Under 5 July August 2021

Under 5 the magazine of the early years alliance July/August 2021

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Hob a Rustic om Plank fr aces Muddy F

60 years of play

Celebrating the Alliance’s anniversary

Sports day A playful way to celebrate

Reclaiming the streets Taking play outdoors

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contents 4

welcome

News

Welcome to Under 5

All the latest news, research and policy updates from the early years sector

This issue marks 60 years since the launch of the Alliance in August 1961, when Belle Tutaev wrote a letter to The Guardian titled ‘DIY Nurseries’. While of course much has changed since the 1960s, particularly after all the upheaval of the last 18 months, it’s wonderful to see how the original aims of the organisation remain in place all these years later. To help mark the occasion, we’ve shared some wonderful pictures from the Alliance’s history (page 10).

Earlier this year, we also marked the Alliance’s anniversary at our first ever online Annual Conference.

If you were unable to join us on the night, we’ve summarised all the main talking points from the evening for you in this issue (page 16).

The event also saw the shocking results of the Alliance’s investigation into how the Department for Education calculated early years funding rates. You can see the full details of the story here (page 12).

Last issue, we shared some of the Alliance’s exciting plans for our first ever National Week of Play, which took place in June. We were delighted to see so many providers joining us to celebrate the week and have shared some of the best pictures you shared with us (page 30).

Still on the theme of play, we’ve also heard how families can help encourage more free play time as coronavirus restrictions lift with the Play Streets campaign (page 24) as well as some tips for encouraging more social play, which so many children have been missing since March 2020, (page 20).

As ever, we’ve also got some fun activity ideas to try. This issue we’ve looked at the theme of sports and sports day events (page 24). Please do share with us any stories and pictures from events and special activities you try this summer, keeping an eye out for any ongoing restrictions on activities in your local area.

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My Under 5

8

60 years of play

10

A night to remember

16

“Shamelessly, knowingly, underfunding our sector”

Alliance members share good news and updates from their settings

Celebrating the Alliance’s 60th anniversary

A recap of the Alliance’s annual conference

8

A close look at the results of the Alliance’s FOI investigation

18

WELCOME & CONTENTS

Recovering training fees The team at Law-Call answer common questions on recovering training costs from staff

20 Understanding the social aspects of play

How to support social play activities in your setting

22 Reclaiming the streets

How families can set up Play Streets in their local areas

24 Doing sports day the playful way

20

Activity ideas for hosting a sports day in your setting

27 Preventing obesity in toddlers

The ITF shares ideas for keeping children healthy

28 Keeping children healthy, safe and secure

Considerations for safeguarding procedures

30 National week of play

A look at some of the best activities shared with us

32 Watch out for button batteries

How parents can help keep children safe

22

Rachel Lawler, editor

33 Competition

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in brief...

MENTAL HEALTH SUPPORT: The Royal College of Psychiatrists says that 16,000 pregnant women and new mums missed out on mental health support in the pandemic.

EYFS disapplications to end on 31 August

round-up Figures show fall in funded place registrations New Department for Education (DfE) statistics on childcare and early years reveal a marked decline in the number of children registered for early entitlement places.

Education provision: children under five years of age reveals that the number of eligible two-year-olds registered to take up 15-hour early entitlement places has fallen by 13% in 2021, while the number of three and four-year-olds registered to take up 15-hour places has fallen by 5%, with the DfE stating that take-up is now “the lowest since it was first measured in 2008”.

The number of three and four-year-olds registered to take up 30-hour places has also fallen by 5%.

The DfE stated that: “The decrease in the number and proportion of children registered to receive funded entitlements reflect the impact of Covid-19 uncertainty on supply (providers) and demand (parents) for early years provision in January 2021”, adding that the declines may be due to parents delaying registering their children for places as a result of the pandemic.

Currently, funding for early years place is based on the number of children on roll at a setting, despite calls for the government to fund the sector based on pre-pandemic attendance levels.

Commenting, Neil Leitch, Alliance chief executive, said: “Early years settings have been able to open to all children for over a year now and yet, as these figures clearly show, there is still a long way to go before

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the sector returns to anything like normal.

“With the number of children registered for early entitlement places falling sharply compared to previous years as a result of the pandemic, it’s clear that the government’s decision to fund early years providers based on the number of children on roll, rather than on pre-pandemic attendance levels, falls short of the support needed.

“Add to this the additional pressures of frequent closures due to self-isolation and illness, the additional costs associated with remaining Covid-secure and the longrunning challenge of underfunding more generally, and it’s obvious that much more needs to be done to ensure that the early years sector is able to remain sustainable throughout the pandemic and beyond.”

The Department for Education (DfE) has confirmed that the EYFS disapplications, brought in during the Covid-19 pandemic, will end on 31 August 2021.

The DfE also clarified that the changes could come to an end sooner if restrictions are lifted before 31 August 2021.

While the DfE acknowledged ongoing issues recruiting level 3 qualified staff, it stated that the disapplications could not be used to help mitigate these concerns as “they were not intended or designed to be used in this way”.

However, it said that it was working with the sector to “fully understand the scale of the challenge” in the coming months.

The EYFS disapplications cannot be used to help mitigate recruitment concerns.

The DfE also noted that the EYFS has existing flexibilities on staffing ratios in “exceptional circumstances” and clarified that it considers Covid-19 to be a exceptional, temporary circumstance which allowed for ratios to be changed “if necessary”.

Ofsted has also shared an updated early years inspection handbook for inspections taking place from 1 September. The updates include: • changes on the EYFS disapplications • changes to reflect the EYFS reforms, due to come into place in September • a new section dispelling myths that result in unnecessary workload for providers • changes to grade descriptors.

WATERSHED AD BAN: Adverts for foods high in fat, salt and sugar will not be able to appear until after 9pm from 2023, following a change in the law.

