Home The Early Years Foundation Stage Statutory Framework and Quality Improvement The Early Years Foundation Stage EYFS Assessment Progress Check at 2

Progress Check at 2

This statutory EYFS Progress Check should be used by early years practitioners to assess children's development at 24 to 36 months. Practitioners must review the child’s progress and development in the prime areas of learning. If a child moves settings between the ages of two and three it is expected that the progress check would usually be undertaken by the setting where the child has spent most time.

The check must:

  • Include a short written summary of the child’s development in the prime areas of learning (communication and language, personal, social and emotional development and physical development).
  • Identify the child’s strengths and any areas where the child’s progress is less than expected
  • Describe any activities and strategies the provider intends to adopt to address any issues or concerns.
  • Consider if there are significant emerging concerns, or an identified special educational need or disability, if this is the case, practitioners should develop a targeted plan to support the child’s future learning and development involving parents and/or carers and other professionals (for example, the provider’s Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator (SENCO) or health professionals) as appropriate.
  • Discuss with parents and/or carers how the summary of development can be used to support learning at home.

As an LA we have put together some editable, example two year old progress checks which you may find useful, if you haven’t already got a pro-forma to use. These are designed to be adapted so that they are meaningful and purposeful documents.

Practitioners can choose the format they use to complete the check and there are many examples available to support their decision including advice from the Department for Education's Progress Check at Age Two and a Nottingham City Progress Check at 2 template is available in the Integrated Review at 2 Years: Nottingham City Guidance for Health and Early Years Providers.

This example uses the headings for the prime areas of learning (communication and language, personal, social and emotional development and physical development) and can be used as a template with any of the non-statutory guidance that has been produced.

This example uses the headings, and the aspects as they appear in the non statutory guidance, birth to five matters. It also references the ranges, which practitioners may choose to use, or delete if they prefer.

Practitioners should encourage parents and/or carers to share information from the Progress Check at 2 with other relevant professionals, including their health visitor and the staff of any new provision the child may transfer to. 

The Integrated Review at 2 years is designed to bring together the Healthy Child Programme Health and Development Review used by Health Visiting Teams, and the statutory EYFS Progress Check used by early years practitioners to assess children’s development at 24 to 36 months.

Where possible, the Progress Check at 2 and the Healthy Child Programme Health and Development Review at age two (when health visitors gather information on a child’s health and development) should inform each other and support integrated working. This will allow health and education professionals to identify strengths as well as any developmental delay and any particular support from which they think the child/family might benefit. Providers must have the consent of parents and/or carers to share information directly with other relevant professionals. (EYFS Statutory Framework, Section 2)