Newsletter for Early Years and Childcare providers in West Sussex
#50/2024 - Wednesday 11 December 2024
This week's newsletter includes:
- Online Provider Portal downtime
- Early Years Funded Entitlement spring term estimate payments
- Early Years Funded Entitlement for Working Families - spring term code deadline
- Advance notice - mandatory Early Years Census 2025
- Final reminder - checking working families eligibility codes webinar
- Inclusion Funding - online information updated and availability for 9 months plus
- Childcare Expansion Capital Grant Funding - applications open for further projects
- Presentations from INCO/SENCO Networks
- Bookstart packs - deliveries starting early 2025
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Latest Ofsted news and updates here.
Please be advised that the Online Provider Portal will be unavailable Thursday 12 December from 1.00pm and all day Friday 13 December 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.
Please be advised that spring term estimate payments have been released for all EYFE age ranges. Payments can take three to five working days to show in your account.
The Online Provider Portal (OPP) is now closed for spring term estimate submissions, but you can still log back in to view your payment summary. Please refer to the OPP estimates web page and help guide for step-by-step guidance at www.westsussex.gov.uk/eycportal.
For those with outstanding queries, you will have received an email from us. We appreciate your prompt response to our queries to ensure a timely processing of your payment. There will be no further reminders.
In newsletter #47/2024 we let you know about the Early Years Funded Entitlement (EYFE) for Working Families - spring term code deadline. Parents must have applied for, or reconfirmed, their code by Tuesday 31 December 2024. This will ensure their code is valid for the spring term 2025.
Please check the relevant article for more information about advising parents to apply/reconfirm their EYFE spring term code. You can also find information on how to use the online eligibility checker.
If you have any questions, please email free.entitlement@westsussex.gov.uk.
As you may know, every year we carry out the Early Years Census for the Department for Education (DfE). The Early Years Census is crucial because it is used to calculate the amount of funding West Sussex County Council receives for the Early Years Funded Entitlement (EYFE).
The Early Years Census is mandatory for all EYFE providers claiming funding for at least one child in spring term 2025. Providers will need to do the following tasks via the Online Provider Portal in January:
- submit your spring term EYFE actuals claim for 9 month olds, 2, 3 and 4 year olds between Monday 6 and Tuesday 21 January 2025, and
- complete your annual Early Years Census form between Monday 6 and Friday 31 January 2025.
For your information, headcount day is Thursday 16 January 2025.
If you are registered to provide EYFE but are not claiming for any children in spring term, you do not need to complete the Early Years Census.
Further information and guidance will be communicated via this weekly newsletter in January 2025.
The Early Years Funding team will be offering online training sessions to support providers in checking the validity of Early Years Funded Entitlement (EYFE) for Working Families eligibility codes on 17 and 19 December. See newsletter #46/2024 to book and for further details.
We have updated information and documents on our Inclusion Funding web page, including the action plan, guidance, and terms and conditions. These updates are to allow applications for Inclusion Funding claims for children aged 9 months plus, who claim the Early Years Funded Entitlement (EYFE) for Working Families. Please use the updated version of the action plan for any new children you wish to claim for.
Children claiming EYFE for Working Families in the 9 months plus and 2 year old age groups are potentially eligible for Band D Inclusion Funding. It will become Band C when the child begins claiming EYFE for 3 and 4 year olds. If you require further support to complete an Inclusion Funding application, the contact details of the Early Years and Childcare Advisors for SEND and Inclusion are available on our Inclusion Funding web page.
Following the first round of capital grant applications in November 2024, further capital grant funding remains available to support additional projects. We are pleased to invite new applications for the Childcare Expansion Capital Grant Funding. This is to support the creation of additional early years and/or wraparound childcare places, which must be made available by September 2025. This capital funding is separate from the School Based Nursery Capital Grant funding.
