Information to pass on to parents: scam calls and the Childcare Service
On rare occasions, parents may receive suspicious texts, calls or emails purporting to be from HMRC or the Childcare Service. Parents may be asked to supply personal information such as income, national insurance numbers or email addresses.
Please be advised that it may sometimes be necessary for the Childcare Service to contact parents directly in order to progress applications/reconfirmations, follow up on mandatory reviews/appeals and also as part of the standard customer compliance activity. However, the Childcare Service will only contact parents from numbers beginning 0300 or from a caller ID showing as withheld.
If parents are concerned about any communication they receive which claims to be from the Childcare Service, they can contact the Childcare Service helpline directly on 0300 123 4097 to discuss their application/childcare account.
If they suspect the call, email or text they received is fraudulent, they could consider sending this onto HMRC to help end scams like these. More information can be seen at Report suspicious HMRC emails, text messages and phone calls - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
Department for Education announcement on School-based nurseries
The Secretary of State for Education has announced that from next month state-funded primary schools will be invited to bid for capital funding to create or expand on-site nurseries. As is currently the case, these nurseries can be school-run or delivered by schools partnering with private and voluntary early years providers on school sites.
This is the first step to delivering the government’s ambition for 3,000 new nurseries in primary schools and will be used to take learnings for future years to ensure the programme is delivered in a way that will benefit parents and children. Schools will also be able to express an interest for future phases of the programme to help assess demand in different parts of the country.
Schools interested in bidding for this first funding round are urged to start discussions with their local authorities, governing organisations and wider stakeholders to consider pupil place planning, local childcare sufficiency and next steps for setting up and running new or expanded nurseries. More details on the funding and guidance to support schools will be issued at the date of launch.
The Department for Education will continue to work closely with schools, local authorities, and providers to understand what is needed to deliver this, to ensure provision meets the needs of families and schools, and to reflect the local authority role in managing childcare sufficiency in funding decisions.
Breakfast Clubs Early Adopter Scheme
The government is committed to offering a free breakfast club in every primary school in England.
This will build on the national wraparound childcare programme and national school breakfast programme.
They will be inviting schools to take part in an early adopter scheme. The scheme will seek to test and learn what works ahead of national rollout.
The programme will invite up to 750 state-funded schools in England with primary aged-pupils to work with the Department for Education (DfE). It will focus on how breakfast clubs can be delivered in a way that:
- builds on what is already happening in schools
- meets the needs of parents
- ensures children start the day ready to learn
DfE will also work with the sector, including local authorities and childcare providers, businesses and charities to consider the best approaches to delivering breakfast clubs in schools.
Further information on how schools can take part in the scheme, and the model the scheme will follow, will be shared in the second half of the autumn. Early adopter schools will be confirmed by early 2025 and the scheme will launch in the summer term (April 2025).
Schools that wish to find out more about becoming an early adopter can sign up using the early adopter breakfast clubs expression of interest form to be notified as further information becomes available.
Please contact earlyyearsandchildcareteam@cheshireeast.gov.uk
if you decide to register an interest.
Thrive DfE-Funded Level 4 Early Intervention Practitioner Apprenticeship
Thrive are excited to introduce their new DfE-funded Level 4 Early Intervention Practitioner Apprenticeship - an outstanding opportunity for schools to upskill their staff at no cost.
This apprenticeship is designed to equip educators with the skills to make a lasting, positive impact on children’s mental health, wellbeing and behaviour, providing crucial support.
Key benefits for your schools:
- Dual qualification: The apprentice will qualify as both an Early Intervention Practitioner and a Thrive Licensed Practitioner.
- Free training: Funded by the DfE, with a value of £3,500.
- Flexible learning: Online study and mentoring led by Thrive experts.
- Immediate results: Training begins in January 2025 and runs for 12-18 months, developing skills that a team member can apply right away.
Next Steps:
- Visit Thrives course page and FAQs for more information.
- Download Thrives course guide to share with relevant staff across your schools.
- Applications close on 22nd November, and spaces are limited.
This is a fantastic opportunity for schools to strengthen their approach to mental health, behaviour, and wellbeing. Thrive encourage you to share this information with your network and help them benefit from this fully funded programme.
Who needs to submit an EY2 form
If you want to become part of an Ofsted-registered childcare organisation you may need to complete an EY2 (application) form.
This depends on the type of role you will have. You will definitely need to apply if you are joining:
- a company or charity set up solely or mainly to provide childcare and are going to be listed as legally responsible with Companies House or the Charities Commission
- a company set up for another purpose as the nominated individual who deals with Ofsted
- a partnership as a partner
- committee-run childcare as a committee member
-
daycare that takes place in a home as a worker or manager, or if you live there
Ofsted may need to carry out checks on you even if you don’t care for children yourself. They need to make sure that everyone who is legally responsible for the children’s care, and anyone over 16 who could come into contact with children, is suitable.
Ofsted's guidance gives more information on who needs to apply and how to complete the form.
If you are a registered childminder only, you should use the childminders: report new adults in the home service.
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