The West Sussex approach puts the child first. We work with children, families, communities, our partners and schools in a restorative, strength based way. Strong relationships are at the heart of what we do.
Newsletter for Early Years and childcare providers in West Sussex
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Wednesday 8 November 2023
Final Reminder - Your Voice Matters - Upcoming Changes to Early Years and Childcare Funding
On Thursday 26 October we shared an Early Years and Childcare Special Newsletter, which let you know about our survey opening to gather feedback from early years settings on the upcoming expansion to the existing childcare offer. To date, 219 pre-schools and day nurseries have completed this, alongside 160 childminders.
Completion of this survey is compulsory to support statutory duties around sufficiency planning, as per section 4.2 of the Provider Declaration. The survey closes at 11.55pm on Sunday 12 November. You can have your say by visiting the YourVoice webpage.
Please note, if you oversee a group of settings, you can choose to do one response to cover them all. Please just indicate on the survey that you are responding on behalf of a chain. You will then be taken to a question where you can expand on which settings this refers to. Thank you in advance for your time.
Schools Forum Representative results
We are pleased to announce that, following the ballot announced in our Early Years and Childcare Special Newsletter, Claire Kenyon (Busy Lizzies) received the most votes and will now be our second Early Years Representative for the West Sussex Schools Forum, alongside Sharon Moody (Kids Capers). We would like to congratulate Claire on her appointment in to this role.
We would also like to extend our thanks to the other candidates, Coral Lindsay (Donkey Field Pre-School) and Sophie Weston (Windmill Nursery) for their applications and dedication to supporting settings in West Sussex.
In next week's newsletter there will be an article from Claire to introduce herself and how she intends to support settings in her new role.
Updated Ofsted poster for parents
Ofsted have updated the poster that Early Years and Childcare services can display in their settings for parents. The updates:
- clarify Ofsted's role in childcare registration and regulation,
- clarify how to contact them, and
- signposts parents to where they can find additional information on early years settings and childcare.
You can download the poster by visiting the GOV.UK website.
Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) exemptions guidance
Previously there were two sets of guidance to support early years providers seeking exemptions from the EYFS learning and development requirements. One for exemptions for providers, and one for exemptions for individual children. The updated EYFS guidance on exemptions for early years providers and individual children combines, simplifies, streamlines and clarifies the previous guidance, making it easier to follow and implement. There have been no changes to the EYFS exemptions policy or processes.
Reminder Early Years Professional Development Programme (EYPDP) - free professional development
In newsletter #287 we let you know that the Education Development Trust were recruiting practitioners to join cohort three of the EYPDP. Forming part of the Government’s Early Years Education Recovery Package to support the early years sector post-pandemic, the EYPDP is a fantastic opportunity to access free professional development.
Applications are due to close around the end of November and the training will commence in January 2024. Visit the Early Years Professional Development Programme website to register your interest or share this with practitioners you feel may be interested in your setting.
Childminder Mentor programme
Have you thought that it would be helpful to have another childminder to work with to support you in reflecting on and developing your practice? We currently have three childminders in West Sussex doing this through the Department for Education's Childminder Mentor Programme. The Request for Support form is currently continuously open, ready for childminders to complete and submit the form in preparation for the spring and summer term 2024. Further information can be found here. You can find out more by visiting the Hempsalls website. The programme runs until July 2024 so if you are interested, please sign up now.
Early Years Experts and Mentors programme
Group providers can access support via the Early Years Experts and Mentors programme. By joining the programme, settings will receive the support of fellow early years professionals, who are passionate about supporting others to improve practice and outcomes for children. This support is free and available across the country, for eligible settings. For more information on the programme, please read the information for settings document.
Pen Green are currently looking for settings who are interested in receiving support for the spring and summer term (academic year 2023/24). If you are interested in receiving support from this programme, please complete the online form. The online request for support form is currently continuously open. If your setting is not selected for the spring term, there will be further opportunities to receive support later in the programme. You will be notified if you have been selected to receive support for the spring term during January 2024 and during May 2024 for the summer term.
New Early Maths module added to Department for Education (DfE) online training
The DfE has added a new Mathematics module to its early years child development training. This free online training has been developed with early years experts and intends to provide a greater understanding of child development, whilst giving practical advice for supporting children in early years settings. The training can be accessed in any order and paused and restarted at any time. A certificate of achievement is awarded on completion of each module.
