EYE Hub Newsletter November 2024
Early Education as Vital Social Infrastructure
Lucie Stephens writes for the IPPO about the workforce crisis, referencing data from the Early Education and Childcare Coalition’s Rescue and Reform Manifesto. She identifies that a significant percentage of nursery staff and childminders are considering leaving their jobs within the next year. To address these issues, she suggests a two-pronged approach: immediate rescue interventions and long-term reforms. Immediate actions include plugging the funding gap and addressing staffing challenges to stabilize the sector, while long-term reforms focus on widening access to government schemes and ensuring sustainable funding.
Without urgent action, the sector’s fragility will continue to impact children’s development and parents’ ability to work, ultimately affecting the broader economy.
Read the full report here.
Barriers to Take-Up of Early Education Entitlements
Ivana La Valle, a member of our Early Years Employment Research Hub steering committee, has written an article published by Coram Family and Childcare. The article provides a comprehensive analysis of the challenges faced by disadvantaged families in accessing early education entitlements. Funded by the Nuffield Foundation and conducted in collaboration with the Centre for Evidence and Implementation, UCL Centre for Education Policy and Equalising Opportunities, and other experts, this research highlights systemic issues preventing equitable access to early education.
The study reveals that confusion about different entitlements, application difficulties, restrictions on funded hours, and additional charges make it challenging for parents to navigate the system. Weak guidance from central government means local councils lack the tools to ensure funded provision is genuinely free and inclusive.
However, the study also identifies where local action can improve take-up among disadvantaged families. Councils that prioritize early education and focus on removing barriers see higher take-up rates. Effective in-house Family Information Services and support from professionals like health visitors are crucial.
Read the full report at: Understanding the take-up of early education entitlements | Family and Childcare Trust
Dr Kim Allen at the University of Leeds is leading a research project on Young Women’s Working Lives, funded by the ESRC.
The aim is to understand the earliest experiences of women’s work and how inequalities emerge across the life course. The focus is on three sectors
- Education and childcare
- Health and social care
- Fashion and beauty.
The team would like to speak to women aged between 23-29 working in early years and childcare. Please do circulate this amongst your networks and get in touch if you fit this category.
Participants can sign up here.
More information here.
Achieving high-quality provision in the baby room of English nurseries
Our steering committee member, Sara Bonetti, is working with Mona Sakr and Kayla Halls on this exciting new project and they have shared this update with us.
The government is expanding funded provision to include all children under the age of 5 years old from September 2025. This means the baby room of English nurseries is seeing an increase in funding and attention. Our Nuffield Foundation research project is focused on opening up the conversation on what quality provision should look like for children under the age of 2 years old and generating a shared vision of high-quality provision to guide upcoming developments around the baby room.
The project team aims to:
- Get to grips with the global literature on what high-quality provision looks like for babies to understand how quality is thought about around the world for children aged 0-2 years old.
- Explore the strengths, weaknesses, and gaps in preparation and support for baby room educators from the workforce’s perspective. The workforce is integral to quality as they are the ones on the ground with children and families every day. Moreover, our educator’s working conditions can empower or hinder their work with babies, making it important to identify what is working well and what can be improved.
- Co-create a clear vision for the future of the baby room with the sector and secure commitment to execute this vision.
We plan to do this by:
- Conducting desktop research where we are looking at literature from around the world focused on how we can understand, measure, and support quality for babies here in England.
- Facilitating focus groups and surveys embedded in three free conferences offering professional development to the workforce. We want to hold space to hear directly from the workforce about professionalism, status, and professional learning as these are integral to quality.
- Hosting workshops with stakeholders to come up with that vision of quality and how we want to move towards it.
We’d love to invite you to stay up-to-date with our research by visiting www.thebabyroom.blog. We’ll post project updates, blog posts, and conference updates here on a regular basis.
Ready for School?
Dr. Megan L. Wood’s article, “Ready for School?”, explores the crucial role early years practitioners play in preparing children for school. Conducted with the University of Leeds, Born In Bradford’s Centre for Applied Education Research, and Lancaster University, the research highlights the importance of academic readiness alongside social, emotional, and overall development.
Key Insights:
Dr. Wood’s research underscores that school readiness involves more than just early literacy and numeracy. Social skills, emotional well-being, and physical health are equally vital, showcasing the diverse responsibilities of early years practitioners in nurturing well-rounded individuals.
The article also highlights significant challenges faced by the early years workforce, such as high staff turnover, inadequate training, and lack of recognition. These issues undermine the quality of early education, and the research calls for a comprehensive workforce strategy to address these challenges and support practitioners in their critical roles.
By integrating data from various sources, the study provides a nuanced understanding of children’s needs and the effectiveness of early years interventions. This evidence-based approach can inform policy decisions and enhance the support systems for early years practitioners.
Dr. Wood advocates for policies that prioritize the professional development and well-being of early years educators. Investing in training, fair wages, and creating supportive work environments are essential steps to retain skilled professionals and attract new talent to the sector.
The research also emphasizes the importance of involving families and communities in the early education process. Building strong partnerships between practitioners, parents, and community organizations can enhance the support network for children and educators alike.
Local Perspectives:
Early years practitioners express a need for systemic changes, citing frustration over resource shortages and lack of support. They echo the call for a workforce strategy that values their contributions and provides necessary tools. One practitioner noted, “We are passionate about what we do, but without proper support, it’s challenging to maintain the level of care and education our children deserve.”
Conclusion:
“Ready for School?” by Dr. Megan L. Wood underscores the complexities of school readiness and the vital role of early years practitioners. Addressing workforce challenges is essential to support these educators and ensure they can meet the diverse needs of young learners, laying the foundation for a brighter future.
Link to original article here.
Early Years SEND Assessment Guidance – Dingley’s Promise
As part of Dingley’s Promise ongoing commitment to improving the lives of children in the early years with SEND, we have been proud to launch the National Early Years Assessment Guidance, in collaboration with the Department for Education.
Dingley’s Promise are responding to the current crisis in access for children with SEND to the early years by launching Assessment Guidance for Early Years SEND. The guidance launches today on the Department for Education website and within their training modules and aims to support early identification of emerging SEND needs in a practical and standardised way. The guidance has been created in response to demand from those in early years who are concerned that assessment processes for children with SEND can be extremely time consuming and often not fit for purpose.
The latest Local Government Association research stated that 93% of local authorities were concerned about having sufficient places for children with SEND, and the recent DfE Pulse survey stated that 34% of group-based settings and 16% of childminders were turning children with SEND away. It is unacceptable that our education system is failing some of our most vulnerable children and families in this way and Dingley’s Promise are committed to finding practical solutions to reduce this inequality.
As the guidance launches nationally, the aim is that it will be adopted by settings and local authorities to achieve a simpler and more consistent assessment process. This will reduce stress on families and on professionals, as it reduces the duplication of effort in filling in a range of different forms, and even between local authority areas the process will be the same.
Dingley’s Promise support children under 5 with SEND in their nursery settings across England, provide early years inclusion training, and work with local authorities to support inclusion.
dingley.org.uk/ey-send-assessment-guidance
Inclusion Training for Early Years Professionals
We’re using our experience of working with children with SEND over the last 40 years to create resources to enhance skills, improve confidence and inspire early years practitioners to cultivate an inclusive environment for all children.
Practitioners across the country are improving their skills and gaining confidence through our range of training courses. Centred around inclusive practice and designed for anyone working in the early years, our training has helped thousands to enhance their ability to include and support children with SEND in their settings.