2-3 years

In this section you will find useful information to support you as a parent or carer of a child aged 2-3 years old.

Your child’s development

I CAN provide information on what to expect from your child in terms of their communication, speech and language and how you can support them to develop these skills.

The National Literacy Trust has excellent information and activities for families that encourage good communication skills and aim to spark a love of books! Also, find their guide to interactive storybook apps here.

Click here for strategies to support your child to develop their speech and communication skills.

Parents/carers who have concerns about their child’s speech, language and/or communication development can book a session to talk to a speech and language therapist either in person or virtually, find out more here.

Tiny Happy People is a BBC initiative in partnership with the NHS and Public Health England here to help you develop your child's communication skills. Explore the simple activities and play ideas and take a look at the short videos to find out about your baby’s/children’s amazing early development.

Afaisac offers information and support for families with children that have difficulties talking or understanding and can help to guide you through accessing available services.

Born to Move is an NHS app to help parents or carers with their newborn babies right up to pre-school. Born to move is about encouraging daily active play and interaction to help the learning and wiring of your baby’s brain at this critical early stage. It’s designed to give you friendly advice and tips to support your child to develop intellectually, emotionally, socially and physically and build the foundations for a healthy, happy and confident child.

Click here for fun and engaging activities you can do with your child that also help with their development and learning from Hungry Little Minds.

Find fantastic information from Children’s Occupational Therapy Department at Poole Hospital on a wide range of developmental areas including development of fine motor skills, visual perception and good sleeping habits.


Toilet training

ERIC- Every child is different and they learn to use the toilet at different times. Please access this website for expert information and resources on toilet training including when to start, top tips and answers to all your toilet training questions.

Wessex Healthier Together also has clear advice regarding toilet training with your child.

‘Poo Goes Home to Pooland’ is an app that through telling a story helps to alleviate any negative feelings a child may be experiencing around soiling themselves. Click to download the app from the App Store or the Google Play Store.

Nutrition and staying healthy

First Steps to Nutrition provides practical food and drink ideas for the whole family, click here for good food choices for meals and snacks.

Click here for a visual reminder of portion sizes for your child.

Food refusal is a normal part of many children’s development and most toddlers have good and bad days with feeding. For help with managing your child’s fussy eating or their aversion to certain foods click here.

Find tasty and family friendly recipes and meal ideas from NHS Change 4 Life.

Sleep

BookTrust recommend a Bath, Book, Bed routine as a good basis to healthy sleep behaviour in children and as a solution sleepless nights!

Early years settings

Early years settings such as pre-school and nursery can be great places for your child to develop in all areas but particularly their social and communication skills. Find out if your 2 year old qualifies for 15 hours funded childcare if you live in Dorset or BCP (Bournemouth Christchurch and Poole).

Accident prevention

RoSPA is an organisation that provides advice and support on home safety and accident prevention.

The Child Accident Prevention Trust is the UK’s leading charity working to reduce the number of children and young people killed, disabled or seriously injured in accidents. They provide information and advice to help parents prevent accidents both inside and outside of the home.

Immunisations

Your child will be offered a seasonal flu vaccine from two years. Here are some vaccination tips for parents and the UK vaccination schedule.

Remember, you can speak to a member of the health visiting team by ringing your local hub in your area if you require further support.

Health Visiting