Services for Early Childhood
What's On This Page
Client & Family Services Quick Links
- The Lanterman Act
- Working Together in Partnership
- Person Centered Planning
- Resolving Disagreements
- Your Legal Rights
- Receiving Quality and Effective Services and Supports
- Early Start – Birth to 3 Years
- Provisional Eligibility – Birth to 5 Years
- Transitioning from Early Childhood Services
Introduction
Lanterman Regional Center is dedicated to supporting parents of young children ages birth to 5 years who are receiving services either through the Early Start Program or via Provisional Eligibility. Between now and your child’s 5th birthday, your family will take a journey filled with choices and challenges, as well as successes.
The information in this section is intended to help you navigate this journey and make informed decisions and choices about the variety of supports and services available both through vendored service providers and other community-based resources, that may be available to help your family achieve desired outcomes.
For more information about any of the information listed below, contact your service coordinator.
Early Start – Birth to 3 Years
The first three years of a child’s life are a time of significant growth and critical development. During this important time, some children might need additional help to achieve these developmental milestones. Services and supports that may help your child learn basic and new skills that typically develop during the first three years of life are called early intervention services and are provided through the Early Start Program.
About Early Start Services
The Regional Center’s Early Start program serves children from birth to 3 who are born with, or at risk for, developmental delay or disability. We know that the earlier an infant or toddler receives appropriate services, the more successful we can be in minimizing or preventing future disabilities. For this reason, our Early Intervention unit works with families to access services and supports that help identify and treat developmental concerns as early as possible in the life of the child.
Provisional Eligibility – Birth to 5 Years
Provisional eligibility widens the range of young children who are eligible for services from the regional center.
Children who are birth to 3 years old and receiving Early Start services, may additionally be made provisionally eligible, and also receive Lanterman Act services in addition to Early Start services.
A child who is 3 or 4 years of age may qualify for provisional eligibility for regional center services, without needing a diagnosis of developmental disability as specified in W&I Code section 4512(a)(1). The child might not have an eligible diagnosis yet, or they may not have a substantial enough disability.
Transitioning from Early Childhood Services
There are two possible transitions in a child’s early years, depending on when and under what criteria the child was determined eligible for services.
The first transition comes for children receiving Early Start services as the child approaches age 3 and it’s determined whether the child will continue to receive services from the regional center and/or school district.
The second transition happens for children who are provisionally eligible as they approach age 5 and are reassessed for continued eligibility for regional center services.
Along with these transitions related to the regional center, there are simultaneous transitions occurring with eligibility for special education preschool at 3 and then the transition from preschool to kindergarten at age 5.
Discover the Early Childhood and Transition Resource Lookup for Families
Navigating early childhood and transition resources just got a little easier. The Department of Developmental Services (DDS) launched the Early Childhood and Transition Resources Lookup. It’s a user-friendly, interactive map designed to support families as they access critical services for their children.
What does this map offer?
It’s a one-stop tool to locate essential early childhood and transition resources in your community. Just add your zip code, address or city, and you can locate contact details, addresses and websites for:
- Regional Centers
- Family Resource Centers
- Childcare Providers
- School Districts
- Head Start Programs
- Family Empowerment Centers
In California, early childhood resources are for children ages birth to 3 and transition resources are for children ages 3-5. The Early Childhood and Transitions Lookup can help save time and reduce the frustration of searching multiple sites, when navigating services and resources for your child.