The Autumn term actual headcount form deadline date has now been changed to Tuesday the 17th of September. We hope these extra days will help. We are unable to extend this date any further, due to the admin we need to do in the back office, to ensure you receive your payments on time.
On 09.09.2024 Ofsted published their updated guidance on inspecting registered early years and childcare providers Early years inspection handbook - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).
In line with safeguarding requirements, all Early Years and Child Care Settings are encouraged to complete safeguarding practice audits on a termly basis. Please note that completion of the practice audit is not a statutory requirement. The updated template is available on Safeguarding Audits | Shropshire Learning Gateway (shropshirelg.net) can be used to assist you with your auditing and assurance purposes. The template also contains useful links for pupils who are looked after. All records should be retained within your setting and there is no requirement to return completed audits to the local authority.
Please do not hesitate to contact Charlotte Percival Charlotte.Percival@shropshire.gov.uk if you have any queries.
STEP (Shropshire and Telford Education Partnership) in partnership with the Alliance of Leading Learning brings to Early Years Providers and Childminders the new NPQEYL.
The NPQEYL is a DfE accredited programme that we deliver with Teach First.
Funding worth £1090 is available to cover the cost of this 18 month programme.
For the October 2024 cohort, scholarship funding for some NPQs is limited to those working in eligible high-disadvantage settings. All Ofsted-Registered Childminders and those registered with an Ofsted-Registered Childminder Agency, will be eligible for scholarship funding if they are accepted onto a place for NPQEYL. Secure a funded place by applying early.
Who is it for?
NPQEYL is for leaders qualified to at least level 3 with a full and relevant qualification* who are, or are aspiring to be**:
- managers of private, voluntary and independent nurseries
- headteachers of school-based or maintained nurseries
- childminders with leadership responsibilities (you work with, employ or are close to employing an assistant)
What will I learn?
You’ll develop expertise in the knowledge, skills and concepts for leading an Early Years setting. These include best practice around child development and additional and special educational needs, as well as culture, organisational management and partnerships you may make as the leader of an Early Years setting.
Content will include core elements of the framework:
- Culture • Child development, curriculum and assessment • Additional and special educational needs • Professional development • Organisational management • Working in partnership • Implementation
How will I benefit?
* Develop as a leader with responsibility across an Early Years organisation and learn how to create an effective culture in your setting. * Access content across a breadth of areas such as culture, child development, curriculum and assessment, and organisational management. * Be supported to effectively implement change and improvement in an area you identify as a setting priority.
How to Apply?
https://leadinglearning.co.uk/npqeyl-and-npqll-applicants/
The Early years child development training is an online programme that is free to access. It has been designed by early years professionals to help early years educators build and strengthen their knowledge and understanding of child development.
Module 8: Supporting individual differences and needs now available and covers:
- an introduction to special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) legislation and guidance, and how it applies to education practice
- the impact of knowledge and learning gaps on children’s development and what action to take, including making a referral when needed
- the importance of your role in supporting children’s individual differences and needs, how to create an inclusive environment and build effective partnerships
This new module is now available along with 7 other modules including child and brain development, personal, social and emotional development, communication and language and physical development, mathematics and effective curriculum and assessment.
You can complete the training modules in any order, at any time. Sign in to your account and visit the My modules page of the training to access this new module. If you haven’t yet accessed the training, and would like to learn more and register, please visit Early years child development training.
Early Years SEND Assessment Guidance and Resources
The new DfE Early Years SEND assessment guidance and resources, developed by the Department for Education in partnership with Dingley’s Promise, are now available on the Help for Early Years Providers platform. They have been created to support a child-centred, strengths-based approach to assessing children’s needs and enable early years educators to share their progress and development with parents, carers, professionals and local authorities.
There is practical advice on assessment, alongside tools and downloadable resources to support early educators in assessing what children with SEND can do, capturing their voice, and setting targets for progress and learning.
The guidance and resources follow the SEND Code of Practice and align with Early Years Foundation Stage assessment policy. They use best practice and evidence-based methods to provide early educators with practical advice to meet the needs of children with SEND in their care.
Catherine McLeod, CEO of Dingley's Promise -“This assessment toolkit was developed for the Department for Education in partnership with a range of settings, local authorities, and early years experts. We hope that every local authority and setting will adopt this process, so that children, families, and practitioners will be confident that needs are being identified and met as early as possible, regardless of where they live in the country”.
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The Early years child development training is an online programme that is free to access. It has been designed by early years professionals to help early years educators build and strengthen their knowledge and understanding of child development. Early years child development training : Home page (education.gov.uk)
Module 8: Supporting individual differences and needs now available and covers:
- an introduction to special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) legislation and guidance, and how it applies to education practice
- the impact of knowledge and learning gaps on children’s development and what action to take, including making a referral when needed
- the importance of your role in supporting children’s individual differences and needs, how to create an inclusive environment and build effective partnerships
New DfE Early Years SEND assessment, guidance and resources
These have been developed by the Department for Education in partnership with Dingley’s Promise, are now available Help for early years providers : SEND assessment guidance and resources (education.gov.uk). They have been created to support a child-centred, strengths-based approach to assessing children’s needs and enable early years educators to share their progress and development with parents, carers, professionals and local authorities.
There is practical advice on assessment, alongside tools and downloadable resources to support early educators in assessing what children with SEND can do, capturing their voice, and setting targets for progress and learning.
focusses on children aged between 10 months and 24 months.