DUCHESS OF YORK: Sarah Ferguson, Duchess of York, has become chair of the International Montessori Ambassadors group.

Duchess of Cambridge launches Centre for Early Childhood The Duchess of Cambridge has launched The Royal Foundation Centre for Early Childhood, which will aim to raise awareness of the importance of the early years. The centre will focus on three areas of activity: commissioning and promoting research, working with the sector on new solutions and developing awareness campaigns.

Coinciding with the launch, the Duchess also released Big Change Starts Small – a report on early childhood, which makes six recommendations. The report suggests that the country needs to: 1. Raise awareness of the “extraordinary impact” of the early years.

2. Build a mentally healthier and more nurturing society.

3. C reate communities of support for the early years.

4. S trengthen the early years workforce with training and support for their emotional wellbeing.

5. S ource better data on children from birth onwards to help build a “more substantive body of knowledge” to inform practice.

6. Support “longterm and intergenerational” change towards holistic and preventative early childhood support.

and this report is our first step. We will help to make change through fresh research to identify opportunities, collaborations to scale solutions and creative campaigns to bring this issue to life. We will do this by continuing to listen to others and being informed by the data. I hope this report inspires you to join this journey.

It won’t be easy — transformation never is — but big change starts small.”

Neil Leitch, chief executive of the Alliance, commented: “We hope that the active role that the Duchess is taking in raising the profile of the early years will help act as a catalyst for change in the way that our sector is viewed and treated.”

“I hope this report inspires you to join this journey. It won’t be easy [...] but big change starts small.”

In a foreword to the report, the Duchess said: “In establishing the Royal Foundation Centre for Early Childhood, our mission is to drive awareness of, and action on, the transformative impact of the early years. We aim to change the way people think about early childhood –

New EYFS online service launches The Department for Education (DfE) has launched a new EYFS online service to help early years providers implement changes ahead of the implementation of the new framework in September 2021.

The DfE says the new service will “ensure practitioners supporting early years children have the information and support they need to implement the changes consistently” ahead of the implementation of the revised framework in September 2021.

The website covers all seven areas of learning from the EYFS framework, each of which been broken down into three sub-categories to provide bitesized information for each part of the educational programme.

The DfE says that further content, including additional videos, will be added to the website over time, based on user feedback of their needs. The updated EYFS will come into effect on 1 September 2021.

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Coalition calls for recovery rethink A coalition of education organisations, charities, unions and business leaders have called on the government to “reconsider” its approach to the pandemic recovery and increase its investment in children.

Signed by more than 140 leaders from across the education sector – including the Alliance – the letter urges the government to investment more in their education recovery programme, after the Treasury committed to spending £1.5 billion.

The funds committed so far fall far short of the £13.5 billion that the EPI suggested was necessary, with much of the funding dedicated to a tutoring programme for schools.

The coalition, coordinated by the Fair Education Alliance and the National Children’s Bureau, said that while

the investment announced so far is “welcome” it is “not nearly enough” to support holistic recovery plans for children and young people.

It also warned that there was already “significant” inequality between poorer children and their wealthier peers before the pandemic and that this has only be exacerbated by Covid-19. This, the coalition argues, should be taken into account as well as the impact of the lockdowns.

The coalition has called for additional funding to help counteract the wider impact of the pandemic on rising child poverty, waiting times for mental health support and services protecting children from abuse and neglect.

Anna Feuchtwang, chief executive of the National Children’s Bureau,

commented: “The pandemic has affected every single child in the country, causing untold disruption to their education, development and welfare. Children with disabilities, those suffering from trauma, and the millions living in poverty have been hit the hardest. Yet the money promised to help their recovery falls far short and sends the message to struggling families that they simply aren’t a priority for the government.

“As well as making up lost ground in education, we have to fight for a better deal for our children, one that protects their mental health, secures them adequate support services, and overcomes the devastating effects of poverty. The breadth of organisations calling for government to realise this is too wide-reaching to ignore.”

Government responds to petition on childcare funding The government has responded to a petition calling for an independent review of childcare funding and affordability stating that it is “not currently” planning to review the childcare system.

The petition attracted more than 110,000 signatures and called for an independent review to “explore what the government needs to do to ensure we have a childcare sector that works for families, children and the economy”. The Petitions Committee has selected the petition to be the subject of parliamentary debate, due to be held later this year.

In its response, the government said: “Support is available to help with childcare costs and the government monitors the sustainability of childcare providers.”

Neil Leitch, chief executive of the Alliance, commented: “It beggars belief that at a time when hundreds of nurseries, pre-schools and childminders are closing every month, the government is refusing to commit to even conducting a review of early years funding.

“Only last month, we released private government documents which prove that the government has not only been knowingly underfunding the sector for years, but that they knew this would increase prices for parents and put quality at risk. Any claims, therefore, about “unprecedented investment into the early years” can only be seen as wholly disingenuous.

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“Years of underfunding has left this country with one of the most expensive childcare systems in the world, locking many parents - and particularly, mothers out of work, and resulting in an early years workforce that is overworked, underpaid and undervalued.

“The dismissal of this petition is incredibly short-sighted and shows a total disregard for our vital sector. Given the strength of feeling on this issue, not only from providers but increasingly from parents as well, we urge the government to urgently reconsider this indefensible stance.”

Mayor of London invests £150,000 in support for early years providers The Mayor of London has announced a £150,000 investment designed to support early years providers in the capital.

Working in partnership with the Alliance and Ceeda, the scheme will offer nurseries and childminders access to the London Business Hub. The hubs are designed to be a one-stopshop for sector-specific business support, information, advice and guidance with a focus on sustainability and growth.