Best start in life - a research review for early years – Part two
Ofsted recently published the second review in a series of Early Years Reviews, the first review in this series was published in 2022. The ‘Best start in life’ research review currently has two parts:
- ‘part one: setting the scene’ examines the factors that contribute to a high-quality early education
- ‘part two: the three prime areas of learning’ explores the factors that contribute to developing young children’s knowledge and skills in the 3 prime areas of learning in the early years foundation stage (EYFS)
The review focuses on children aged 0 to 4 years and has been produced to support early years practitioners to raise the quality of early years education. The next part of the review will look at the four areas of learning. You can read both reviews in full and keep up to date with new reviews by visiting GOV.UK.
Early Years Training
Understanding and Responding to Children’s Behaviour (Webinar) is a two-part webinar that aims to support your understanding of how traditional behaviour management strategies developed. It will look at why children might behave in certain ways and assess the effectiveness and appropriate use of a variety of strategies to support children who are expressing behaviours that challenge. The key word for this course is "behaviour" and costs £54 per person.
- Thursday 23 November – 9.30am to 12.30pm
- Thursday 30 November – 9.30am to 12.30pm
Best for Boys (Webinar) is for anyone working in Early Years. It will support you in exploring how to effectively support boys' well-being, learning and achievement. It will look at the impact of adult unconscious bias and attitudes, the right conditions needed for boys to excel and the role of the adult in making this happen. The key word for this course is "boys" and costs £54 per person.
- Tuesday 28 November – 9.30am to 3.00pm
Christmas Crafts – Mass production or Creativity (Webinar) is a rescheduled webinar. It is for all practitioners working with 2 to 5 year olds. It explores a refreshing array of resource ideas and pedagogical approaches which ensure that children’s natural curiosity and developmental needs are central to planning and provision at this time of year. The key word for this course is "Christmas" and costs £27 per person.
- Thursday 30 November – 9.30am to 12.30pm
Collaborative and Respectful – Communicating with Parents (Webinar) is an empowering webinar that is for all practitioners. Some of the most challenging elements of Early Years Foundation Stage practice include the challenges involved in establishing positive partnerships with parents and carers. In this course, participants consider these key factors, putting you in the best possible position to ensure that children receive the nurturing life experiences that they deserve. The key word for this course is "parents" and costs £27 per person.
- Tuesday 27 February 2024 – 1.00pm to 4.00pm
To book please log on to the Learning and Development Gateway and search for the course using the corresponding key word. If you experience any issues when booking your course, please email early.years.training@westsussex.gov.uk.
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.
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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#290 (Weather warning; Warning - Online Provider Portal downtime; Reminder - Your Voice Matters - Upcoming Changes to Early Years Childcare Funding; Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) consultation response; Stronger Practice Hub - webinar; Ofsted webinars; Early Years Training)
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#289 (Safeguarding Focus - reducing parental conflict; Free Entitlement for 2, 3 and 4 year olds – Autumn Term payments; advanced notice - online provider portal downtime; reminder - Early Years Representative for Schools Forum ballot now open; Early Years Change of Age Range Consultation - West Sussex Schools; Childminder Network Meetings; Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) Leader Networks; Early Years (EY) Education Recovery Programme – finding the support that is right for you; early years training)
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#288 (Safeguarding Focus - reducing parental conflict; Free Entitlement for 2, 3 and 4 year olds – Autumn Term payments; advanced notice - online provider portal downtime; reminder - Early Years Representative for Schools Forum ballot now open; Early Years Change of Age Range Consultation - West Sussex Schools; Childminder Network Meetings; Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) Leader Networks; Early Years (EY) Education Recovery Programme – finding the support that is right for you; early years training)
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#287 (Measles and MMR vaccination; Experts and Mentors programme; reminder - West Sussex Early Years and Childcare Strategy survey; advanced warning of downtime; update - childminders start-up grant; Kent Early Years Stronger Practice Hub; Early Years Professional Development Programme (EYPDP); Dingley’s Promise - Special Educational Needs) (govdelivery.com)
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#286 (Changes to raising safeguarding concerns for children; warning - online provider portal downtime; keeping us updated with your staff changes; early years representative for the schools forum; starting school applications; black history month 2023; physical development in early childhood - Early Education blog; early years training; mental health matters in West Sussex)
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