Projects will be assessed in line with the Childcare Expansion Capital Grant - allocations guidance and reviewed by the capital grant funding panel. The grant is limited and is unlikely to cover the costs of a new building. However, the grant funding may be able to contribute towards building projects in areas where there is clear demand for additional places. West Sussex County Council would expect that, in most cases, the funding awarded to successful projects will not exceed £50,000.
Please visit the Childcare Expansion Capital Funding web page for further information and to apply. The deadline to submit your application is Friday 14 February 2025. Providers are advised to read the following documents thoroughly before submitting their application:
To assess cost certainty the panel require a full breakdown of the costed activity you are seeking capital grant funding for. This will include three quotations/estimates for each element of your plan costing £15,000 and over.
For any questions during this process, please contact: childcareexpansiongrants@westsussex.gov.uk
Thank you to all those who attended the SENCO/INCO Networks this term. Please find attached a copy of the slides.
Sharing books, stories and rhymes with children from an early age helps nurture a love of reading, which can have a lifelong, positive impact. The charity BookTrust supports families in guiding children on their reading journey from 0 to 5 years.
In the new year, West Sussex Libraries will be arranging the delivery of the next set of Bookstart Early Years packs to be delivered to settings throughout the county. The packs include books and information designed for children aged 1 to 2 years and 3 to 4 years. The packs are not a universal offer and will be targeted at areas of greatest need within the county. The libraries Bookstart team will contact you in the new year if they are able to offer packs to your setting.
Specialist packs will also be available for children who are hearing impaired, visually impaired or have sensory needs, as well as dual language books.
You can find out more about the Bookstart offer and packs available on BookTrust’s website. If you have any questions, please email: Bookstart@westsussex.gov.uk.
Useful information
- w/c 9 Dec - Spring term estimates payments due
- 6 Jan 2025 - Portal opens for spring term actuals
- 6-31 Jan 2025 - Portal open for early years annual census
- 16 Jan 2025 - Spring term headcount day
- 21 Jan 2025 - Portal closes for spring term actuals
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.
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We’re committed to providing excellent support to all providers we engage with. Please take a moment to complete our Early Years and Childcare Provider Feedback Survey and let us know about your experiences. Your feedback will help us improve our service and better support settings like yours. You can visit the web page or scan the QR code. |
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#48/2024 (Business focus - Management and leadership courses; Offering Early Years Funded Entitlement from January 2025; Early Years Funded Entitlement - checking Working Families codes workshop; Wraparound Childcare Funding Programme - 2024 deadline; Starting school applications; Creating accessible spaces for children with cerebral palsy; Infection prevention; Wellbeing and Exercise in Pregnancy Programme social media launch; Early Years Training)
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#47/2024 (Safeguarding focus - Why language matters - criminal child exploitation, Safeguarding special newsletter, Early Years Funded Entitlement spring term 2025 estimates now open, Early Years Funded Entitlement for Working Families - spring term code deadline, Early Years and Childcare expansion - funding timeline of events, Autumn Budget 2024, Kent Early Years Stronger Practice Hub November newsletter, Early Years Training)
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#46/2024 (Working families eligibility codes - Online Provider Portal webinars; Post Headcount Exceptional Payment requests for eligible working families of children aged 9 months to 2 years - final reminder; Early Years Funded Entitlement Payment consultation - Stage Two mandatory survey; New childminder category - childminders without domestic premises; Updated Ofsted poster for parents; Do you love working in early years and childcare? We need your help; Oral health support; Early Years Training)
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#45/2024 (Wraparound childcare grant funding reminder; Spring term National Professional Qualification Early Years Leadership news; Hampshire County Council Inclusion Conference 2025; Information Commissioner's Office tool to develop bespoke privacy notices; Ofsted videos for early years providers; West Sussex Safeguarding Children Partnership newsletter October 2024; Early Years Training)
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#44/2024 (Business focus: E-learning business support; The West Sussex Safeguarding Children Partnership: invitation to November Partnership Group meeting; Brighton and Hove childminder conference - November 2024; Childcare Works Hub; Early years provider business opportunity; Early Years Training)
Early Years and Childcare newsletter web page.
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