Newsletter for Early Years and Childcare providers in West Sussex
#23/2025 - Wednesday 11 June 2025
This week's newsletter includes:
- Business Focus - Workplace recycling – are you compliant?
- Summer term Post Headcount Exceptional Payment for eligible working families – no exceptional reason needed
- Advanced warning - Online Provider Portal downtime
- Changes to Online Provider Portal login screen
- Department for Education consultation – floor space requirements for children
- Free Open University early years resources
- Kent and Beyond Early Years Stronger Practice Hub
- Jobs in Early Years and Childcare newsletter
- Early Years Training
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Latest Ofsted news and updates here.
As a reminder, from 31 March 2025, all early years and childcare businesses in England are now legally required to follow the new workplace recycling rules under the simpler recycling guidance.
You should now be separating and presenting the following waste types correctly:
- dry recyclables (paper, cardboard, plastic, metal, and glass)
- food waste
- residual waste (black bin)
Check that your waste arrangements are in place and your team knows how to correctly separate and dispose of waste.
If you are a childminder, you are likely to be considered a micro-firm (fewer than 10 full-time equivalent employees) and have until 31 March 2027 to comply. While you have more time, it is a good idea to start preparing now, especially if you will need new bins or updated collection services.
Early years and childcare setting leaders should:
- review how you currently separate waste
- speak to your waste contractor about changes
- ensure all staff are aware of and implement the new system
- consider additional bins or labels for food and recyclables
Many settings have successfully reduced both the amount of waste they produce and the associated disposal costs by participating in environmental projects. You can visit our reducing the carbon footprint of your setting web page for useful tips and guidance.
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In newsletter #21/2025 we let you know that West Sussex County Council has the flexibility to approve PHEP requests for eligible 9 month plus and 2 year old children. This is for children who start accessing an Early Years Funded Entitlement (EYFE) for Working Families place from 12 May, and up to and including 13 June 2025. PHEPs for these children will be accepted without the need for an exceptional reason*.
*Please note, approval is subject to a valid EYFE for Working Families eligibility code for the summer term, and our usual checks.
The online PHEP request form can be found on our requesting funding after headcount web page. PHEPs for the above children must be submitted to us by Wednesday 18 June 2025. For 9 month plus and 2 year old children starting an EYFE for Working Families funded place after 13 June 2025, normal requirements will apply and a child must have an exceptional reason to start post headcount.
The above flexibility does not apply to PHEPs submitted for 3 and 4 year old EYFE for Working Families, as these children are not included in the Department for Education additional data count for summer term.
Please be advised that the OPP will be unavailable from 12.30pm on Monday 23 June for viewing and submitting forms, but you can still access the funding area.
The OPP will be completely unavailable on Tuesday 24 June until 5.00pm. This is due to essential maintenance that is taking 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.
Following the upgrade to our systems on Monday 9 June, the login page to the OPP has changed.
The new "sign in with Windows" option is for West Sussex County Council employees only. Early years and childcare providers should login as normal using the bottom sign in option highlighted in the image below.
The DfE has launched a consultation on floor space requirements for children in early years childcare settings. Currently, specific indoor space minimums apply per child depending on age. The consultation explores options to count outdoor space or keep the rules unchanged. You can read the "Department for Education launches new consultation on floor space requirements" article in newsletter #19/2025 for more information.
The consultation closes on 11 July 2025. Visit the consultation web page to have your say.
The Open University have free early childhood resources developed by experts, these will deepen your knowledge and enhance your learning journey.
KEYSPH are keen to engage with more early years practitioners and provide support that is relevant and supportive to the sector. They would appreciate settings filling in their needs analysis survey to help shape the support provided and keep in touch with what is on offer via the SPH.
Over 125 people have signed up for our Jobs in Early Years and Childcare newsletter and the number is still growing. Please remember to send us your job vacancies as they will go directly to the inbox of at least 125 local jobseekers.
You can also sign up to receive the Jobs in Early Years and Childcare newsletter to see where your vacancies are advertised. Go to our Careers in early years and childcare website, scroll to the bottom of the page and click on sign up to our newsletter.
This week, the two courses we are focusing on are behaviour-related courses.
The Behaviour Detectives course will help you understand why children behave the way they do and how to respond sensitively to stress and conflict. The Behaviour Strategies course will support you to manage transitions and changes to help reduce frustration and anxiety in children
To book, click the course name below. You can also visit our booking portal West Sussex Services for Education and select your required course.
The 2025/26 training brochure contains information on all of our courses and course descriptions.
If you experience any issues when booking your course, please email early.years.training@westsussex.gov.uk.
Useful information
- w/c 9 June - summer term actuals payments due
- 30 June to 15 August - portal open for autumn term estimates
- 29 August - summer term Sufficiency deadline
- 1 September to 26 September - portal open for autumn term actuals
- 18 September - autumn term headcount day
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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#22/2025 (Early Help Focus - Early Help community outreach engagement; Warning - Online Provider Portal downtime; Wraparound Childcare Programme Funding and wraparound webinar; Working together to safeguard children - update; Check an early years qualification service – available now; New Early Education and Childcare Coalition survey; Free paediatric first aid training; Free nutrition webinars; Education Endowment Fund (EEF) opportunities; Early Years Training)
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#21/2025 (Safeguarding Focus - Pan Sussex Half Day Conference - Understanding Safeguarding Children in a Digital Age; Advanced warning - Online Provider Portal downtime ; Summer term Post Headcount Exceptional Payment (PHEP) flexibility for eligible working families of children aged 9 months to 2 years old; Updating your staff contact information; New Department for Education newsletter for early years providers; Anti-Racist Education Conference; Allergy Support for Schools and Early Years Providers; New Ofsted Blog; Early Years Training – Funding for one free Paediatric First Aid training per setting; Early Years Training)
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#20/2025 (Impact of childcare expansion survey; Jobs in Early Years and Childcare Newsletter; Children, Young People and Learning SEND and Inclusion Newsletter; West Sussex Safeguarding Children Partnership - free training; Fire Safety Training ;Early Years Training)
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#19/2025 (Business Focus - explore our business support web pages for settings; Summer term Early Years Funded Entitlement actuals – deadline this Friday; Right From The Start Early Years survey; Childminding Week; Early Years Funded Entitlements for Working Families - 30 hours applications open now; New Ofsted research report; Wraparound settings - inclusive provision; Fully funded Early Years SENCO training - apply now; Department for Education launches new consultation on floor space requirements; Early Years Training)
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#18/2025 (Summer term 2025 actuals claims - action required; Early Years Funded Entitlement (EYFE) for Working Families codes – new online request for support for; Termly Provider Update; Childcare Expansion Capital Grant funding - deadline approaching; Early Language Support for Every Child - Free Event; National Wraparound Childcare Programme Grant Funding; National Professional Qualification (NPQ) Autumn 2025 update; West Sussex Safeguarding Children Partnership (WSSCP) free training, Early Years Training)
Early Years and Childcare newsletter web page.
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