Educational outcomes following preterm birth
3. Moving into education
The impact of a preterm birth doesn’t end when a baby is discharged home from hospital. Parents may have lasting concerns about their child’s health and development.
Parents of preterm born children may be particularly concerned about their child moving into education. They may be anxious about their child starting in a preschool setting and about whether the setting is able to provide the right care for their child. Later, they may be worried about how their child will get on when they move up to primary school. These transition points can be particularly stressful for parents of preterm born children.
Knowing that a school or preschool setting understands the impact preterm birth can have on a child’s health and development and is well prepared to support preterm born children can be reassuring for parents. Being able to talk to staff who are sympathetic to their child’s journey can help ease the transition to and between education settings.
Watch and listen to the case study to hear a parent’s positive experience of their child starting at a preschool setting.
Video transcript
I found it quite scary when the time came for Oliver, my son, to start preschool. I really didn’t know how he was going to cope. I didn’t know how I was going to cope, to be honest. It didn’t seem that long ago since we were discharged from hospital.
When I was choosing a pre-school, I tried to find out if they had any experience with premature birth. One of the preschools asked about children’s birth history on their admission form and there was a box to tick if you wanted to speak with someone about it. This felt like a great start! So I filled it in and Sonya called me back to arrange a meeting.
She introduced herself as the preterm birth lead for the preschool, and explained that all their staff have had training about premature birth and how to support children’s development. She explained that this meeting was the start of an ongoing dialogue between our family and the preschool. I found this really reassuring.
Throughout the conversation, Sonya seemed sensitive to our experience. She was interested in what I felt Oliver’s needs might be and how I felt the preschool could support us as a family. It felt good to be asked about our concerns and to be given the space to share them.
I mentioned Oliver’s health. He’s particularly vulnerable to respiratory infections, and even a cold can make him seriously unwell. Sonya explained how the illness policy is enforced to protect vulnerable children and said they would let me know whenever they noticed any illnesses going round so I can make the decision on whether to bring in Oliver or not.
I asked if the staff were familiar with corrected age and chronological age. Sonya reassured me that the staff understood the importance of this and would always take both chronological and corrected age into account when assessing Oliver’s development. She also said that we’d have regular meetings to discuss Oliver’s progress and that staff can engage with the SENCO if they need any further advice. Sonya was also really open to working with any specialists. She said it’s a team effort and that felt great to hear!
Sonya was supportive and compassionate and allowed me the space to share only as much as I felt comfortable with about Oliver’s birth history. She said that this information would be shared with staff when Oliver moves room, so I wouldn’t have to repeat our story every time.
By the end of the conversation, I felt confident that the staff would recognise the long-lasting impact that preterm birth can have and would be ready to support our family. I finally felt reassured and ready for Oliver to begin preschool.