Mayor of London Sadiq Khan commented: “London’s early years sector is a lifeline for so many families, providing their children with high-quality education and care and giving them the best possible start in life. But these nurseries and childminders have been hit hard by the pandemic, and many are facing a battle to survive. That’s why I’m proud to be

working with the Alliance and Ceeda to give nurseries and childminders across the capital the support they need to continue their life-changing work. By investing in London’s early years education sector, I’m investing in our social and economic recovery, and in our future as a city, and urge the government to do the same.”

Neil Leitch, chief executive of the Alliance, said: “We know that Covid-19 restrictions have had a significant impact on the learning, development and wellbeing of young children. It is vital, therefore, that early years provision in London can remain open for business and continue delivering the high-quality care and education that children and families need and deserve. The business support, training and tailored interventions that this programme offers will play a huge role in ensuring they are able to do so.”

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Express yourself

Ice cream treats

the most Staff at Flore Pre-school in Northampton made ice cream an g makin by er of the warm weather this summ red colou used They with. shop for the children to play en childr the all and les sprink mash and real cones with eye hand raging encou ty, took turns to try out the activi coordination and communication skills.

Children at Step Up Pre-school in Wiltshire have been exploring their emotions after a difficult time in the pandemic.

Using The Colour Monster by Anna Llenas as inspiration, the setting talked about emotions and learned to used coloured tubes to show staff how they are feeling each day. They also made Emotion Mobiles to take hom e as well as a large emotion rainbow made of shapes that refle ct each feeling.

What’s been happening in your setting?

Under 5 wants to know! To share your own stories, please email editor.u5@eyalliance.org.uk with the subject line ‘My Under 5’.

60 years of play This year, the Alliance is celebrating its 60th anniversary. After a particularly difficult 18 months for the early years sector, we take a look back at some of the highlights from over the years…

I

n 1961, Belle Tuatev was trying to organise a birthday party for her daughter, Mary, when she came across a common problem.

Because her daughter was only three-years-old, Mary hadn’t started school and, with no nursery spaces available in their local area, hadn’t had a

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chance to make any young friends. This left her with few children to invite for the party!

With little support available elsewhere, Belle decided to team up with other local mothers and began looking for somewhere that they could meet regularly so that their children could play together. After speaking with parents at her older son’s school, Belle met a qualified nursery nurse who offered to work with her and they soon set up at a church hall in Marylebone. The playgroup was initially attended by just six children for two hours each day.

As the group began to expand, they frequently ran into problems with legislation, funding and red tape – concerns that many members can still relate to today! Belle said: “It was difficult to get a place that would accept children en masse.

The halls, all the places, they wanted to make up every excuse under the sun!”

In August 1961, Belle wrote a letter to The Guardian, which was published under the title: Do It Yourself Nurseries. It was this letter that sparked the movement that would eventually

become the Early Years Alliance.

In her letter, Belle called on the government to provide more facilities for children under the age of five and encouraged other parents to set up their own provisions where possible. She wrote: “Inquiries are welcomed, particularly from those enclosing a stamped-addressed envelope, from mothers and teachers who would like to create their own solutions to their problems.”

The response from parents was overwhelming. Many were facing similar problems finding nursery places and had also set up their own groups. Within a year, Belle had organised the first Annual General Meeting of what

ANNIVERSARY

Timline

1961 Belle Tutaeve writes to The Guardian

1962 First Annual General Meeting of the Preschool Playgroups Association

1963 The organisation is recognised as a charity was then known as the Pre-school Playgroups Association, having amassed more than 150 members.

The main aim of the organisation was to offer support to those running parent and toddler groups for children under five and to lobby the government about the importance of the early years – values that remain at the core of the Alliance’s work to this day.

By May 1963, the organisation was recognised as an official charity and by 1966 it had more than 1,300 members. It opened its first office in Toynbee Hall, London. Belle remained in place as the organisation’s first President until 1966, after which she left to retrain as a teacher before going on to work in the Reception class at a local infant school.

In 1982, Her Royal Highness the Princess of Wales became the Alliance’s first patron. Before her marriage to Prince Charles, Diana worked as a pre-school assistant and as a nursery teacher at the Young England School in Pimlico. She had also spent some time working as a nanny for a family in London, so had lots of experience in early care and education and helped to elevate the status of the charity and the vital importance of the early years.

By this time, the Alliance also had a network of local branches supporting its thousands of members across the country, as well as its head

office in London. These autonomous branches were formed into a single national organisation in 1991.

In 2011, the Pre-School Learning Alliance, as it was then known, published 50 Favourite Stories and Rhymes in collaboration with Ladybird Books to mark its 50th anniversary.

The book included the short story, ‘Belle’s Big Idea’, which followed the story of the Alliance’s initial launch.

Today, the Early Years Alliance is the largest and most representative early years organisation in England. It represents 14,000 members who deliver early education and care to more than 800,000 families across the country every year in pre-schools, nurseries, baby and toddler groups and as childminders.

After a particularly challenging 18 months throughout the Covid-19 pandemic, the early years sector has been working on the front line of a crisis that many of us would not have been able to imagine just two years’ ago, let alone back in the 1960s when the Alliance first started its work. These difficult times have reminded many of us how important the work of early years providers is – and of course the Alliance remains as committed as ever to supporting every child’s right to learn through play.

1966 Membership of the Alliance reaches 1,300

1982 HRH The Princess of Wales becomes the Alliance’s first Patron

1995 The organisation is renamed the Pre-school Learning Alliance

2011 The Alliance publishes 50 Favourite Stories and Rhymes in celebration of its 50th anniversary

2012 Alliance founder Belle is awarded an OBE for services to children and families

2019 The organisation becomes the Early Years Alliance

2021 The Alliance celebrates its 60th anniversary

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A night to re On 15 June 2021, the Alliance hosted its Annual Conference online for the first time in its 60-year history. Here, we take another look at all the action from the night

W

hile this year’s Alliance Annual Conference was certainly different than previous years, the event was still as insightful and as inspiring as ever. Like previous Alliance events, the evening saw a fantastic

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line up of speakers sharing fascinating insights, beginning of course with our chief executive Neil Leitch.

