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
Difficulty viewing this bulletin? Click here to view in your browser.
Thursday 13 August 2020
Advance notice - next week's DfE data capture
Next week's DfE data capture for the numbers of children currently accessing early years provision will be open from Monday, and will close at the end of Wednesday (midnight). Please use this link to complete your return.
Termly setting updates about your provision
As a result of responding to the COVID-19 pandemic, we have not requested a termly update from providers in the usual way. To get things back on track, we are now requesting all settings who have not submitted a form in the summer term to please submit one by 31 August via the Online Provider Portal. This includes all day nurseries, childminders, breakfast and after school clubs and holiday playschemes. Pre-schools were previously requested to submit an update back in June. Those who submitted forms do not need to submit again, but can if they need to change any information.
Our aim is to have all information updated by September to support parents looking for childcare via the Family Information Service website as well as assist in our termly analysis of childcare sufficiency within West Sussex.
Interim Visits from Ofsted
From September, Ofsted will begin visiting some nurseries and childminders to make sure that standards are being maintained and that there is well-run, safe and effective childcare available for all who need it.
On 12 August, Ofsted published guidance on interim visits that sets out how interim visits will work in practice and which providers they will be visiting.
The visits are part of a phased return to routine inspection. They are not inspections and will not result in an inspection grade, though inspectors will still be able to use regulatory or enforcement powers if necessary.
Ofsted findings will be published in an outcome summary so that parents can be reassured that their children are safe while routine inspections are suspended. Routine inspections of early years settings will not start before January 2021.
Inspectors will be sensitive to the challenges presented by COVID-19 and will always take that context into account. They will prioritise the safety and welfare of everyone involved in the visits, including children, carers, staff and inspectors, following the most up-to-date guidance from Public Health England.
Further information can also be found on the government website.
Early Years and Childcare Representatives Needed
The West Sussex Health and Wellbeing Board are proposing the development of a Children’s Sub-Group which will focus on children’s health and wellbeing. The proposed membership includes the role of Councillor Jacquie Russell, Cabinet Member for Children and Young People, as Chairman alongside a range of other organisations involved with children.
The SEND and Inclusion Strategy Project Board is a group of senior stakeholders who are responsible for providing guidance and strategic direction on the delivery of the SEND and Inclusion Strategy. Its role is to drive and regularly monitor the progress of the implementation plan and ensure that the desired sustainable and quality outcomes set out in the strategy are achieved.
We would like to include a representative of the early years sector on both of these groups to ensure that an early years perspective is included in the work carried out in these significant areas.
If you are interested in becoming a representative for either of these groups, please read more information about it and complete the application form. All applications should be submitted by email to family.info.service@westsussex.gov.uk by Friday 11 September. Successful candidates will be notified by the end of September 2020.
Please inform the Family Information Service if your current operating status changes. Email family.info.service@westsussex.gov.uk and include your setting name, Ofsted URN, the date you intend to close/open, and any changes to your operating hours. If you inform us of re-opening, you will be reinstated on the public list and appear on our website www.westsussex.gov.uk/fis.
If you have not been able to open at this time, you should already have submitted a COVID-19 Recovery Plan and sent a copy by email to the FIS. This is so that we can look at the barriers you have identified and support you to re-open as soon as practicable. If we have not received your plan, you will be contacted by your EYCA to support you further.
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 Thursday update for the following week, and the survey will be open for three full days each week from Monday to Wednesday, closing at midnight on the Wednesday. The latest link to the survey is also available on our website.
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.
-
#77 (PHE flowchart, Paediatric First Aid, Naval Children's Charity)
-
#76 (IT upgrade, update on OPP error, visitors to settings)
-
#75 (OPP error, consumer information, parental guidance for autumn)
-
#74 (timings for DfE data capture, self-isolation period change, parent and toddler groups)
-
#73 (updated guidance, holiday/leave, CMA open letter, EYA blogs, grant for bulky medical equipment, OPP downtime)
We have a range of online training available for you to access for your staff to ensure they have the most up to date information to support them in their role:
- 02 Sep - FE Actuals submissions open for Autumn term
- 17 Sep - Autumn Term headcount day (FE)
- 25 Sep - FE Actuals submissions close for Autumn term
| 
