Portage Teaching Service

Portage  teaching service is for pre-school children aged 0 - 5 with additional needs. Parents are an important part of Portage and work with the Portage worker to set targets for the child. Your child be offered home visits or small group sessions in your local area. Together they then plan activities to help their child reach these targets - Portage helps a parent help a child.

Portage is part of the Early Years Intervention Service in Stoke-on-Trent and is accredited with the National Portage Association.

Our team of Portage Home Visitors are all Early Years Practitioners who have experience in understanding, recognising and developing the individual needs of the child.

To be eligible for Portage the child must live in Stoke-on-Trent and not attend an early years provider.

Portage Home Visitors work with the child and their families in the home or at a Family Hub. Portage can start when a child is a few weeks old until they move into an early years setting or school. Portage Home Visitors make regular visits to the family. Families will be offered 5 Portage sessions after which the child's progress will be discussed and next steps will be planned.

We find out everything that the child can do across all areas of development and with the parent or carer decide on some long term teaching targets. We break the targets down into small steps and provide the activities to teach the targets. Each Portage session can last up to an hour and is full of stimulating and interesting activities to help the child to develop. Parents or carers join in the session with the child and Portage Home Visitor. All of the child's successes are celebrated.

We work with other professionals who are involved with the child and family.

We also run regular Portage Play sessions in different locations across the city, these are open to any family with a child known to the service.

 Children can be referred to the Portage Service by health professionals such as a health visitor, a social worker or by Parent themselves.

You can contact the Early Years Inclusive Learning Service by telephone on 01782 231285 and 01782 232292 or by email at EYIS@stoke.gov.uk.

We are based at Hazel Trees, Duke Street, Fenton, Stoke-on-Trent, ST4 3NR. The number for the buildings reception is 01782 232285.

For confidentiality reasons please do not email any forms or children's information to us without password protection; please post them to us at the above address.

Parents and carers can refer their children to the Portage Home Teaching Service