5 SEND Tips for Visiting Santa

5 top tips for ensuring your visit to Santa this year is a success.

Christmas is a magical time, but all those decorations, sparkly lights, family gatherings, and of course - meeting Santa, can be over whelming for a child with SEND. The Sense charity have shared their 5 top tips for making sure your Santa visit goes smoothly this year.

1. Call ahead to ask venues about accessible sessions and adaptations like shorter queues, interpreters, quiet sessions, tactile exploration and longer time slots.

2. Familiarise your child with Santa before visiting by using photos, short videos or objects of reference. 3. Use a social story or a calendar system with your child so they can see all stages involved in the visit ahead of the day.

4. Take drinks, snacks, fidget toys, headphones and go at your child's pace. 5. Take photos of your visit and note key moments, actions, smells and textures that can be used to recall and reflect on your experience later.