Neil began by taking a moment to reflect on the past 18 months and thanked the early years sector for its commitment and drive despite the challenges thrown its way by the pandemic. He also highlighted the differences between the support offered by the government to schools and that given to the wider early years sector – with PVI providers too often left out.

Neil also highlighted the shocking statistic that just 0.583% of the government’s original £1.7 billion education recovery budget was allocated to the early years. “And while after sector

lobbing, the amount of money going to our sector increased from a measly £10m to £153m this still represents less than 5% of the overall pot,” he added. “Yet again we are simply an afterthought.”

Neil also spoke at length about the shocking findings of the Alliance’s investigation into how early years funding rates were set (See more on page 12).

“What these documents confirm,” he said, “is that this government, for all its rhetoric about levelling up, improving life chances and giving all children the best possible start in life, has been shamelessly, knowingly underfunding our sector for years.”

The impact of these policies on early

EVENT

emember… years providers on the ground was also highlighted, with Neil sharing some shocking quotes from colleagues. One said: “I have spent 15 years in early years and it has been the most rewarding and challenging experience, but now I am breaking under the stress of the job.”

Neil ended his speech by sharing a picture of some famous graffiti in Hong Kong which reads: “We cannot return to normal. Because normal was the problem in the first place.” He said that this is particularly true for the early years sector, which cannot settle for going back to how things were before the pandemic. “We are educators. And we should never accept being treated as anything less.”

James Heckman

Next up, we were very lucky to be joined

by Nobel-prize winning economist James Heckman, who is currently working at the University of Chicago as the Henry

Schultz Distinguished Service Professor in Economics. He won the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences in 2000 for his work in developing a scientific method for assessing economic policy, giving new insight into the economic benefits of education.

At the conference, James spoke about the “fundamental” role that the early years play in shaping children’s futures and argued that skills-based policies can help fight inequality. He highlighted how early inequalities between disadvantaged children and their peers begin to develop – often before the age of five – and these often continue much later into life.

James also explained how intervention

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EVENT

programmes have a greater impact when targeted at children in the early years and encouraged policy makers to look “beyond PISA” and focus on socio-emotional skills that help children develop the tools they need to adapt to change and become better learners later in life. If these skills aren’t addressed at an early age, James argued, they could have an adverse effect much later in the child’s life – although he added that it was also important not to write children off either.

“The longer we wait, the harder it is,” James explained, adding that the returns on early intervention are very high early on and also help lay a foundation for interventions aimed at children later on in their lives. He said the best intervention programmes work by “primarily boosting the social and emotional skills” of children, giving them a greater sense of self-control in later life, helping them become more engaged with society.

Children’s Commissioner

was now time to “repay” them for all the sacrifices they made during the pandemic.

Rachel said that part of “building back better” for children would include the need to consider that “normal wasn’t always good enough” for some children in England. She also suggested that our ambition should be “much bigger” than returning to normal. She spoke about the “good intentions” behind the recent Leadsom Review of early years but reminded delegates that these must be delivered to have any real impact.

Rachel shared some of the concerns she had already heard from parents about the impact of the pandemic on young children, with many worried about their baby’s developing social skills as well as speech and language. She also warned that “catching up” may be a long-term process for children in the early years.

However, Rachel also shared ambitious plans for her time as Children’s Commissioner. “I want to be able to look back at a time when adults did even more for children than the post-war generation,” she said of her plans going forward.

Guilaine Kinouani

to have experienced Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs), which can increase anxieties when their children are infants.

“History can repeat itself,” Guilaine warned, explaining that racial trauma can present itself as anxiety, or difficulty making attachments when children are very young and can make this time harder than usual for parents. She encouraged early years providers to think about social justice and consider how they can tackle racism through their practice, making sure that they were informed about the effects of trauma.

Guilaine also encouraged providers to speak to parents and build relationships with them to make sure that they all feel welcome and included, keeping compassion at the centre of these connections. She also explained that it is important that children see themselves represented. She asked delegates to consider: “What needs to shift in [my] worldview to integrate the new learning?” and: “How are you going to apply what you know now?”

Ending the event, the Alliance was delighted to share with delegates a copy of a letter from the Duchess of Cambridge, thanking them for their hard work and dedication during the pandemic. This was a wonderful way to end the keynote speeches after such a challenging year for the sector - see below.

Letter from Duchess of Cambridge Next, we heard from Dame Rachel de Souza, who gave her very first speech in her new role as Children’s Commissioner at the event. Rachel previously served as headteacher at several schools before forming the Inspiration Trust – a multiacademy trust of schools in East Anglia.

Rachel took the opportunity to thank providers for their hard work keeping settings open throughout the latest lockdowns. “You really were on the front line and that deserves to he appreciated and recognised,” she said. She also shared her determination to “deliver for children” in her new role and said that it

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Finally, delegates heard from critical psychologist, founder of Race Reflections and author of Living While Black, Guilaine Kinouani. Guilaine spoke about racial trauma and the long-term effects this can have on families and children. She highlighted recent statistics which show that Black and Asian mothers are more likely to suffer with traumatic births, more likely to die in childbirth and more likely

While the Duchess of Cambridge was sadly unable to attend the event herself, the Alliance was delighted to receive a letter from her to all of our conference attendees, thanking them for their “incredible commitment and resilience” during the pandemic. A copy was emailed to all attendees during the event.

She said: “Your dedication throughout has not gone unnoticed – you are always putting children and families first and you should be very proud of the role you play day-to-day in helping to raise the next generation.”

