With you, with the child. Every step of the way.
Broadcast for Early Years and childcare providers in West Sussex from West Sussex County Council - Early Help Service
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Wednesday 20 May 2020
Reminder
This week's DfE data capture for the numbers of children currently accessing early years provision closes at midnight. Please use this link to complete your return, if you have not already done so.
Testing for anyone over the age of 5 and new symptoms identified
As announced on Monday 18 May, testing for COVID-19 has now been extended to anyone over the age of 5 if they are displaying symptoms. You can book a test by visiting nhs.uk/coronavirus or calling 119 in England. Please note that alongside a fever or new persistent cough, the loss of smell or taste has been added to the list of symptoms. Therefore, if you develop a continuous cough or fever or loss of smell/taste, you should immediately self-isolate in line with the guidelines.
Coronavirus Statutory Sick Pay Rebate Scheme
A new online service will be launched on 26 May for small and medium-sized employers to recover Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) payments they have made to their employees. This was announced by government yesterday 19 May, as part of a package of support measures for businesses affected by the COVID-19 outbreak.
The Coronavirus Statutory Sick Pay Rebate Scheme will allow employers, with fewer than 250 employees, to apply to HMRC to recover the costs of paying coronavirus-related SSP. You can claim from Tuesday 26 May and will receive repayments at the relevant rate of SSP paid to current or former employees, for eligible periods of sickness, starting on or after 13 March 2020.
Updated guidance on supporting vulnerable children and young people during the coronavirus outbreak
The government updated on 15 May, the guidance for education settings and local authorities on supporting vulnerable children and young people.
It now reflects the plans for more year groups to return to education settings and confirms that vulnerable children and young people remain a priority and are expected to attend if appropriate.
Updated guidance on the actions for early years and childcare providers during the coronavirus outbreak
The government updated on 15 May, the guidance on the actions for early years and childcare providers during the coronavirus outbreak.
This includes confirmation that:
- they are asking childcare providers to prepare for wider opening from 1 June, at the earliest
- information on the provision that childminders can currently provide and when they can re-open to more children, and
- information for parents on the temporary changes to the 30 hours free early education entitlements.
Secretary of State for Education’s statement on coronavirus
Secretary of State for Education, Gavin Williamson, spoke at the daily press conference on Saturday 16 May, about the Government’s response to the coronavirus outbreak and plans for schools safely opening to more pupils. For those seeking clarity on exactly what was said you can read a transcript of his speech.
Early Years Training
Face to face Training courses from September are now being published for you to book, with minimum numbers to enable social distancing at each event. We have increased the number of Paediatric First Aid and our Safeguarding suite of courses to enable everyone who needs a place to be able to attend these essential courses. All courses this year will be on a pay as you go basis and can be booked and paid for on the Learning and Development Gateway. We are adding dates each week so if you do not see a course in your area you can contact us to check what is being planned for the future. We have tried to spread courses out across the whole of West Sussex.
A range of online training and webinars have been developed and you can find more details in our training brochure. Examples of new webinars include:
- Makaton Taster
- Makaton Foundation Levels 1 and 2
- Supporting children in relation to death and bereavement
- Pedagogical Leadership
- It’s Not Fair: Supporting and understanding children’s behaviour
- Business Recovery
If you are a childminder and would like specific support please let us know and we can tailor sessions for you. If you would like to attend a webinar on a different date to what is advertised please let us know as we can set this up for you. We are also exploring how we can adapt some of our other courses to online/webinar delivery.
For all training enquiries, please email us at early.years.training@westsussex.gov.uk
All providers please complete a short online survey, once a week. The link to the survey is different each time. A link will be provided in each Monday broadcast, and the survey will be open for three full days each week from Monday to Wednesday, closing at midnight on the Wednesday.
If a family you know are struggling to ensure they have food for their family, collect medication, or are in need of any additional support, contact West Sussex County Council Community hub.
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#41 18 May (New guidance on safe working, planning to re-open)
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#40 15 May (data capture frequency, LADO toolkit, re-opening tips, DfE vodcast, training brochure)
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#39 13 May (re-opening childminders, furloughing, business recovery webinars)
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#38 12 May PM (Planning for the future)
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#37 12 May AM (new government guidance and COVID-19 recovery strategy)
- 22 May - Summer Term FE Actuals submissions close
- 25 May - Bank Holiday
- 15 Jun - Summer Term FE Actuals payments released (week commencing)
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