What does Preparation for Adulthood mean?

Information about what preparing for adulthood means for you, as you have an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) and are aged 14 years or older.

Some young people might feel anxious or worried about getting older and moving into adulthood, and here we will provide you with information and signpost you to people who are able to offer support and opportunities.

What do we mean by preparing for adulthood?

Preparing for adulthood means starting to think about your future aspirations, goals and where you would like to be in a few years. The earlier you begin to think about these things the better prepared you will be. It's important to begin thinking about these things from year 9, as from this age you will begin discussing these things with your family and those professionals working with you.

There are four main pathways that young people say are important to them when they begin to think about their future. You will find these below; click on each pathway to find out more information about each subject:

The above four categories will form a discussion at your Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) review in year 9. Before this review, you will be invited to fill out a My Future My Choice document to share your views and wishes, what is important to you, what plans you have, what good support looks like to you, what’s currently working well for you and what’s not working so well.

Information from your My Future My Choice document will be used to create a One Page Profile document to bring this information together and to share with those people supporting you to let them know what's important to you.

Your One Page Profile will be used in your Annual Review to inform future planning and will form the structure to your Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP).

Your annual review will be centred around you - this means you should be included in the discussion and planning. It will focus on your aspirations for the future and result in clear outcomes and plans that will support your pathway for the future.

Further information or advice

If, after exploring the four pathways above, you or your parent/carer require some additional information or advice, please visit our Information, advice and support section.