It is crucial that you and your child feel reassured throughout the assessment process.

A 'no obligation' initial phone call helps me understand the difficulties you, your child or the school team have noticed, and allows me to answer your questions.

Once you transfer an initial deposit, I collate detailed, valuable feedback from both the home and school setting. This helps me understand how your child is managing maths in everyday learning, as well as any wider factors such as confidence, memory, pace, problem-solving or anxiety around mathematical tasks. We then agree a date for the face-to-face assessment meeting.

The face-to-face assessment takes place in a calm, dedicated assessment room in Bramham, near Wetherby. The room is self-contained and accessed through a separate side entrance, so learners can come straight into the assessment space without passing through the main home. The setting is quiet, uncluttered and low-distraction, helping children and young people feel more settled while they work through the assessment tasks.

A reassuring welcome video call, a couple of days before the assessment, allows me to say 'hello' and chat through what your child can expect from the activities. Our assessment meeting usually lasts around 2.5 hours; there is a lot of learning and 'thinking' I need to explore. The assessment looks at mathematical skills, number processing, memory, pace, confidence, strategies and problem-solving. Typically, children find some areas trickier than others, but they often engage well with the novelty of the process and find working with me relaxed and enjoyable. It is important to explore strengths alongside areas of difficulty.

Finally, your detailed report usually takes around three to four weeks to compile, assuming all background information and school evidence has been received. The report will be sent to you once the remaining balance is transferred. Understandably, it can take a little while to process the findings and suggested supportive strategies. A further conversation over the phone allows me to answer any follow-up questions and talk through the conclusions, so that you feel confident about next steps. This information can then be shared with your child’s SENCo and teaching team to help them further adapt their teaching practice and support your child more effectively in the classroom.