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Bulletin 245

20th September 2022

Welcome to our Early Years and Childcare bulletin. Previous bulletins are available at: Cheshire East Early years and Childcare Bulletin

Covid-19

Latest Covid Figures for Cheshire East

The Covid figures are now being updated on a less frequent basis - for the latest figures see the link below.

Business Support

Primary School Admission Applications Open

Applications are now open for children starting primary school. Parents are strongly advised to apply for three preferences.

Applications must be submitted to the child’s home local authority by:

• 15 January 2023 for pupils starting primary in September 2023.

Parents still need to apply even if the child has a brother or sister already at the school or the child is attending a nursery/preschool attached to the school. Some faith schools may also require parents and carers to submit a supplementary information form/confirmation of baptism.  Further information about this will be available on the school’s website.

Parents should consider how their child will travel to school when making preferences.  Parents can find out about school transport at Free and subsidised school transport (cheshireeast.gov.uk)

To apply online and for further information please go to Apply for September 2023 school place (cheshireeast.gov.uk)  or call 0300 123 5012.

For up to date information please direct parents to follow our twitter @CE_Admissions and follow The Family Information Service – @FISCheshireEast or Family Information Service (Cheshire East Council) - Home | Facebook

Department for Education Cost of Living announcement

The government, recognising the financial pressures which families and organisations across the country are under, has announced an ‘Energy Price Guarantee’ which will limit the price suppliers can charge customers for units of gas and electricity. Measures to tackle the root causes of the issues in the UK energy market through increased supply have also been announced.

Typical UK households will pay no more than £2,500 a year on their energy bill for the next two years from Saturday 1 October, saving the average household £1,000 a year based on current energy prices from October. This comes in addition to the announced £400 energy bills discount for all households and together they will bring costs close to where the energy price cap stands today.

There will also be a new six-month scheme for businesses and all non-domestic energy users, including charities and public sector organisations, which will offer equivalent support as is being provided for households. Providers in all DfE sectors will therefore be eligible.

After this initial six-month scheme, the government will provide ongoing, focused support for vulnerable sectors. There will be a review in 3 months’ time to consider where this should be targeted to make sure those most in need get support.

Further information is available at GOV.UK. More details of how support will be received will be published shortly.

Free early education entitlement – new guidance

Following a number of invoicing queries from parents, new guidance is available for childcare providers including ‘dos and don’ts’ when invoicing parents as well as things to consider when updating your charging information for parents.

For further useful information on delivering the free entitlements please visit our webpage on the link below.

Free Entitlement Provider Portal – ICT Acceptable Use Agreements

Recent audits have identified that ICT Acceptable Use Agreements, enabling childcare providers to access the Provider Portal, have been signed by members of staff who no longer enter child data via the Provider Portal. New Acceptable Use Agreements will therefore be issued in the coming weeks. The agreements will be emailed to the Free Entitlement Administrator as recorded on the Staffing tab of the Provider Portal – please check this information for your setting is up to date and if necessary, submit new administrator details.  

Local Authority Categorisation

The LA has a categorisation process in place.

It is important that you are aware of your category as Ofsted may ask you this
question at your next inspection.

If your setting is receiving an enhanced or targeted programme of support you will
receive further details.

Please see the link below for more information.

Safeguarding and Welfare Requirements

ICON week 26 to 30 September 2022

The second annual ICON week (26 to 30 September 2022) is here to raise awareness of infant crying and how to cope to support parents/carers and prevent serious injury, illness and even death of young babies as a result of Abusive Head Trauma that happens when someone shakes a baby. ICON is a programme adopted by health and social care organisations in the UK to provide information about infant crying, including how to cope, support parents/carers, and reduce stress. This year’s ICON Week is focussing on sharing ideas and best practice. More than 15 webinars are taking place throughout the week with speakers from the military, police, primary care, parent ambassadors, health visitors, and the education section. These are open to everyone, and further details are on the links below. https://www.cheshireeast.gov.uk/docs/livewell/Early-years-and-childcare/ICON-Week-26-30-Sept-Professionals-Newsletter.docx https://www.cheshireeast.gov.uk/docs/livewell/Early-years-and-childcare/ICON-WEEK-26-30TH-SEPT-SHARE-THE-MESSAGE-WITH-EVERYONE.docx

