Once the assessment plan has been agreed, an information leaflet will be shared, which includes some information that can be shared with your child.

Usually, all assessments will take place in the school setting. Some aspects of the assessment, for instance consultation with staff and parents, can take place online.

This can differ depending on the nature of the assessment carried out, but the report will be typically shared within 2-4 weeks.

Educational Psychologists do not typically provide a clinical diagnosis, unless they receive specific training and accreditation for conducting the diagnostic assessments.

Instead, through consultation and a written record, the Educational Psychologist will develop and share a psychological formulation. A psychological formulation is an explanation based on psychological theory & assessment that helps to make sense of what is going on for a child or young person. This can subsequently help guide future support and intervention.

On occasions, recommendations for further diagnostic assessment may be signposted as part of the assessment.

Educational Psychologists (EPs) provide independent professional advice to families and schools. An EP applies psychology (the study of thinking, learning, emotions and behaviour) to support the learning, development and wellbeing of children and young people up to 25 years old.

EPs work at different levels e.g. whole county, community, whole school, class, group, family, individual child/young person. They work to support the development of all children and young people, including those who have special educational needs and disabilities. They also support school improvement.

The 5 key aspects of EP work are consultation (using specific psychological frameworks and approaches), assessment, intervention, training and research.

It takes a minimum of 8 years to train and become an Educational Psychologist (EP).

All EPs have:

• BSc/BA/MSc in Psychology

• A minimum of 2 years teaching experience (Primary/Secondary/both, following a Postgraduate Certificate in Education) or other relevant experience

• MSc and/or Doctorate in Educational and Child Psychology

• Practitioner Psychologist status and registration with the Health and Care Professions Council

An Educational Psychologist:

• Asks particular types of questions, uses validated interventions and tools, considers interacting factors, considers interacting systems, attempts to reconcile people’s differing perspectives, unpicks the human factors which can hasten or hinder the process of desired change.

• Works to uncover psychological variables in problem situations, and encourages the consideration of alternative explanations for problems.

• Uses systematic and logical analysis of problem situations without their real-life complexity being over simplified.

• Using information from the research and theoretical database in psychology to recommend evidence based strategies for change.

• Has specific knowledge of areas of psychology that can open people’s minds as to what they can do, rather than just offering complex explanations for why they cannot do it. Examples could include the areas of: Empowerment and self-management, Resilience, Positive Psychology (the scientific study of psychological well-being), Solution-Focused Thinking.

Described in: Cameron, R. J. (2006). Educational Psychology: The distinctive contribution. Educational Psychology in Practice, 22 (4), 289-304.