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Bulletin 377

2 February 2026

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

Liquidlogic

Spring Term – Establishment Portal

The submission window to submit the Spring term headcount and census has now closed on the establishment portal.

If you have any new children or changes to children’s hours, please add them to your live register as a midterm change for inclusion in your balancing payment for Spring term.

Business Support

Advertise your vacancies via the free Find a job website

The Department for Work and Pensions' (DWP) free ‘Find a job’ vacancy platform supports applicants to search for early years roles in their area.

Employers are encouraged to advertise their jobs on the Find a job website. Click the button below to create an account or login to the Employer section to add your company to post job adverts and manage your team.

You should use the term ‘early years’ in the title of your job adverts and select ‘Education jobs’ for the job category. Watch the video tutorials below to help you list any vacancies in your setting on Find a job.

Safeguarding

 Domestic abuse

Ofsted, Care Quality Commission (CQC), His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS), and His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Probation (HMIP) have published a joint report looking at the multi-agency response to children who are at risk from, or are victims of, domestic abuse.

The report sets out key findings from six joint targeted area inspections (JTAIs) in England. It focuses on unborn babies and children up to 7-years-old affected by domestic abuse, exploring: responses at the point of identification; assessment, planning and decision-making; protection and support; and prevention. The report highlights examples of good practice including support for unborn babies demonstrated by midwives and the involvement of schools and early years providers at a strategic level. However, it also finds that children’s experiences are inconsistent and they are not always recognised or supported as victims of domestic abuse in their own right. The inspectorates are calling for improved multi-agency working and information sharing.

Click on the button below to read the press release.

National Updates

Director of Education, Skills and Inclusion update

We are pleased to share that Helen Wallace has been appointed as the permanent Director of Education, Skills and Inclusion for Cheshire East.

Helen is currently our Interim Head of Service for SEND and SEND Transformation and brings extensive experience in SEND and education leadership. Her background and commitment to improving outcomes for children and young people make her a strong addition to our senior leadership team.

Helen says: “I feel extremely privileged to step into the role of Director of Education, Skills and Inclusion for Cheshire East.  I’m truly grateful for the warm welcome I’ve received since joining the council in September 2025. I’m inspired every day by the passion and dedication of our teams, partners and stakeholders and I’m excited to work together as we continue to build something special.

“Together, we have a great opportunity to shape the educational experiences of every child and young person, ensuring they have the best possible chances to thrive. I look forward to collaborating with colleagues and partners to create ambitious, meaningful and impactful opportunities—always keeping children and young people at the heart of all we do.”

During this transition period, Iain Peel (Interim Director) will continue to support the education department for at least the remainder of the academic year, ensuring continuity and providing valuable leadership support.

Share your views on delivering entitlements to parents

The Department for Education (DfE) are conducting research to gather feedback on early years professional's experiences of delivering the following entitlements:

• the working parent (9 month - 4 years)
• universal 15 hours (3 - 4-year-olds)
• the 2-year-old disadvantaged entitlement

The DfE would like to hear about your experiences and needs for delivering entitlements to understand how to improve the experience in the future. The DfE are looking to speak to early years professional's involved in the process of childcare entitlements, those who process finances relating to these entitlements and support parents with understanding entitlements.

The DfE would love to hear your thoughts and feedback on how you deliver entitlements in your setting(s) in a 60-minute session:

• When: 2nd - 18th February 2026
• Format: Online session, or potential options for in-person or a phone call
• Incentive: £40

Sessions will include a one-off discussion with a researcher about aspects such as what you do to deliver entitlements to parents, what that experience is like, who is involved, what systems you use etc. Your insights will play a key role in improving the experience of delivering entitlements across the country.

Questions? Contact the DfE at gabrielle.mitchem-evans@education.gov.uk  

SEND

SEND Drop-In session

The Portage, Quality and Inclusion Team are running SEND drop-in sessions for our Early Years settings the first Monday of every month. The first half hour will provide an overview of a current SEND topic. The next sessions are as follows: Monday 2nd February – Spring updates/introduction to Quality and Inclusion Co-ordinator Monday 2nd March – Our PQUIP's will be available online but there will be no topic discussion due to the SENCO Network later that evening The second half hour is an open opportunity to ask questions regarding any area of practice and support, share good practice and ideas with other settings and develop links. Each will be held 17:00 – 18:00 on Microsoft Teams. Please join us for an informal session designed to support you and your team. Email earlyyearsandchildcareteam@cheshireeast.gov.uk to request the Teams link if you are available to attend. Please note: if you have received the link before, this will work for all upcoming sessions.

Family Hubs

Cheshire East Family Hubs Local Plan Collaborative Events 2026

We are delighted to invite you to join us for a co-production event following the Department for Education’s recent Best Start in Life announcement.