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Thank you to our sponsors Here’s a quick look at our sponsors for the Alliance’s Annual Conference...

Y’earn

Nurseriesandschools.org Nurseriesandschools.org is the only online search platform in the UK that lists educational settings and services from early years right up to third level education.

The website’s comprehensive search functionality enables parents, carers and students to search online and compare different settings and services on multiple criteria such as facilities, opening hours, ratings and reviews to help them make an informed and confident decision when deciding the best for their education.

Nurseriesandschools.org also provides an abundance of resources for parents, practitioners and students. These include a Parent’s Guide, E-Learning Courses, Events and Deals and Discounts section.

Check out their website to learn more about nurseriesandschools.org or get in touch. info@nurseriesandschools.org 01895 807672

Monkey Wellbeing Monkey helps children and families get ready for first experiences: tackling the big things in a friendly and honest way. Whether starting school, going to the dentist, having an operation or going to A&E, Monkey walks with you through your journey.

Our storybooks and activity guides are realistic and honestly written for young children. Perfect for Pre-Schools, Nurseries and Infant schools as well as a useful resource for families. Monkey, helping to build children’s confidence, knowledge, experience and health and wellbeing. info@monkeywellbeing.com www.monkeywellbeing.com/index.html 0800 652 0652

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Y’earn is a parent-to-parent marketplace to rent Baby & Kids items from people in your community or make some cash if you have items you don’t need right now.

Earners (people that make money from items) create listings and at the end of the term have them back for your next child, rent again, sell or donate to charity. Yearners (people that want items) save time and money and once items are outgrown you don’t have the hassle of disposing of them. We handle the cleaning, delivery, provide a guarantee and even plant trees for every rental. Skip insurance fees with your EYA membership #MoreLoveLessWaste. hello@yearn.club www.yearn.club

SPONSORS

Muddy Faces We are passionate about the outdoors and we strive to ensure that you have an inspiring and positive experience. We are nationallyrecognised for our innovative content and products and our excellent customer service.

We aim to maintain these high standards and are always aspiring to do better - whether this is by reducing our environmental impact or ensuring that you receive what you expect, within timescales that we can deliver.

0114 221 9617 info@muddyfaces.co.uk www.muddyfaces.co.uk

Scrubbingtons Scrubbington’s was created by two friends with a passion for natural ingredients (and their children).

Our company mission is to empower children – there are so many things that parents need to teach their children, the most basic of which is washing and personal hygiene, so we thought we would develop a range of products that help children to wash themselves.

The response from parents to our emporium has been phenomenal and we are delighted with the feedback that they give us every day. Please do get in touch with Karen or Emma with ideas, feedback, or just to say hi. hello@scrubbingtons.com

Boogie Mites Digital music programme packs and training providing practitioners with the knowledge, confidence and resources to harness the developmental power of music.

Evidence-based music and movement training and resources: upskill your team to deliver creative active music making every day harness the power of music to support development in all seven areas of the EYFS

Community Playthings At Community Playthings our love for children is the basis of everything we do. Children need simple, natural toys and furniture that promote open-ended, imaginative play. Our conviction that children come first has driven every aspect of our business since 1947.

Made and designed in our workshops in the UK, the solid wood construction and robust joinery makes for products that last decades. These products are free of any elements that are harmful for children and the environment and the wood we use is chain-of-custody certified and sustainably grown. All products carry a 15-yearwarranty and free two-week delivery.

Apetito

0800 387 457 sales@communityplaythings.co.uk

nursery.meals@apetito.co.uk 0808 239 9583

Apetito is a nutritious nursery meal supplier who, during these challenging times, has been able to support nurseries where costs and feeding children have become even more of a challenge. We can save you time and money as a standard one course lunch costs an average of just £1.80 per child with desserts and tea-time options also available. With apetito you choose your menu to suit your children’s specific needs, creating a tailored service and rest assured with our market leading food safety checks we remove risk and stress from your kitchen. Contact us to book your free tasting session.

informed by neuroscience studies that indicate the brain boosting benefits of music practise creative original songs covering exciting themes with home-made props and instruments

progress practitioners and children’s confidence, musical skills and love of music provide a vehicle for engaging parents 02392817274 sue@boogiemites.co.uk www.boogiemites.co.uk

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“Shamelessly, knowingly underfunding our sector” We take a detailed look at the Alliance’s FOI investigation into how early years funding rates were calculated and set by the government…

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INVESTIGATION

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ollowing a two-year battle with the Department for Education (DfE) via Freedom of Information (FOI) requests, the early years sector last week finally learned the truth about how the government calculated its 15 and 30 hours of so-called ‘free childcare’ places.

The FOI request – which asked for proof that the early years funding rates announced in 2015 and implemented in 2017 had been calculated to be sufficient to cover rising costs – was filed in December 2018. The DfE rejected this request, even after a ruling by the Information Commissioner’s Office, appealing to the First Tier Tribunal against the ICO’s decision.

While we awaited a Tribunal hearing date, the DfE claimed that it would be publishing the requested information as part of wider transparency documents, before eventually withdrawing its appeal and providing the documents to the Alliance.

The true cost of “free” We now know that that current early years funding rates (2020/21) amount to less than two-thirds of what government officials estimated to be the true cost of ‘fully funding’ the sector.

Civil servants at the DfE estimated that the cost of providing a government-funded early years place for a three- or four-yearold would cost £7.49 per hour by 2020/21.

According to independent analysts Ceeda, the average funding rate paid to local authorities in the same year is just £4.89.

That’s a shortfall of £2.60 per child per hour – or £2,964 per child over the course of a year for children in receipt of 30-hour funding.

Passing the cost to parents The documents obtained also reveal that ministers were aware that the inadequate levels of investment proposed would result in higher prices for parents of younger children and that many providers would be forced to use maximum statutory adult-to-child ratios in order to remain viable.