We have a team of facilitators but don’t have many parents/children for the second cohort which will start in October. It is an online programme so parents can come from anywhere in the county.
The programme is aimed at improving the quality and frequency of book sharing between parents and children and teaches parents book sharing skills and habits across 5 online 'skills sessions'. Parents will also practice book sharing at home, record themselves, and send up to 3 video clips to facilitators/early years practitioners for positive feedback.
Here is the recruitment video: https://youtu.be/kmVWMCOlXis!
Parents are gifted a set of 4 lovely classic hardback books
Can you share the flyer (a link to the flyer is below) with your parents and bring it to the attention of any parents you think fit the criteria.
Playtime with Books is a collaboration between the PEDAL research centre at Cambridge, Nesta, and Shropshire.
Link to flyer- Shropshire flyer_ oct.pdf
Early years inspection handbook - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
Throughout: we have clarified references to funded places and what should be considered on inspection.
Paragraphs: 50, 174, 203 and footnote 10: wording amended to reflect how the inspector will consider the context of the setting, including where relevant the ongoing impact of COVID-19.
Paragraphs 78, 130, 217 and 247: wording updated to align with part 2 and part 3 of the inspection handbook.
Good grade descriptor for Quality of Education: amendments to bullet 3 regarding an ambitious curriculum for all children.
Inadequate grade descriptor for Quality of Education: amendments to bullet 4 regarding disadvantaged children.
Summary of changes - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
Heidi White has joined as one of our new Education Quality Adviser (SEND and AP) with a focus on Early Years and is based in John Rowe’s Education, Quality and Safeguarding team.
Dan Steele has joined as Senior Development Officer for Early Years and Childcare Sufficiency and is based in Andy Nicholls’ Education and Childcare Sufficiency team.
Staff working in the early years sector can help raise awareness of the flu vaccination programme for preschool children amongst parents.
Immunising preschool children against flu provides information about the programme and how children can get vaccinated. You may want to display resources like this poster or give copies of this leaflet to parents, both of which can be downloaded or ordered for free using the links at the bottom of the page.
Please find below links to information for CPD with a strong focus on children who are not meeting age-related expectations with Speech Language and Communication Needs.
Embedding SLCD Interventions
Toolkit for Gap ID and Gap Closing
Early Years Funding Code of Practice
Early Years Foundation Stage Statutory Framework for Childminders
Early Years Foundation Stage Statutory Framework for Group and School-Based Providers
Early Years Funding for Foster Children
Early Years CPD
Early Years Information Pages on the SLG
Early Years Resource Library
Funding Diary Dates (headcount windows and payments)
Holiday Activities and Food Programme (HAF)
Parent Declaration Form (Summer 2024 to Summer 2025)
Recruitment:
Shropshire SEND Local Offer
Support Request Form (SEND)
Funding Claims, Free Entitlements, Eligibility Codes, Provider Portal etc.:
Admin Team: NEF@shropshire.gov.uk
Job Vacancies:
Admin Team: NEF@shropshire.gov.uk
Buildings, Premises, Accommodation, and any related issues including schools looking to adopt their local pre-school:
Andy Nicholls: andy.nicholls@shropshire.gov.uk
Wraparound Childcare Programme:
Rachel Reynolds: rachel.reynolds1@shropshire.gov.uk
School Sustainability Funding:
Jo Morris: Jo.morris@shropshire.gov.uk
Qualifications, Ratios, Staffing etc.:
Beverley Jones: beverley.jones@shropshire.gov.uk
Safeguarding and Child Protection:
Charlotte Percival: Charlotte.percival@shropshire.gov.uk
Early Intervention Grant - applications and admin:
Admin Team: NEF@shropshire.gov.uk
Applications for EYPP and 30-Hour Entitlements for Children who are Looked After:
Admin Team: NEF@shropshire.gov.uk
Applications for Disability Access Fund:
Admin Team: NEF@shropshire.gov.uk
Information, advice and guidance in relation to SEND children:
earlyyears@shropshire.gov.uk
Any other queries that don’t fall into the above:
earlyyears@shropshire.gov.uk
Remember – we also have the MS Teams site:
https://teams.microsoft.com/l/team/19%3a9e2862aae963406b9ffc01b034aae950%40thread.tacv2/conversations?groupId=dd786852-0af3-4592-b069-7cf66e48df55&tenantId=b6c13011-372d-438b-bc82-67e4c7966e89
If you are not already a member of this group, then please email nef@shropshire.gov.uk and we will get you access.
Alison Rae
School’s Improvement Commissioner Adviser Early Years Foundation Stage
Education Improvement Service
Tel: 01743 254467
Email: alison.rae@shropshire.gov.uk
Beverley Jones
Education Improvement Service
Early Years Consultant
Tel: 01743 254454
Email: beverley.jones@shropshire.gov.uk
Charlotte Percival
Safeguarding Officer
Tel: 01743 254147
Email: charlotte.percival@shropshire.gov.uk
Sue Carroll
SEND Lead Early Years / Severndale case manager
Tel: 01743 254242
Mobile: 07458124424
Email: sue.carroll@shropshire.gov.uk
Judith Pilkington
Early Years Intervention Officer
Tel: 01743 254287
Email: judith.pilkington@shropshire.gov.uk
Admin Team (funding queries):
Beth Parry-Jones, Brydie Porter & Sarah Jones
Email: NEF@shropshire.gov.uk
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