Home > News and events > News

News

Happy family of three smiling and looking out of the window

Government unveils its new Child Poverty Strategy

The strategy’s release follows the government’s reversal of the two-child benefit cap and aims to tackle the root causes of poverty
Mother bottle feeds baby with health visitor alongside

Dedicated SEND practitioner to be recruited in every Best Start Family Hub

The government says these “community-based early interventions” will be rolled out in every Best Start Family Hub from April 2026
Woman bottle-feeding her baby on the sofa

Government announces measures around baby formula to help tackle child poverty

The announcement comes ahead of the release of the government’s Child Poverty Strategy
Little boy in stripy blue tshirt looks out of large window

Alliance launches new domestic abuse toolkit for early educators

Around one in five children experience domestic abuse during childhood
Toddler and baby sit either side of woman looking at the front cover of a big book

Ofsted annual report highlights disparity in outcomes for disadvantaged and vulnerable children

The report also notes the correlation between poor early years access in deprived areas and children's outcomes
child on tile floor looks int the distance while sat in front of colourful wooden bricks

Outcomes for children with additional needs in the early years are ‘worsening’, suggests LGA report

The report has found councils and early years providers are consistently seeing an increase in volume and complexity of need among children
Family of mum, dad an child reading together on sofa

MPs launch inquiry to explore ways to boost reading for pleasure among children

Statistics show a 36% decline in the number of children reading for pleasure between 2005 and 2025
Young child in yellow jumper saying 'explore' stands in front of woman in light yellow tshirt kneading dough

Childminder numbers fall by 1,000 in a year, latest Ofsted data shows

According to the data, the number of Ofsted-registered childminders fell from 26,000 to 25,000 over the 12-month period measured
Smiling child climbs off the bottom of an outdoor slide

Early years settings invited to take part in the National Education Nature Park programme

800 early years settings are currently taking part in the free education programme
Little girl in a white t-shirt sat a table writing with a green pen next to a little boy wearing glasses and wearing a blue striped t-shirt

Early Years Coalition announces plans to publish an updated version of Birth to 5 Matters

A survey has been launched to gather sector views on the revised guidance
Nursery teacher sits smiling with a group of four young children as they make pictures with colourful shapes

DfE evaluation finds early years recruitment bonus scheme failed to boost sector applications

The DfE's evaluation of pilot recruitment scheme found that it had "no measurable increase in ... the number of applicants per vacancy"
Little girl with blonder curly hair plays with xylophone on fluffy white rug

New government figures highlight need for urgent action on the early years in the upcoming Budget

The 'funded' early education and childcare scheme is at risk due to ongoing issues with staffing and finances, according to new figures
Secret Link