The Early Years Spending Review Scenarios document, obtained by the Alliance via FOI, also exposes a deliberate strategy of passing-on costs to parents.

It states: “We will strip out funding for consumables (food, nappies) – and set an expectation that providers charge parents for these.”

This acceptance of inevitable price increases for families comes despite the fact that the document goes on to state that “a 10% reduction in the cost of childcare might lead to a 1.4% increase in the employment rate for married mothers with pre-school age children”.

The documents also states that the government expected providers to “move, over time, to full use of statutory staff ratios”.

This is despite low child-adult ratios being associated with higher quality early years provision.

“Knowingly underfunding” A separate briefing note to then-early years minister Sam Gyimah, obtained as part of the FOI request and marked as “RE: Early Years Funding Rate Negotiations”, which has been heavily redacted, states that the total annual cost for increasing early years funding rates could be: “… reduced to c. £500m if ministers are content that we do not fund providers to cross-subside the privately-paid rate for children younger than three, and instead accept that prices will rise for these children”.

Following the 2015 Spending Review, government ultimately implemented an annual increase in funding of just £300m per year which came into effect in 2017.

At the Alliance’s annual conference, Alliance chief executive Neil said: “What these documents confirm is that this government, for all its rhetoric about levelling up, improving life chances and giving all children the best possible start in life, has been shamelessly, knowingly underfunding our sector for years. They knew that the level of funding they gave to us would impact on quality. They knew it would put prices up for parents. And they did it anyway”.

Increasing wages More recently, the Alliance filed another FOI request in April 2021 asking for proof that the 1.2% increase in early years funding for

2021/22 would cover the cost of increased national living and minimum wages and the extension of the national living wage to 23- and 24-year-olds, as minister have repeatedly claimed.

This simple request has once again been rejected by the DfE. The DfE says that it is planning to release this information itself and that it is in the public interest to wait for it to do so. This is despite children and families minister Vicky Ford stating in January 2021, during a meeting of the APPG for Early Education and Childcare, that the government would be releasing this information.

Neil added: “For years, the early years sector has warned that the so-called ‘free entitlement’ offer is anything but free, in the face of repeated government claims that the policy is adequately funded. These documents, which they spent more than two years trying to hide, prove otherwise.

“The early years of a child’s life are critical to their long-term learning and development – and yet ministers have been all too happy to force providers to work to maximum ratios, inevitably reducing quality, in order to save the Treasury some money.

“For so long, the government has tried to deflect the blame for rising childcare costs.

But these documents prove, in black and white, that it knew that the introduction of the 30-hours policy, along with an insufficient level of investment, would result in higher costs for parents of younger children.

“Early years providers and parents have had enough of being forced to pay the price for this underfunded policy year after year. There is still time for the government to do the right thing, but at this point, the only way for it to maintain any credibility with parents and early educators is by agreeing to a full review of early years policy in this country. That means delivering the substantial investment the sector needs in the upcoming Spending Review.

“Only with fair and adequate funding will we ensure nurseries, pre-schools and childminders can continue delivering the quality, affordable care and education that children and families both need and deserve.”

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Recovering t The team at Law-Call, a 24-hour legal helpline available to all Alliance members, explains how to recover the cost of training from a departing employee

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raining employees is an important part of ongoing staff development and forms a fundamental part of employment. Unfortunately, when staff make the decision to move on from your early years business, the possibility of recovering the costs of training is often a point of contention between employers and employees.

Here at Law-Call we regularly get questions about how to recover the cost of training from departing staff. So in this article, we’ve looked at the current legal position concerning an employer’s rights.

Employee contracts From April 2020, under the Good Work Plan, all employers must include details of training which the employee undertakes in their contracts. Therefore, there should be a clear contractual provision in your employee contracts or in a separate written agreement, in which the employee has agreed to repay

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such training fees if they choose to end their employment with you.

As the law currently stands, an employer is able to recover training fees from an employee who leaves their job within a certain time period after they have attended a training session or course.

Penalty clauses Any contractual terms relating to the recovery of training costs must not be seen as a “penalty clause”. The clauses should be fair and reasonable and should be an accurate representation of the value the employer has gained. This involves making an assessment of whether the sum recoverable is out of all proportion to any legitimate interest of the employer. It will be for the employer to show that the amount they are asking the employee to repay is a genuine pre-estimate of their loss.

In practice, provided an employer can fully justify the costs of the relevant training

course and has a graduated reduction in the amount recoverable following completion of the course, an employee is unlikely to be able to establish that such provisions are a penalty clause.

Standard clauses Typically, the maximum period an employer can seek repayment of training costs for is two years, on a sliding-scale basis. The sliding scale represents the value that the employer has gained from the employee’s additional experience and expertise. A typical clause in relation to the recovery of training fees may include provisions that 100% of the training cost shall be repaid if an employee leaves within 12 months of completing the training course, reducing to 50% if an employee leaves within 12-18 months of completing the course and 25% if the employee leaves between 18-24 months after completion of the course.

In some cases, the costs you are seeking to recuperate from the employee will be

LAW-CALL

training fees in excess of their final salary. What can providers do in this situation? If you envisage that the training costs will be significant, it may be worth asking employees to sign a separate agreement prior to them commencing the training. The agreement can include a provision that if their final payment does not cover the sums owing, you reserve the right to recover the costs of training by way of a debt.

Important exceptions There are some circumstances in which deductions cannot be taken from an employee for training costs.

For apprentices, if you are using the Apprenticeship Levy, you cannot ask your apprentice to pay for, or contribute to, the levy – even if they leave the training early or their employment ends.

However, if the cost of the training was partly paid by the Apprenticeship Levy and partly using your own funds it may be

possible to recover the costs paid for by your funds. Although separating these two funds from one another will be tricky.

