Early Identification: Assessing Developmental Delay Before School

If a young child's development (language, social skills, gross/fine motor, cognition) is clearly behind peers, early identification and intervention matter. Hong Kong has a pre-school support system run by the Department of Health and the Social Welfare Department — here are the main routes.

Step 1: Maternal & Child Health Centres

The Department of Health's Maternal & Child Health Centres (MCHCs) provide developmental surveillance for children under 5 — watching developmental milestones at routine checks. If something seems off, the centre (or a family doctor or educational psychologist) can refer the child on. There are about 28 MCHCs across Hong Kong.

Step 2: the Child Assessment Service

The Department of Health's Child Assessment Service assesses children under 12 more fully, by a multi-disciplinary team (paediatricians, psychologists, speech therapists and others) at 7 centres. A referral is generally required, and the first step is usually a nurse's initial assessment.

Pre-school rehabilitation services (SWD)

Once a need is confirmed, the Social Welfare Department offers several pre-school rehabilitation services:

• Early Education and Training Centre (EETC): training for children from birth to under 6 with developmental needs, and their parents.
• Integrated Programme in KG-cum-CCC (IP): supports children with mild disabilities within an ordinary kindergarten setting.
• Special Child Care Centre (SCCC): whole-day training for children aged 2 to under 6 with moderate-to-severe disabilities.
• On-site Pre-school Rehabilitation Services (OPRS): support delivered inside participating kindergartens, free of charge; Tier 1 needs no referral, Tier 2 is arranged through the Central Referral System.

Bridging to school

Pre-school identification and support flow into the integrated education and 3-tier support of primary school. If your child's SEN is confirmed, see Integrated education vs special schools when choosing a school.

Early identification isn't "labelling" — it's getting the right support sooner. The earlier the intervention, the better the outcomes tend to be. Sources: Department of Health, Social Welfare Department.