Sensory Aware Early Years Toolkit

Sensory wellbeing is central to everything in the early years. This practical toolkit helps you understand how sensory experiences impact young children’s ability to play, learn and connect, and turn that understanding into everyday action, across your whole setting. Written for busy early years teams, the book accessibly explains the eight senses and shows how sensory profiles can look very different for each child or adult practitioner.

With everything you need to create a setting where all children feel safe, regulated, and ready to learn and thrive, it:

• Helps you spot when behaviour is really a child communicating, “this feels too much”, or “I need more”.
• Encourages the reader to explore their own sensory preferences and triggers, because regulated adults create regulated spaces.
• Is packed with resources, including a self-assessment tool and audit, universal and targeted strategies, and suggestions for tweaks to the environment.
• Provides realistic, easy-to-implement next steps that can be adapted for different settings.
• Supports staff with their own sensory wellbeing.

Whether you’re a key worker, room leader, SENCO or nursery manager, this book will help you embed sensory inclusion into your routines, culture, training and leadership, without needing to be a sensory expert. A companion to the bestselling Becoming a Sensory Aware School, this book brings the same clarity, compassion and practical wisdom to the early years sector.

Alice Hoyle is a wellbeing education consultant and author specialising in Relationships, Health and Sex Education (RSHE) and sensory wellbeing. A neurodivergent mum of three neurodivergent daughters, she brings both professional expertise and lived experience to her work. With over twenty years in education as a teacher, PSHE lead, youth worker and Local Education Authority adviser, Alice understands how often sensory needs are overlooked in mainstream settings. Alongside navigating Education, Health and Care Plans for two of her children, she has become a passionate advocate for inclusive, sensory-aware practice that helps children and adults feel safe, understood and able to thrive.

Tessa Hyde is an Occupational Therapist with 40 years of experience working in the UK National Health Service (NHS) and independent sector. She has authored several highly successful occupational therapy based books for schools. Tessa works with children, settings and families to assess, identify and support their sensory and physical motor co-ordination needs. She has a wealth of knowledge and strategies to support co-ordination and sensory needs at home and at school. Alice and Tessa were neighbours for 10 years. This pair of books was created after Tessa led a successful assessment on one of Alice’s daughters, where the suggested strategies were transformative.

Charlotte Forrester is an early years practitioner and owner of two highly regarded nursery settings, rated Outstanding in England and Excellent in Wales. Her practice is shaped by her experience as a mother to three children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities. Blending personal insight with professional curiosity, Charlotte has developed deep expertise in speech and language, communication strategies and sensory needs for the early years. Her work is rooted in inclusive, child-centred practice and a strong belief in early intervention. Her settings are known for their nurturing, nature-based environments that celebrate individuality, curiosity and resilience.

Janet Rose is an early years specialist with a strong interest in the development of young children’s self-regulation. She is currently Principal of Norland College, a specialist early years higher education institution. Janet has led national research projects that have focused on how parents and professionals can support children’s behaviour and wellbeing. She is co-founder of Emotion Coaching UK and has authored several books including Health and Wellbeing in Early Childhood. She has trained in Theraplay, Sensory Attachment Intervention and Sensory Integration, and recently completed a Fellowship in Early Relational Health from the University of Massachusetts.