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Broadcast for Early Years and childcare providers in West Sussex from West Sussex County Council - Early Help Service
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Tuesday 8 June 2021
Reminder - DfE data capture required this week
This week's Department for Education data capture for the numbers of children currently accessing early years provision is open now, and will close at the end of Wednesday (midnight). Please use this link to complete your return.
Early Years Funding to Support Health and Physical Development
In our Special Broadcast on 26 May we announced how the holiday activities and food (HAF) programme will be implemented across West Sussex, with Out of School providers invited to submit their Expressions of Interest by 8 June 2021. This deadline has now been extended to 15 June 2021.
To complement this, West Sussex County Council recognises the impact that COVID-19 has also had on health and development in children under 5, who were unable to access the food voucher scheme and are ineligible to receive HAF funding as per the requirements of the scheme. We are, therefore, delighted to announce that we have secured an additional £150,000 to support Early Years providers to support children’s health and physical development, including making healthy choices in relation to food.
This is one-off funding, derived from the Contain Outbreak Management Fund and projects can take place anytime between now and 31 March 2022. This financial support is separate to Free Entitlement (FE) funding.
All projects must primarily be targeted at:
- children in receipt of Early Years Pupil Premium
- children in receipt of 2 year old FE
In addition to these children, funding may be prioritised to projects which also target children from the following groups:
- children assessed as being in need
- looked-after children
- children with an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP)
- children assessed as otherwise vulnerable
- children starting school in September 2021
- children who did not attend early years provision as normal due to COVID-19
To find out more about the scheme and to apply, additional information can be found here. Expressions of Interest will only be accepted from existing Free Entitlement providers and can be submitted online by midnight Wednesday 23 June so that we can confirm funding early in July. Should you have any queries please contact your Early Years and Childcare Adviser, or email family.info.service@westsussex.gov.uk.
Infant Mental Health Awareness Week
This week is Infant Mental Health awareness week. The theme for Infant Mental Health Awareness Week 2021 is "including infants in children and young people’s mental health". You can find out more information on the Parent Infant Foundation website.
ERIC's Potty Training Package
ERIC, the children's bowel and bladder charity, has developed a user friendly resource which has been designed by continence experts to enable nurseries and early years settings to deliver best practice and supportive toilet training. The free, downloadable pack includes the following:
- Potty Training Policy
- Potty Training Flowchart for practitioners
- Early Years Healthy Bladder and Bowel Assessment
- Potty Training Record
- Withholding factsheet – 'Children who will only poo in a nappy and other toilet avoiders'
- Bristol Stool Chart
More information and advice for families and professionals working with children can be found on the ERIC website and you can also download ERIC's FREE Potty Training Package.
Fostering wellbeing in the early years is explored in two new courses.
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Roots to Resilience (half day x 2 webinar) explores innovative ways to provide quality outdoor play and learning, as well as how these support the new Personal, Social and Emotional Development (PSED) aims in the revised Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS). Suitable for all staff and costs £50 per place.
- Wednesday 16 June and 7 July - 9.30am to 12.30pm - EYT 21/1784
- Wednesday 29 September and 13 October - 9.30am to 12.30pm - EYT 21/1890
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Prioritising children’s wellbeing (half day webinar) explores the importance of high levels of wellbeing in the early years and how to foster this. Linked with the PSED in the revised EYFS, you will learn different strategies which impact wellbeing positively. Suitable for all staff and costs £25 per place. All times are 9.30am to 12.30pm.
- Friday 18 June - EYT 21/1786
- Thursday 23 September - EYT 21/1894
- Friday 19 November - EYT 21/1895
- Thursday 10 February 2022 - EYT 22/179
To book, search for the course code on the Learning and Development Gateway. If you have any questions, please email early.years.training@westsussex.gov.uk.
All early years providers must follow a new reformed EYFS framework from September 2021. View the new framework and how the changes affect you.
Please inform the Family Information Service if your setting needs to close or is re-opening. 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 closing due to COVID-19 please ensure you read and follow all the steps in the PHE South East Health Protection Team ' Managing Suspected and Confirmed COVID-19 cases in Early Years and Childcare settings' flowchart.
In the event of your setting having a confirmed COVID-19 case, if Public Health or the Department for Education have stated you must close for any period of time you must inform the Family Information Service. However, if 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:
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.
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:
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#159 (DfE data capture, changes to childminder testing process, survey of childcare and early years providers, new suite of child development courses)
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#158 (No DfE data capture this week, new course - ready, willing and able)
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#157 (Celebration of Inclusion month, new courses for practitioners working with under 2's)
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#156 (DfE data capture, infant mental health awareness week, a look at dynamic displays, roll out the role play)
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#155 (protective measures for out of school providers, advance warning Holiday Activities and Food programme, FE summer term actuals final reminder, process for FE starters between 10-21 May, Makaton training)
- 21 Jun - Autumn term Estimate submissions open (FE providers)
- w/c 21 Jun - Summer term Actuals payments expected (FE providers)
- 2 Jul - Autumn term Estimate submissions close (FE providers)
- w/c 12 Jul - Autumn term Estimate payments expected (FE providers)
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