A very fond farewell to Kay Holden
Kay Holden, Childcare Sufficiency Officer is taking early retirement and her last day will be the 20th May 2021.
Kay says “It has been an absolute privilege to work on so many projects with childcare providers over the past 23 years. I was a registered childminder for about 15 years prior to starting work for Bradford Council. Initially I established Thornton Childminding Network which then became Bradford Childminding Network.
There have been so may projects I have been incredibly proud to be part of and their success was down to the professionalism and dedication of childcare providers as well as amazing Council Officers who are passionate about supporting the Early Years Sector. Thank you for all your support over the years and I wish you all the very best”
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What should our main priorities be for our children post lockdown?
Phillippa Degnan (Early Years Officer, School Standards and Performance, Bradford Council) has shared some thoughts for the childcare sector.
'We are sure we could come up with an infinite list of lost learning and experiences our children missed out on this last year. We would like to assure you that the one key element to focus on is making relationships and interacting with people, friends and adults outside their own homes.
This brings us to thinking about and concentrating on those Prime areas of learning. We need to ensure our children have quality opportunities to make firm foundations in the Prime areas that underpins their learning in the Specific areas. We can nurture and support our children’s learning by carefully focusing our attention and interactions on their individual needs and interests.
Knowing our children well help us to provide those key learning experiences that supports their emotional well-being as well as giving them access to a broad and balanced curriculum. Some of our children will need more adult support and attention to help them learn, especially if they are struggling with their communication skills. The earlier we provide this support for children, the greater the opportunity we give, preventing them from falling behind.'
Well being & Mental Health in the Workplace for employers & managers
New dates are available for this course which will benefit early years settings that employ staff e.g. day nurseries, large childminding settings, pre-schools and out of school clubs. It is for owners and managers.
This course gives owners and managers a clear understanding of their role in supporting their staff well-being and mental health.
Dates available:
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Online Cyber Awareness course - Helping to keep children safe online
Brilliant opportunity for a free training session delivered by West Yorkshire Police.
Due to Coronavirus, children have been spending even more time online this year. Do you honestly know what they are accessing at home or understand some of the words, language and images that young children are now using or being exposed to?
Very young children are now using tablets, phones and other electronic devices on a regular basis.
This course is intended to improve your knowledge and awareness of modern day problems in relation to children's use of the internet which will then help you with your safeguarding responsibilities.
This West Yorkshire Police training was last delivered to childcare providers over 5 years ago so it’s really important that you attend as a refresher or if you haven’t completed this training before.
By the end of the course you will start to understand the vast complex nature of the virtual world and be aware of the dangers of some of the social media platforms that children access and the real meaning of words that children may use.
The courses will be delivered by PCSO 127 Danny Mynott, Bradford District Cyber Team. Dates available:
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Online EYFS Reforms Briefing Sessions
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Keep yourself well informed
It’s important now more than ever to keep up to date with what happening in the Early years and Childcare sector.
We will send you key information via email from Bradford Council and the Department for Education and Ofsted but do sign up for updates so you get the information in good time.
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Government website and you can subscribe and select ‘Education and Childcare during Coronavirus here
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Department for Education website and subscribe to DFE updates here
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Ofsted website and sign up for newsletter updates here
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Bradford Council website for advice and support, you can subscribe under the blue ‘stay connected’ box here
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Invest in Bradford website and the website homepage takes you to sign up for email alerts
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Bradford Schools Online website and receive newsletters here
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Bradford libraries Bookstart website To also access 'Happy active stories', 'Rhyme challenges', online story times and lots more
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50 Things to do Before You’re Five website A whole source of information, activity tools for families and practitioners
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Better Start Bradford website
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Better Start Bradford - HENRY website
There are lots of other sources for information guidance and support available online.
Here is a list that we use to keep ourselves informed. This is not an exhaustive list and we are not endorsing specific organisations.
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Foundation Years website and you can sign up for newsletters here
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Early Years Alliance website and subscribe to email updates here
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National Children’s Bureau website and sign up for newsletters here
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PACEY (Professional Association of Childcare and Early Years) website
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Nursery World website
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NDNA (National Day Nurseries Association) website
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Out of School Alliance website
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Learning through Landscapes website
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ICAN website
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