All Party Parliamentary Group aims to support early years sector A group of early years providers and representatives, including the Pre-school Learning Alliance, has announced plans to start an All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) as part of a cross-sector bid to help raise government awareness about issues surrounding early years. The planned APPG […]

Alliance, PACEY and NDNA ask political parties not to promise what the sector cannot deliver The Alliance, along with PACEY and NDNA, has written an open letter to all political parties ahead of the 2017 general election, asking them not to pledge childcare promises that the sector is unable to deliver. The organisations […]

Labour pledges “overhaul” of childcare system A leaked draft of Labour’s manifesto for the upcoming general election has promised an “overhaul” of the current childcare system. The draft proposes to introduce a National Education Service that is “cradle-to-grave” and pledges to maintain existing free entitlement offers, extend the 30-hour offer to all two-year-olds, […]

Committee advises “caution” regarding the introduction of reception year testing The House of Commons Education Committee has warned the government about the potentially negative impact of testing and assessments on young children. The committee has released a report calling on the government to lower the stakes in assessments by changing what is usually […]

Document can be shared with parents to help explain funding concerns The Alliance has created a downloadable document to help providers explain concerns around early years funding ahead of the roll-out of the 30-hours offer. The ‘need to know’ document is available to download online and can be printed out or shared with parents […]

Guidance for providers and local authorities is made available ahead of the pre-election period The government has published operational guidance on the 30-hours offer for providers and local authorities ahead of the scheme’s roll-out in September. The guide is designed to explain the rules around the delivery of the free entitlement offer, including information […]

Characteristics of Effective Teaching and Learning is now available free for Alliance members The Alliance has launched a new online training programme on the Characteristics of Effective Teaching and Learning, available to access for free for all Alliance members and their teams. The programme explores the ways that children learn and guides practitioners […]

Parents of three- and four-year-olds can now sign up for the 30-hour offer online Working parents can now apply for the government’s 30-hours offer and tax-free childcare scheme using a new digital service. The tax-free childcare has been rolled out to parents of children who will be aged under four on 31 August […]

Theresa May announces plans for election to be held on 8 June Prime Minister Theresa May has announced plans to hold a general election on 8 June, after “reluctantly” realising that it was necessary ahead of Britain’s departure from the European Union in 2019. May has previously refused to call an early […]

Each hour spent using a tablet leads to 16 minutes less sleep Toddlers who use a touchscreen spend less time sleeping at night, according to a new study conducted at Birkbeck University and King’s College, University of London. The researchers surveyed 715 parents about their child’s use of touchscreen and typical sleep patterns, […]

Additional investment said to create 9,000 new places ahead of the 30-hours roll out The government has announced that it is investing a further £50 million in capital grants for childcare providers. Settings who were not awarded grants in the original oversubscribed round were reconsidered for a second round of funding, and the […]

Early years providers can now use a ‘good provider’ or ‘outstanding provider’ logo Ofsted has launched a new logo for early years, education and children’s social care providers that have been rated ‘good’. The organisation has also updated its ‘outstanding’ logo. The logos were created in response to feedback from providers and are […]