Newsletter for Early Years and Childcare providers in West Sussex
#22/2024 - Wednesday 29 May 2024
This week's newsletter includes:
- Safeguarding focus - Coping with a crying baby and safer sleep resources
- Advanced warning - Online Provider Portal downtime
- Early Years Evidence Store expands to explore self-regulation and executive function
- Final reminder Ofsted's Big Listen consultation - for adults and children
- Kent Early Years Strong Practice hub newsletter - May 2024
- Early Years Training
Difficulty viewing this bulletin? Click here to view in your browser.
In Early Years and Childcare settings it is important to support staff, parents and carers understanding of safe sleep and how to cope with a crying baby. The ICON Programme is a preventative programme, based around helping parents cope with a crying baby. This information may be useful for you to share with parents/carers of young babies within your setting and all members of staff as part of their continual professional development.
In newsletter #20/2024 we let you know the Child Death Review Nurse team have launched Safer Sleep training for all professionals who work with or come into contact with parent/carers who are pregnant or care for a young baby. This online webinar is free to attend. The next available dates for this course are:
- Monday 27 June - 9.30am to 11.30am
- Wednesday 17 July - 1.00pm to 3.00pm
- Friday 23 August - 10.30am to 12.30pm
For more information and to book your place visit the 'Safer Sleeping for Babies and Coping with a Crying Baby' course page on the Learning and Development Gateway.
The Lullaby Trust has a useful section for professionals, where you will find resources that you can share with staff and families in your setting. The Department for Education's help for early years providers website also has a useful page on how to support babies and young children with their mental health, which provides valuable insight into self-regulation and co-regulation.
Please be advised that the Online Provider Portal will be unavailable all day on Wednesday 5 June and Tuesday 11 June whilst essential maintenance takes place. Please note, parents and carers will not be able to submit 2 year old Local Authority Issued Early Years Funded Entitlement applications and our Family Information Service website will also be unavailable to the public.
The Early Years Evidence Store have launched a new theme which explores how early years professionals can support young children’s early self-regulation and executive function. It highlights five approaches that you can put into practice to support children’s early development:
- creating and navigating challenge,
- teaching self-monitoring and self-awareness,
- creating a community of collaborative learners,
- promoting physical activity, and
- promoting talk about learning (coming soon).
Developed through work supporting the Department for Education’s Stronger Practice Hubs, the Evidence Store is designed to help you put evidence-informed approaches into practice. You can find out more about the new theme on the Early Years Evidence Store.
In newsletter #14/2024 we let you know about the Ofsted Big Listen. They want to hear your views on the priorities for Ofsted that are important to you. Visit the Ofsted Big Listen web page to find out more and have your say. Please also share these surveys with parents and carers, so they can share their views and also support their children in completing the children's survey. The consultation closes this Friday, 31 May.
The May edition of the Kent Early Years Stronger Practice Hub newsletter is now available. The newsletter contains information about available training funded by the Department for Education COVID Recovery Programme.
Please see a range of Early Years courses we have coming up over the next few weeks. These include a Safeguarding Refresher course that has recently been moved to an online webinar, making it more accessible to all across the county.
Visit the Learning and Development Gateway to book your course. Please remember that you are required to book a space first on the Learning and Development Gateway and then pay via the payment steps and link, which are shown on the course page. Your space is not confirmed until both booking and payment are completed. If you experience any issues when booking your course, please email early.years.training@westsussex.gov.uk.
Useful information
- 31 May - Inclusion funding deadline for Autumn Term
- W/C 03 Jun - Summer Term actuals payments due
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:
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 EYCA team using the following email addresses:
Where there are not clearly evidenced reasons why the setting had no option but to close, there could be implications for funding received as per the government guidance.
-
#21/2024 (Free Communication Friendly spaces event - change of time; Help for early years providers - new nutrition content; New Ofsted blogs; SEND and Inclusion newsletter - May 2024; Reminder - Ofsted's Big Listen consultation; Reminder - Early Years Foundation Stage safeguarding consultation; National Smile Month 2024; Early Years Training)
-
#20/2024 (Business focus - Free business planning courses; Online Provider Portal downtime; Termly Provider Update; Final reminder - Wraparound Programme Funding; Reminder - Consultation on an experience-based route for Early Years practitioners; Coping with a Crying Baby and Safer Sleep - Free webinar; Childminding Week 2024; National Numeracy Day 2024; Now module available - Effective curriculum and assessment; Virtual school newsletter; Early Years Training)
-
#19/2024 (Summer Term 2024 Headcount submissions close this Friday; Update on the Expansion of Childcare; Contact number for FE Finance; Advertise your job vacancies on the West Sussex County Council website; Tools for Schools website migration; Wraparound Programme Funding; Final reminder - Childminder consultation; Consultation - Experienced based route for Early Years practitioners; Free Communication Friendly Spaces event; Early Years Training)
-
#18/2024 (Wraparound Programme Funding - Expression of Interest; Ofsted Big conversation; Starting school vaccinations; Reminder - Childminder recruitment and retention consultation; Early Years Training)
-
#17/2024 (Safeguarding focus - Unregulated medical treatment for children; Online Provider Portal downtime; Help us to help you - eligibility code queries; Fire safety in Early Years and Childcare settings; Transition Events; Early Years Foundation Stage consultation - Safeguarding requirements Early Years Training
Early Years and Childcare newsletter web page.
|