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Accessibility Statement

PfA Year 9

Why do we need to plan for the future?

We need to start thinking about the future and what it could look like, as well as identifying the right support to help along the way. This means everyone is involved in the planning and decision-making, including the young person, parents, carers and any professionals involved.

Planning for the future (also known as Preparing for Adulthood) formally begins in Year 9, as there is a lot to think about. Years 10 and 11 focus on developing future plans and monitoring progress. But for now, it's about starting to understand the process, what will happen, and the decisions that need to be made. 

What if I have an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP)?

If you have an EHCP, the preparing for adulthood process is a little bit more formalised. An annual review is a meeting that happens once a year to review your EHCP. At this meeting, everyone involved in supporting you will discuss the support that needs to be put in place to enable you to move towards your educational goals and life aspirations and to live as independently as possible. See the tab at the bottom of the page for specific information on your EHCP.

What do I need to start thinking about?
  • Young people choose GCSE subjects at school. Some may study alternative qualifications.
  • The young person’s personal profile (on their Individual Support Plan) should have an increased focus on goals and aspirations related to PFA, including education and employment. Use person-centred planning tools to support this, for example, PATH.
  • Allow time to gather the young person’s views, especially where they use alternative communication.
  • Share information about activities that are available locally and encourage attendance at a Local Offer Live event (held annually) as well as other advertised events, with a focus on having conversations about Preparing for Adulthood. 
  • Create a Career Plan and/or Vocational Profile. Your school will have a Careers Adviser to help you. They will ensure the young person is regularly encouraged to look at their career plan/vocational profile.
  • Identify post-16 options for the young person to explore after leaving school that will help them plan which subjects they may want to choose for their GCSEs. 
  • The young person may not have clear ideas about post-16 at this stage, so discussions should focus on what they enjoy and are good at to support their Key Stage 4 option choices.
  • If a young person has clear ideas about what they want to do with their life, tools such as PATH can help plan the steps needed to achieve this.
  • Talk to school about opportunities for work placements, work experience and volunteering that may happen in the coming years.
  • Use life skills sessions to ensure an informed understanding of all their options, making sure high aspirations are considered. This may be done at school, at home or within community groups.
  • Start talking about the skills needed for future independence. This may be done at home with the parent and young person, or as part of a planning meeting at school with professionals, depending on the young person's needs. Things like basic cooking skills, budgeting and house keeping. 
  • Start talking about their aspirations for the future and the outcomes they wish to achieve. This may be done using person-centred planning tools.
  • Start thinking about curriculum opportunities that might support the young person’s independence skills, e.g., travel training, money management/budgeting, and domestic skills.
  • What health-related skills are required for future independence (e.g., making appointments, going to a pharmacy, etc.)?
  • Use the time the young person spends away from home/family, and consider how to build on it to support independence. If this is something the young person does not currently do, now may be the time to start exploring it, if appropriate. 
  • Start planning/recording the resources/services you may need in adult life, e.g., equipment, therapies, prescriptions, dentist, optician, diet and exercise, sexual health, etc.
  • Young people with a Learning Disability are entitled to an Annual Health Check from the age of 14; ask the GP surgery about support to access one. The Annual Health Check is a great preventive health opportunity; it helps young people become familiar with accessing the GP for other health appointments in adulthood.
  • Hospital passports are a good way to document information and support the young person in having conversations independently with health professionals. 
  • Think about the young person’s friendship group, closest friend(s) and other key people in their network (their ‘circle of support’). Support your young person in developing and maintaining friendships – identify how the curriculum can help and record this in their Individual Plan. 
  • Think about any out-of-school activities your young person does or would like to do to promote their participation in society. You can search for activities on the Local Offer Activities Directory
  • Use the time the young person spends away from home/family, and consider how to build on it to help them build friendships and gain independence. If this is something the young person does not currently do, now may be the time to start exploring it, if appropriate. 
  • The Mental Capacity Act applies from the age of 16. Now would be a good time for parents/carers to understand this information, in case it is appropriate for the future. 
  • C&K Careers has produced a helpful guide for parents that explains the options available in Year 9 for GCSEs in Years 10 and 11. 
  • Ensure the young person and their parents are aware that some “full-time” college courses are likely to last 3 days a week. 
  • Your school will have a Careers Adviser to help you. Speak to somebody at school if you are unsure how to access this.
  • Transition planning and preparing for adulthood should start in Year 9. Ideally, in Year 9, the annual review will take place before the young person has to choose their Key Stage 4 study path.
  • All annual reviews should focus on the young person's aspirations and ideas for their adult life and how these can be met. The topics of conversation covered in the above sections should be documented in the annual review.
  • This is an opportunity to look beyond educational needs and to include wider aspects of life, such as:
    • health needs,
    • personal and social development,
    • training and employment,
    • transport and independent travel,
    • housing and leisure
  • The school must ensure the young person, their family, and other agencies are informed in good time about the planned annual review meeting and that it focuses on transition planning so they can prepare in advance.

Health

It is important that the key health professionals involved in the young person's life attend the year 9 review and start discussing with the young person and their family when the key health service provision changes, from children to adult health services, will occur.

Social care

The disabled children's team will take the lead role in attending year 9 reviews for all young people known to them and will also represent adult social care, providing a range of information about adult services to individuals and parents, if they wish to receive it at this point.

The review meeting should result in a transition plan which records the actions needed to help the young person achieve their short and long-term goals.

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Last updated: 22/06/2026