Recovering the costs Once you have the appropriate clause in your contract you need to consider how you will recover training costs if an employee decides to leave. You can recover the sum as a debt and pursue the employee though the civil courts in the same way you would pursue a parent for non-payment of fees. You would have to comply with the pre action protocol for debt recovery before issuing proceedings in court.

The other option, which most employers consider is, deducting training costs from the final salary of the employee. The starting point for this is ensuring that you have a carefully worded clause in your contract, which allows deductions of this nature to be made upon the termination of

their employment.

We would however advise that deducting training costs from final payments is a complex area and certain deductions are not permissible, this includes making deductions from holiday pay or where a deduction would breach the National Minimum Wage rules – although there are some exceptions to these. We would therefore advise employers to contact Law-Call before making any deduction to ensure that you minimise any risk of a claim by the employee.

Find out more If you have any questions or concerns about recovering the costs of training from departing employees, please get in touch with Law-Call for advice. Alliance members can find their contact details in the members area of our website at portal.eyalliance.org.uk.

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Understanding the social aspects of play Tracey Hobbs, early years services officer at the Alliance, explains why play is so crucial for children’s developing social skills in the early years

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PLAY

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lay is often talked about as if it were a relief from serious learning, but for children play is serious learning. Play, really, is the work of childhood. That work is the activity through which children build lifelong skills and abilities. Taking part in social interactions with their peers and familiar adults is one really important way to learn and develop some of those new skills.

When do children begin to relate to their peers?

Many babies and toddlers have regular opportunities to engage with their peers, and some develop long-lasting relationships with particular peers, that can begin from birth. By six months, babies can communicate with other babies by smiling, touching and babbling.

What skills promote early peer relations?

Many research papers have examined early peer relations, and researchers have concluded that early peer relations depend on the following skills that develop during the first two years of life: managing joint attention regulating emotions inhibiting impulses imitating another’s actions understanding cause-and-effect relationships linguistic competence These skills may be enhanced when children are interacting with adults or older children, such as parents, siblings or early years educators. Such interactions model these important skills, but it is when children are interacting with their peers in a range of social situations that they can practice and refine them further.

Children with SEND and children with limited vocabularies may be at risk of missing out on social aspects of play. It is vital that they too have plenty of opportunities to interact with their peers in an enabling environment that is responsive to their individual needs.

Do early peer relations have a long-term impact on children’s development?

There are clear links between very early peer relations, and the development of social and emotional skills later on in life. For example,

young children who are able to engage in complex play with peers develop skills for and become more competent in building relationships and negotiating with other children once they reach their preschool years.

But while research suggests babies and children need social interactions from birth, children really begin to socialise from around three or four years of age. This is the time when they begin to share ideas and toys and follow established rules and guidelines.

This is really where children learn and practice their social skills, like cooperating, being flexible, taking turns, and solving problems. They can work together to build something or perhaps take part in a simple

Emotional intelligence is the key to forming good relationships with others, relationships which are vital to both personal and professional success later in life.

Encourages teamwork While some young children naturally work well as part of a team, others need more time to develop that ability. Social play, especially taking part in team games, encourages children to lead, or support their teammates, with a wealth of opportunities to share, take turns and show respect for others. It is a great way of encouraging children to learn and to practise all the skills that working together requires.

Through these interactions, children learn how to work together, solve arguments and establish friendships.

game together.

As young children develop their play, it becomes increasingly complex involving more and more interactions with others. As educators, allowing children the time and space to play with one another is a must. It offers children the chance to experience the rhythms and melodies of social interactions and to remember them more easily.

What are the benefits of social play?

How can adults support children’s social play?

Social play with peers plays an important role in children’s lives at much earlier points in development than we once might have thought. Experiences in the first two or three years of life have implications for children’s acceptance within their peer group in their early years but also during later school years.

Young children may find social play and interactions difficult because:

Improves social skills Having strong social skills will help young children succeed in many aspects of life.

Through these interactions children learn how to work together, solve arguments amongst themselves and establish friendships.

1. They often do not know what is expected of them in particular social situations.

Builds confidence Social play helps to build confidence. Often when children play together there is less direct adult supervision, meaning children cannot rely on an adult to tell them what to do - instead they have to organise themselves.

This offers children the chance to gain in confidence by thinking independently, taking on leadership roles and voicing their opinions.

3. They are naturally egocentric, so it is hard for them to understand others’ intentions and feelings.

Develops emotional intelligence Social play helps to develop emotional intelligence and empathy, which are just as important in later life as academic intelligence.

2. They do not have the experience and knowledge of different and appropriate ways to solve conflicts.

Because of this, as early years educators we can support children’s social skill development by playing and modelling the positive social behaviours we want them to use.

With our support for positive behaviours and interactions, as well as providing them with lots of opportunities for social play, children will develop the social skills they need to get along with others throughout their lives, and they will have had lots of fun learning them!

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Reclaiming the streets How families can set up ‘Play Streets’ to help encourage more free play in their local areas

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PLAY

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s the road closure signs went out, the children screamed with utter delight. Within minutes kids were bringing bikes out, water guns were squirting… the whole street was alive!” says Emma Sarjo from Hull. Her children were just three, seven and nine when she organised the first Playing Out session on her street in Aysgarth, Hull.

Emma’s street is one of more than 1,000 street communities in the UK to take part in an initiative called Play Streets, where residents set up regular temporary road closures so that children can enjoy the freedom of playing out on their doorstep. Every other Saturday afternoon – pre-Covid – Emma’s street turned into safe playground, free from traffic, where all children, from newborns to 14-year-olds, played together.

“The best thing to come from this is the fact that everyone knows each other and the older children look out for the younger ones. Our street is quite quiet but when a car comes, they shout ‘car’ and move onto the pavement.