Ofsted

EYFS Learning and Development

Top tips to support children’s emotional health and well-being - “The things I feel inside”

Top tips to support children’s emotional health and well-being - “The things I feel inside” The pack includes 10 postcards with a top tip on each to use to support children’s personal, social and emotional development and share with parents. Each postcard includes: I like it when you… gives ideas of things to do with children Remember…explains why children will benefit from this experience Did you know?... provides useful information about how children learn and develop Top Tip number 2 - “Boost my confidence by believing in me” "Feelings of self worth and knowing others believe in us help us to believe in ourselves" [Anne O’Connor, 2020] Top tip number 2 “Boost my confidence by believing in me” focusses on the role of the adult in building children’s confidence to explore and have a go. Look out for next week’s bulletin Top Tip number 3 : Help me to manage my big feelings and give them names. To purchase the full set of Top Tip postcards, log onto the Online shop below

SEND

Cheshire East Chatters key message

This half term’s key message poster from Cheshire East Chatters is all around the impact of screen time on communication, a really important one to share with your families, as screen time is a part of everyday modern life.

The American Academy of Paediatrics (2016) advises just one hour of screen time a day for children age 2-5!

Screen time reduces opportunities to engage in hands-on shared experiences with the world around us, which is how children learn language. Research tells us that reduced opportunities for hands on play reduces opportunities for communication to develop (ICAN). Screen time has also been found to have some links with social communication difficulties, likely due to reduced opportunities for social interaction (Hermawati et al. 2018). Excess screen time can also impact on a child’s behaviour and sleep patterns.

Some points to consider:

• Screens including whiteboards can be a source of background noise- this will interrupt the concentration of children during other play activities in the classroom.
• In the home learning environment, it is important to have quiet, screen-free time to support children’s play, language and concentration.
• Children may learn curriculum words such as colours, numbers and letters through a screen, however these types of words are not useful for a child trying to communicate a message.
• Language is learned through exploration with the real world and hands on experiences build brains!

Coming in a future Bulletin… ways to use screens together with children to support their development.

We have information, tips and activities on reducing screen time on the Cheshire East Chatters Facebook page so please follow us and let your parents know about us too! https://www.facebook.com/cheshireeastchatters

If you want to get in touch then please email cechatters@mcht.nhs.uk

SEN funding requests and payments

SEN Funding requests

Please see SEN and disability in the early years (cheshireeast.gov.uk) information for SENCo’s for the new dates for SEN funding applications and feedback. All applications must be submitted via the online portal – the link is available on the web page. Contact earlyyearssenhelpline@cheshireeast.gov.uk if you have any difficulties and we will request support from the Business Intelligence team.

Payments

Payments are due to be made for SEN/EHCP funding in September where contracts have been completed. If you have any queries on payments please contact earlyyearssenhelpline@cheshireeast.gov.uk as soon as possible.

Continuous Professional Development

September training dates

A full directory of training and CPD opportunities will be sent out shortly however, we have the following sessions available over the next 2 weeks:

Progress check and Integrated Review at 2, 21-Sept-22, 9.30am-11.30am – online

Explore the process of coordinating the Progress check within your setting to fulfil the statutory requirements of the EYFS and how this links in with integrated review which brings together the Early years Progress check at age 2 and the Health development check. Consider in depth, the requirements of writing a quality progress check and working to embed partnerships with parents and link health professionals.

WellComm, 27-Sep-22, 09:30am-3pm - Holmes Chapel Comp Sch, CW4 7DX

Discuss and define terms relating to communication and how these relate to the WellComm screening tool, examine the rationale behind using WellComm to screen, track and monitor individual children, receive practical support on how to use the screen and how to integrate WellComm activities into daily best practice within the setting, try out WellComm screening and activities from the Big Book of Ideas and to discuss the practicalities of setting up targeted groups.