The government’s Plan for Change sets an ambitious mission: to ensure every child has the best start in life and is ready to learn by the time they start school. By 2028, the aim is for a record 75% of children to reach a good level of development by the end of reception.

This event is an opportunity for schools, early years settings, and partners to come together to:

• Explore what the Best Start in Life mission means for our local area.
• Share ideas and expertise to shape how we deliver support for families and children.
• Strengthen collaboration between education, health, and community services.

Your input is vital in helping us break down barriers to opportunity and ensure every child can grow, play, learn, and thrive.

Our Local Plan will mirror our locality structure in Cheshire East, so please book onto the event which is taking place in your area:

N1 – Wilmslow and Knutsford/Congleton and Holmes Chapel

Tuesday 24th February, 1pm-3pm, Oakenclough Family Hub

N2 – Macclesfield North/Macclesfield South

Tuesday 10th February, 10am-12pm, Macclesfield Town Hall

S1 – Nantwich and Rural/Crewe South

Monday 9th February, 10am-12pm, Crewe Alexandra Football Club

S2 – Sandbach, Middlewich and Alsager/Crewe North

Monday 2nd March, 10am-12pm, Middlewich Canalside Conference Centre

This event for our colleagues from schools and settings is tailored towards Headteachers, Deputy or Assistant Headteachers and EYFS Leads.

To book your place please complete the form at: Cheshire East Family Hubs Local Plan Collaborative Events 2026 – Fill in form

Training

Book a place here: SPOTSS Cheshire Events - 11 Upcoming Activities and Tickets | Eventbrite

For queries or further information, please email: ccicp.sensoryotadmin@mcht.nhs.uk 

Spring Term Training available on the Early Years Training Hub

The ChESS Early Years Training Hub has been updated with lots of training opportunities for the spring term, please take a look and book on now!

Upcoming training next week:

PACE Inspired Approaches in Early Years Settings - 9th February 2026 18:30 - 20:30 (Microsoft Teams)

*Please note: this training course was previously titled 'The PACE Approach'*

PACE stands for Playfulness, Acceptance, Curiosity and Empathy. The PACE model is a trauma informed approach developed by Clinical Psychologists, which is centred around building safe, trusting, and meaningful relationships with children and young people that have experienced trauma or attachment difficulties. The PACE model provides opportunities for early years practitioners to build on their attachments with children, by communicating and interacting in a way which helps children. This training will cover, an introduction to the PACE model and psychological underpinnings, a brief overview of attachment and trauma within the early years and practical strategies utilising PACE which can be applied to an early years setting.

Exploring Mathematics in the EYFS - 10th February 2026 9:30 - 15:30 (Oakenclough Family Hub)

The session will explore Number, Shape, Pattern and Measure and will support practitioners to critically analyse how maths is currently taught and how small changes can make this even more effective. Practitioners will leave with a range of practical strategies to use within their setting to ensure that all children develop firm mathematical foundations - using real-life contexts, quality interactions, and carefully chosen manipulatives to deepen learning and spark curiosity. By the end of this session, practitioners will have developed a deeper understanding of how children build mathematical concepts in the early years and be able to identify ways to embed maths teaching naturally throughout daily routines and continuous provision. Practitioners will explore how mathematical opportunities can be created across different areas of the setting and consider ways to engage parents and carers in supporting maths at home.

Basic Safeguarding Awareness - 11th February 2026 9:30 - 11:30 (Microsoft Teams)

This two-hour training course will provide basic information and understanding about safeguarding children. It has been specifically written to address safeguarding in Early Years and Childcare settings and covers practice and procedures used within Cheshire East. This training will help you to develop an awareness of, and the ability to act on, concerns about the safety and welfare of children and young people. It will enable you to understand your safeguarding role, be able to define, identify, understand and respond appropriately to signs of possible abuse and neglect and identify safer caring practices.

Role of the DSL (part 1) – 11th February 2026 18:30 - 21:00 (Microsoft Teams) Role of the DSL (part 2) – 23rd February 2026 18:30 - 21:00 (Microsoft Teams)

Role of the DSL (part 1 and 2) will be delivered over 2 evening sessions. You must be available to attend the dates for both part 1 and part 2 of the training to receive a certificate and the slides. This training course provides information and guidance to practitioners new to the role of the DSL or those wishing to refresh their knowledge. The training includes safer recruitment and induction of new staff members, liaising with staff members and other agencies, recording of safeguarding information, escalation of concerns, online safety, allegations against staff, the role of the LADO and policy and procedure development.

Trauma and Attachment in Early Childhood - 12th February 2026 9:30 - 11:30 (Microsoft Teams)

Join us to explore trauma and attachment in early childhood, delivered by an Educational Psychologist. This training will cover attachment theory related to early childhood, Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) and what they are, the impact of trauma on young children and attachment awareness and trauma informed practice in early years settings.