Alliance supports functional skills campaign
The Alliance is pleased to be backing Save our Early Years, a cross-sector campaign calling for functional skills to be accepted as GCSE equivalents to enable EYE practitioners with these qualifications to be counted in ratios at Level 3. We believe that it is vital to ensure that all early years practitioners have a […]
Reception baseline assessments to be abandoned
The DfE has today revealed that reception baseline assessments will not be used to measure pupils’ progress, after a study found that the three different assessments were not comparable. The study – from the DfE and the Standards and Testing Agency – examined the three schemes used by schools in the 2015 to 2016 […]
DfE proposes to extend daily availability of free entitlement
In its open consultation on the 30-hours free childcare initiative, the DfE has proposed extending the period that parents can access this free entitlement from 7am – 7pm to 6am – 8pm. The DfE’s draft document – released on Sunday 3 April – highlighted a number of areas for discussion, also including the requirements […]
New report calls for a qualified early years teacher in every setting
A new report from Save The Children and University College London has highlighted the importance of stimulating toddlers’ brains, claiming that nearly 130,000 children per year are falling behind before they even reach school. The report, ‘Lighting Up Young Brains’, highlights the fact that toddlers’ brains form connections at double the rate of adults’, […]
Latest Ofsted statistics show drop in childminder numbers
The ‘Childcare providers and inspections as at 31 December 2015’ statistics – released today from Ofsted – show a 2% decline in the number of childminders in the UK since August 2015. Since 2012 this number has dropped by more than 10,000, and the number of providers of childcare on non-domestic premises has also […]
Arguing parents damage children’s long term life chances
Children that are exposed to parental conflict will have poorer life chances and are more likely to suffer from mental health issues, new research has revealed. Carried out by the Early Intervention Foundation (EIF) and the University of Sussex for the Department of Work and Pensions, the review found that children’s long-term life chances […]
Dads urged to play a bigger role in story time
The National Literacy Trust is urging more dads to get involved in reading to their children, after a new study revealed that mothers feel they have more influence in early literacy development than fathers. Early literacy practices at home in 2015: The annual survey of parents showed that half as many fathers as mothers said […]
DfE does not hold data cited in latest report
The Department for Education does not hold all of the data it cites in its latest childcare costs report, the Pre-school Learning Alliance has discovered. In its Review of childcare costs: the analytical report, published in November 2015, the department quotes figures on provider costs by Deloitte multiple times, but has since claimed it does not […]
Nurseries struggling with lack of outdoor space, new study shows
A survey of nearly 400 early years providers has shown that many settings are struggling with either inadequate or a total lack of outdoor space. The Early Childhood Forum and national charity Learning through Landscapes – the organisations behind the survey – are appealing for more staff training in this area as well as help […]
New national minimum wage rates announced
The national minimum wage for 21- to 24-year-olds is to increase to £6.95 an hour, the government has announced. The increase, which is based on recommendations by the Low Pay Commission and set to come into effect from October, is worth around £450 a year to workers, according to the government. The changes were originally […]
Local areas to get more notice of SEND inspections
As of May, local areas will have a longer notice period of SEND inspections in a bid to provide parents and others with a greater opportunity to contribute their views and experiences, Ofsted has announced. The inspections of facilities responsible for children and young people with special education needs and/or disabilities (SEND) are designed to […]
Middle class parents are ‘more informed’ about childcare services
A report from the Social Mobility and Child Poverty Commission has revealed that middle class parents are more informed about the early years childcare services available to them than working class parents. “The experiences of early parenting differ according to social grade; which clearly has implications for social mobility,” the report stated. “Middle class parents are […]