Understanding the EIF, 29-Sep-22, 9.30am to 11.30am - online

An opportunity to consider Ofsted’s Education Inspection Framework in the light of the new Early Years Foundation Stage, discuss the curriculum and consider how to integrate Intent, Implementation and Impact in to your setting; the Learning Walk is unpicked and Ofsted’s ‘Golden Thread’ is looked at in more detail and is made relatable to you and your provision.

Standing in the shoes of a two year old, 29-Sep-22 and 6-Oct-22, 1.30pm to 3.30pm - online

Focus on the skills and knowledge needed to work with the two year old age group. Session 1 - ‘Getting to know me’ will cover Role of the Key Person / building attachments / links to child development and how children like to learn i.e. characteristics of effective learning; Session 2 - ‘Building an environment that is right for me’ looks closely at the physical and emotional environment for twos / patterns of play / supporting feelings and emotions and effective practice.

Learning Language in the Outdoors, 30-Sept-22, 1pm-2.30pm - online

How does being outdoors make you feel? In this session Cheshire East Chatters discuss the research behind learning in the outdoor environment and introduce their new group activities booklet containing lots of exciting, practical activities to support children's communication skills in your outdoor space, all attendees will receive a copy of the booklet.

Launching our Children’s Emotional Health & Well-Being Champion’s network

Are you passionate about children’s emotional health and well-being?

Do you want to support the personal, social and emotional development of the children in your setting?

We are looking to create a team of practitioners who want to be the champion for children’s EH&WB in their setting.

If this is you, come and be a part of the launch of our ‘the things I feel inside’ campaign. Join us on Teams on:

11st October 2022 at 3.30-5.00pm

or

13^th October 2022 at 2.00-3.30pm

Share your thoughts and ideas and play a role in developing our package of support for children’s emotional health and well-being.

 We will welcome your thoughts and ideas around

• Role of the PSED lead
• Emotional Environment
• Key Person

To book your place, log onto the Online Shop below

 ‘Are you Ready for Rhyme Time?’

We will be launching our ‘Are you Ready for Rhyme Time?’ document and training this term.

Explore the value of using songs and rhymes to promote children’s learning across the prime areas. The Introductory session will give you an overview of the different sections for babies, 2’s and pre-schoolers and also the home learning section. You will have the opportunity to look at the new document and review the contents before taking it away to use in your setting. The additional sessions focus on specific age groups and you will discuss how rhymes support learning and development across the prime and how to plan rhyme session using the session plans specifically for that age group.

Introducing ‘Are you ready for Rhyme time?’ - 22^nd Sept 1pm and 3pm at Oakenclough CC, or 18^th Oct 1.30pm or 4.15pm at Oak Tree CC

Rhyme time for Babies – Fun from the Beginning – 17^th Nov 1pm or 3pm at Oakenclough or 29^th Nov 1.30pm or 4.15pm at Oak Tree CC

Rhyme Time for Toddlers – Ready 2 Rhyme – 12^th Jan 1pm or 3pm at Oakenclough CC or 17^th Jan 1.30pm r 4,15pm at Oak Tree CC

Rhyme Time for Preschool – 9^th March 1pm or 3pm at Oakenclough CC or 23^rd March 1.30pm or 4.15pm at Oak Tree CC

Don't Forget!

FEEE – Afghan and Ukrainian children

Afghan and Ukrainian children aged 3 and 4 years old living in Cheshire East are entitled to 15 hours early education irrespective of the immigration status of the child or their parent(s). Afghan and Ukrainian 2 year olds may also be eligible to 15 hours early education irrespective of their immigration status. To claim FEEE funding for children from Afghanistan or Ukraine, please add their details to the Provider Portal in the usual way, including the 2YO voucher code for eligible 2 year olds. Should the Provider Portal be closed, please email the FEEE Team (FEEE@cheshireeast.gov.uk) who will update your funding claim.

In addition, please also complete the short form (link below), enabling the authority to monitor take-up of the free entitlement.  Please complete this form each time an Afghan or Ukrainian child starts or leaves your setting. If any Afghan or Ukrainian children currently attend your setting, please retrospectively complete this form and continue to use the form as you have any new starters or leavers.

https://forms.office.com/r/RN5KbkKrzL