Developmental delay is a term used when a child is taking longer to reach milestones compared to other children their age
It can be difficult to know what your child should be doing at every stage. It can cause unnecessary anxiety to have unrealistic expectations of what your child should be doing.
The information on this page provides information on age-related expectations in the early years.
You may find it useful to look at some of the information around age-related expectations in the early years. This will help you understand that all children develop differently, and what is expected at any given age can vary between individuals.
Professionals such as health visitors often use assessments to help identify if a child has a developmental delay. These online tools may help you know if you need to ask for more help for your child. You can talk to your child's nursery or childminder, or to your health visitor, to ask if your child is meeting age-related expectations or if they have a delay. You should also make sure you check your child's hearing and vision.
If you believe your child has a developmental delay, and you have read and tried our recommended approaches, you may need to seek more advice. SEND can appear complicated if you are new to it; the next pages are designed to help guide you to the right support for your child.
Supporting your child’s development
Support available if my child attends a nursery
More information is available on the parent toolkit