigating using the two larger specialist nursery buildings at Burbage and Wigston to create new SEND school places for children and young people of statutory school aged. If the proposals are agreed, we would aim to have these new SEND school places ready to support statutory school aged children from Academic year 2027/28.
As an Early Years provider, we can’t afford to support any more SEND children. What additional support will you provide?
The proposal includes additional staff within the Early Years SEND Team to support directly with mainstream provisions, as they currently do. You will also be able to apply for Early Years Inclusion Funding which could be as much as £10 per hour, on top of the FEEE. This will then fund the support above minimum wage so children can have dedicated adult support, where needed.
If the child is in receipt of Disability Living Allowance you will also be able to apply for Disability Access funding (DAF) which is rising to £975 in April. DAF funds can be used, for example, to support providers in making reasonable adjustments to their settings and/or helping with building capacity, be that for the child in question or for the benefit of all children attending the setting. Settings may want to use DAF funding to pay for staff training, resources and adjustments to support the individual child’s needs.
I currently work and try and juggle the hours my child attends at a specialist nursery, as well as having to work out other care arrangements during the school holidays. Does this mean I can choose a setting that will better support my family?
Yes. The majority of Early Years provisions within Leicestershire offer options to ‘stretch’ your entitlement to FEEE funding in a way that best suits your family. This will often include early starts, late finishes or all year-round provision.
Will staff have expert knowledge to support my child?
Staff at Early Years settings will be able to access training offered by the Early Years SEND team and Diana Nurses to offer an inclusive provision.
Will my child be supported when they move to their next setting/ school?
Yes. The Early Years Inclusion and Childcare team will support your child with a bespoke transition plan to suit your child’s needs.
Will my child be safe in a mainstream setting?
Yes. Staff are well trained and able to support children with additional needs. All settings ensure that they carry out a daily risk assessment to ensure that the environment is safe for all children.
Will my child be included?
Yes. Settings often will have a settling in plan to support you and your child during the early days. The Early Years SEND team will offer individual advice and strategies to support the setting to fully include your child.
What training will be available for nursery staff to support children with additional needs?
The Early Years Inclusion and Childcare service offer a range of training for those who are new to childcare, SENCO and leaders and managers. You are encouraged to attend these to keep up to date. You also have an Area SENCO and the Early Years SEND team will be able to offer bespoke advice for children. The Service will also pay for two practitioners to receive the Diana training.