For many parents and carers, the SEND journey can feel confusing, uncertain or overwhelming at times. This overview is intended to offer clarity and reassurance about how support typically develops over time, rather than to suggest a single correct path for children with SEND in England.
Supporting our children and young people as they transition to adulthood is a long-term, consistent journey that begins early in life and evolves as they develop. The current UK SEND frameworks aim to provide ongoing, person-centred support by adapting to each individual’s views, wishes, identity, and goals. These frameworks emphasise professional collaboration and recognise transition to adulthood as a gradual developmental process that unfolds across childhood and young adulthood, rather than as something achieved at the end of schooling.
Early Years: Laying the Foundations
In the early years, support primarily focuses on laying strong foundations for personal and social development. This includes exploratory learning, communication and language development, emotional regulation, and social interaction. During this stage, supporting adults tend to prioritise identifying each child’s individual needs, creating predictable and nurturing environments, and building secure relationships to promote overall engagement and participation.
The aim is to help children feel safe and confident by encouraging early independence in age-appropriate ways. This includes encouraging self-expression, thoughtful decision-making, creativity, resilience in the face of setbacks, and the ability to follow guidance when needed. At this stage, support is less about outcomes and more about positive modelling and creating the conditions for a holistic development to occur freely.
Primary and Early Secondary School: Increasing Structure and Awareness
As children progress through primary school and into early secondary education, both learning and support typically become more structured. Here, pupils are increasingly supported to recognise their strengths, preferences, and areas of challenge towards both formal academic learning and life in general. Teachers, support staff, therapists, and families work collaboratively to enhance pupils’ academic knowledge and skills, broader worldly understanding, social participation, and independence in their daily routines.
Towards the later part of this stage, often around age fourteen, preparation for adulthood becomes more explicit. As a result, young people are increasingly encouraged to develop a stronger sense of identity, responsibility, and connection to their community. The intention is to make future transitions more familiar and manageable by gradually introducing new expectations while maintaining appropriate support and guidance.
Adolescence: Identity, Autonomy, and Skill Development
During adolescence, support expands further to reflect both developmental and contextual changes. Alongside academic progress, there is an increased emphasis on life skills, including preparing for work, developing independence, maintaining physical and mental health, and social participation.
At this stage, young people are encouraged to take a more active role in setting goals, identifying common challenges, and working collaboratively with others. Aspirations are supported in ways that align with individual strengths, interests, and capacities. Much of the work during adolescence is internal, involving identity formation, growing self-awareness, and recognising individual differences that may or may not be immediately visible.
Preparing for Life Beyond School: Shifting Focus and Expectations
As young people approach the end of compulsory education, the style and focus of support often shift. School leaders, post-16 providers, health services, and community organisations work together to offer coordinated guidance that reflects the young person’s views, wishes, and feelings.
The emphasis moves from classroom-based learning toward participation in adult life. This may include further education, vocational pathways, supported internships, employment, independent or supported living, and community involvement. Advice and guidance increasingly focus on helping young people navigate real-life situations, manage their health, and make informed decisions about their future. Progress during this stage is rarely linear, and periods of uncertainty or pause are a normal part of development rather than a sign that something has gone wrong.
Young Adulthood (16–25): Development Beyond Legal Adulthood
SEND frameworks recognise that development continues throughout and beyond legal adulthood. Between the ages of 16 and 25, many young adults benefit from ongoing guidance, reasonable adjustments, and coordinated support as they continue to build skills, confidence, and independence in new environments.
During this period, services aim to respect individual autonomy while remaining available during key transitions. The focus is on sustaining progress, preventing isolation, and supporting young adults to build lives that reflect their goals, wellbeing, and sense of purpose.
Conclusion: Transition as a Person-Centred Process
Overall, SEND frameworks are designed to view the transition to adulthood as a person-centred, developmental process rather than a simple transfer between systems. By providing consistent and evolving support from early childhood through young adulthood, professionals, families, and services work collaboratively to ensure transitions are gradual, informed, and meaningful.
The aim of this long-term work is not simply independence, but the opportunity for every child to move into adulthood in a way that feels sustainable, empowering, and aligned with how they define a fulfilling adult life. Every child’s journey is different, and families are not expected to navigate these transitions alone.
Evidence Note
This article is informed by professional experience within SEND education and by reference to the current statutory framework for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities in England. This includes the Children and Families Act 2014 and the SEND Code of Practice 2015 (0–25), which frame transition to adulthood as a person-centred process focused on preparation for adulthood outcomes. The content is intended as an overview of how development, goals, and support typically evolve across childhood and young adulthood, rather than as legal or clinical guidance for individual circumstances.
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