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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Thursday 15 October 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.
Final Reminder: SEND Consultation
In setting update #90 (24/09/20) we shared information about our Early Years SEND Consultation. Please take a look at the proposals and give your feedback through the online survey. You may also wish to share this information with families in your setting and in your local area so they can also have their say.
The consultation closes at midnight on Sunday 18/10/20 so don't miss your chance to have your say!
Closures following positive COVID-19 cases
The guidance from the Department for Education (DfE) states that local authorities should continue to fund providers which have been advised to close, or left with no option but to close, due to public health reasons. The guidance is clear that local authorities should not fund providers which are closed, without a public health reason.
We are aware that it is not always clear cut from Public Health on whether or not a setting must close following one or more positive COVID-19 cases. However, we also know that you will want to be in a position to make decisions quickly to mitigate the risks and inform parents of the way forward.
We strongly advise that, if you have not done so already, you carry out your own risk assessments and plan for different scenarios to ensure business continuity in the event of this happening at your setting. Take into consideration how you group children and deploy staff to minimise the risk of total closure. This will ensure that as many families as possible can continue to access their funded sessions where it is safe to do so.
Where Public Heath have not explicitly stated in correspondence to you that the setting must close, we would expect you to make contact with your Early Years and Childcare Adviser (EYCA) to talk through your circumstances, where possible, before making the decision to close the setting. If you are not able to make immediate contact with your EYCA then please email your nearest Early Help Hub using the following email addresses:
- SettingSupportCrawley@westsussex.gov.uk
- SettingSupportHorsham@westsussex.gov.uk
- SettingSupportMidSussex@westussex.gov.uk
- SettingSupportChichester@westsussex.gov.uk
- SettingSupportAdurWorthing@westsussex.gov.uk
Where there are not clearly evidenced reasons why the setting had no option to close, there could be implications for funding received as per the government guidance.
Local COVID Alert Level Posters
The government have produced a series of graphical posters displaying information about the local COVID alert levels.
In addition, the GOV UK postcode checker has now gone live. We would suggest that moving forwards, if you need to check COVID-19 restriction levels, especially outside of West Sussex, that you access this rather than the BBC link previously provided.
Autism Awareness in Early Years Webinar
Increase your awareness of the Autism spectrum and develop support strategies. Explore behaviour triggers. Understand the use of visual cues and timetables, as well as strategies to help minimise anxiety. All times run 9.30am to 4.00pm. Cost is £50.
Please log onto the Learning and Development Gateway and search for the course code to find out more, book and pay:
Wednesday 18 November 2019 - EYT 20/2017
Monday 23 November 2019 - EYT 20/1932
Thursday 28 January 2020 - EYT 21/288
Wednesday 3 March 2020 - EYT 21/289
Postgraduate Certificate in Early Years Education with Early Years Teacher Status
Would you like to achieve Early Years Teacher Status with the only Ofsted Outstanding Early Years Initial Teacher Training provider in the South of England? Would you also like to achieve a Postgraduate Certificate in Early Years Education with the potential to progress onto further Masters level study? If so, please join the University of Brighton online Postgraduate Train To Teach event from 5.00pm to 7.00pm on Wednesday 25 November. Please click on the link to book your place.
You will enjoy Continuing Professional Development opportunities organised by their Early Years department, post-training. If you are interested in becoming a confident and reflective Early Years teacher, with a genuine passion for making a difference in children’s lives and supporting their families then they would love to hear from you. Further information on their course can be found on their website and their flyer. If you have any questions then please email eyitt@brighton.ac.uk.
West Sussex Affordable Warmth Partnership
The change in weather reminds us all to wrap up warm and cross our fingers as we switch the heating on and hope they warm up ready for the winter ahead. Sadly too many West Sussex residents are living in cold damp homes, worried to turn the heating on, or for some they simply have none.
The Good News is there are a range of services and schemes to help residents keep warm and well in their homes. Find out more via this newsletter and leaflet. Also, if you are able to share this information with parents then it will be great to help promote what sources of help may be available to them.
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.
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#95 (COVID-19 setting update 95 (New COVID alert levels, DfE data capture, WSSCP escalation process, treasure baskets, counting webinar)
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#94 (SEND consultation reminder, QR codes, self-isolation rules in a household, new EYFS webinar, WSSCP neglect training)
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#93 (School readiness integrated review, EYC reps, WSSCP website, helping children play to learn, speech and language monitoring tool, development matters vodcast plus Q and A session, COVID-19 resources, foundation stage forum)
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#92 (SEND consultation reminder, school readiness integrated review, Christmas crafts webinar)
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#91 (Updated PHE flowchart, EYFS disapplications, job support scheme, legal duty to self-isolate, lockdown lessons, freepost address, Yoopies warning)
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:
- w/c 19 Oct - FE Actuals payment expected
- 11 Nov - Spring Term FE Estimates submissions open
- 27 Nov - Spring Term FE Estimates submissions close
- 07 Dec - Spring Term FE Estimates submissions payment expected
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