What is Portage? - Staffordshire Learning Net

What is Portage?
Portage is a home based teaching service
provided by CCEs for pre-school children with
special educational needs and their families.
It is based on the principle that parents are the
key figures in the care and development of their
children
Portage offers practical help and ideas to:
Make learning fun for all the family
Encourage all round development
Address any problems which may arise
How Portage works
Families who participate receive weekly home
visits from a trained and supervised Portage
Worker who first completes a checklist with the
family covering six areas of development.
The aim of each home visit is to decide on
activities, which the family can practise and
enjoy together.
Each activity represents a small step towards
one of the family's planned goals and families
using Portage usually practise activities
between weekly visits.
Parents use charts or diaries as a reminder of
the activity and a record of what happens
between visits. In this way a family can build a
shared record of their child's involvement with
Portage.
Who is the Portage Service for?
The following list makes up the criteria for
inclusion in the Service:
1. The child must be of pre-school age (the
earlier the better) and be at home for at
least 60% of the working week.
2. The normal expectation is that the child
should be eligible for Portage for at least six
months.
3. The child must show a delay in at least two
areas of development.
4. Parents are willing to take part in the
scheme and make time available for weekly
visits and daily practise of the activities.
5. There should be no more than two other
support services / therapists making
frequent regular visits on a long term basis.
Making a referral
If, after discussion with the parents it is agreed
that referral to Portage may be helpful, a
Portage referral form can be completed and
sent to the appropriate Portage
Office.
Children receiving Portage will
also be monitored by the Early
Years Referral Forum. Any
family referred to that group but
not already receiving Portage
may be referred for Portage
from an Early Years meeting if
they meet the Portage criteria.
What happens after referral?
Once the Portage Supervisor receives the
referral form a visit will be arranged to discuss
Portage in more detail with the family.
If they are happy to take part and the child
meets the Portage criteria then they can be
included on the Portage Waiting List.
When a Portage Worker is available the
Supervisor arranges to introduce them to the
family and Portage begins.
At this stage all involved agencies are
informed by letter.
How the Service to the family is
reviewed
After 2-3 months of Portage visiting, a
Supervisor meets with parents to discuss their
views so far and whether they wish to
continue. If they do and all agree this would be
helpful then goals are set for a further 3-4
months work, and the family is included in the
Early Years Referral Forum monitoring
process.
After this, progress is reviewed every 6 months
in the home by parents, Portage Worker and
Supervisor together.
Copies of these reviews are sent with parents
agreement to other professionals involved with
the child.

What families tell us about Portage
As children leave Portage and move on to
Nursery or School, parents are asked to
comment on the service they have received by
completing a questionnaire.
Here are some of the comments we have
received:
"We found it an invaluable service which
provided much needed stimulus and support for
early learning and development."
"Portage encouraged us as parents to be more
confident about the future."
"Visits were a pleasure - full of fun."
"It was a concrete foundation for us to build
future learning upon."
Portage in Staffordshire
There are four Portage Teams in the county, funded
by the County Council Education Service with
additional support from Health Authorities.
The addresses and contact details for the offices are
as follows:
Burton & Tamworth Portage Service
Casey Lane
Burton upon Trent,
Staffordshire
DE14 2HX
Telephone: 01283 515541
Email: laura.elsam@staffordshire.gov.uk
Lichfield & Cannock Portage Service
SPLD Centre
Purcell Avenue
Lichfield
Staffordshire WS13 7PH
Telephone: 01543 510192
Email: sarah.addison@staffordshire.gov.uk
Newcastle, Leek & Moorlands Portage
Seabridge Centre
Ash Way
Off Seabridge Lane
Newcastle under Lyme
Staffs
ST5 3UB
Telephone: 01782 636341
Email: jacqui.nixon@staffordshire.gov.uk
Stafford & South Staffs Portage Service
Flash Ley Centre,
Hawksmoor Road,
Stafford
Staffordshire
ST17 9DR
Telephone: 01785 356961
Email: erica.scriven@staffordshire.gov.uk
P O R T A G
E
The home-teaching
scheme for pre-school
children with special
needs and their families
A Portage Service registered with the National Portage Association