They’ve learnt how to play safely on the street from the stewards, who are the neighbours who man the exits during Play Street sessions,” Emma explains.

When the first session took place in 2018, Emma’s youngest child was aged three. “He used to just sit at the window watching his older brother riding his bike or sitting on the wall chatting with his friends. It wasn’t always possible for me to go out with him. But when Play Streets started, he was part of the action.

His favourite activity was being pushed down the road in his toy car. Children lined up to take turns – and this went on for hours. The elderly residents also got involved and played football with him with a mini goal we set up. He loved the skipping rope which came free with the Play Streets pack and liked to jump over it pretending it was a snake.”

Residents are looking forward to spending this summer interacting with their neighbours on the doorstep. ”Neighbours young and old keep asking when we will be able to start it back up again,” Emma says. “My youngest recently turned five and got his first bike, which he can’t wait to ride when we start playing out again.”

What are the benefits of Play Streets for under-fives?

There are many benefits to playing out on your doorstep – not just for the children, but for

parents, too. Alice Ferguson, co-director of Playing Out, the organisation that campaigns for children’s right to play outside freely, says: “Children need the chance to play out near their home – for their health, happiness, development and sense of community. The pandemic has meant that they’ve had long periods inside, unable to see their friends. Now it’s time to give something back to help them recover from the past year: we want them to have a summer of play – and setting up a Play Street is an ideal way to do this.

“It’s a joyous occasion to see communities coming together. We’ve seen babysitting circles develop between parents, friendships blossom and heart-warming intergenerational interactions.”

The benefits of a Play Street E asy access: children can stroll in and out of the house when they want a snack or a trip to the toilet Transporting toys and games from indoors to out: young children love to load up dolls prams; trolleys and mini wheelbarrows with toys or household items and simply push them around or unload the items. Being so close to their home gives them more freedom to choose what to play with – and how

Wheeled toys: they can zoom up and down the road on their scooters and balance bikes in the knowledge that the road is safe from traffic Free play: there’s an emphasis on free, childled play over a short period of time – usually between one and three hours. Children are in control of what they do, which is good for developing their sense of independence Games: cardboard boxes are favourites for play streets, as they become vehicles or dens or princess towers. Chalk is another popular choice, used to play hopscotch or draw pictures on the pavement.

Time and space: sometimes the smallest journeys can take an unprecedented amount of time with a toddler in tow, who becomes

captivated by colony of ants or a shiny stone on the pavement. In this environment, children have more time to explore their surroundings without being moved on New skills: one Play Street received some help to start growing vegetables and made planters in their front gardens which inspired conversation as they shared tips Social: all children – regardless of race or background – get to play out as part of their everyday lives, in the same way that their parents did when they were young Community: children get to know their neighbours and mix with children of all ages.

They also begin to develop an understanding of their immediate environment, which is important as they reach school-age Networks: parents meet and form support groups, such as babysitting circles First step to freedom: parents build up their confidence in allowing children a sense of freedom in a safe environment, which paves the way for allowing their children to have more freedom in the future

How do families go about setting up a Play Street?

It’s a good idea to get a few neighbours on board who see the benefits of this initiative and then approach the council to ask permission to run a Play Street.

There are 86 councils that now have Play Street applications online but most councils have applications for street parties, so you could start there and run a one-off street play session this summer, as a taster.

To run regular Play Streets, you will need to have buy-in from the residents and volunteer stewards to monitor the road closure.

Residents do not have to move parked cars and they can still drive in and out of the street at walking pace.

Find out more Step-by-step videos on how to set up a Play Street can be found on the Playing Out website, along with a list of local authorities that support street play - playingout.net.

Written by Nicole Weinstein for the Early Years Alliance.

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Doing sports day Melanie Pilcher, quality and standards manager at the Alliance, shares sporty activity ideas to try in your setting

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any of us will have memories of taking part in sport at school. Not all of them will be positive for reasons, which may include our aptitude, physical ability or maybe even how participation in sporting events was presented to us in the first place.

As always, we have the opportunity in the early years to establish positive attitudes towards what we want participation in sports to represent. But first, we must be clear about just what that is.

If you plan to host a sports day this year, it is a good idea to start your preparations by reflecting on what you hope to achieve.

Consider how this builds on the experiences you provide every day to promote children’s learning and development.

The first point to remember is that ‘sport’ is usually defined as an activity that involves physical exertion and skill where an individual or team take part competitively. There are rules to follow and the aim is usually to win – or at least to beat a personal best. In an early years context, competitive – or win/lose – games are not appropriate. Our aim should be for children to take part in sporting activities playfully.

The physical exertion of running, jumping,

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kicking, throwing and catching etc come naturally to children. These skills will be further refined as children gain control of their bodies.

Freely chosen play will usually involve some form of physical exercise that is vital to their all-round development.

The additional of equipment such as balls, bats or obstacles provides further challenge as children begin to understand what their body is capable of. Children gain satisfaction from mastering each new skill. For example, the first time they manage to kick a ball or hit a target, their self-esteem will be boosted, and they will be more willing to try new things, test their capabilities and keep on trying if they do not succeed the first time in the future.

While fun should of course be at the heart of your event, sports days should also have a purpose that goes beyond the day itself.

Review your current educational programmes, particularly physical and personal, social and emotional development. Do they reflect the values that you would like to celebrate on the day? For example, are there opportunities for every child to “have confidence in their own abilities”?

Your sports day should build on children’s experiences while offering further risk and challenge. It should be fully inclusive for

every child, emphasising what they can do and focussing on their strengths rather than making allowances for any perceived weakness. You can do this by enhancing existing skills and practicing new ones before the day – such as throwing further, hitting a target, running faster or jumping over obstacles.

You could consider purchasing a sports day kit from an early years supplier. These often provide standard kit that covers the usual sports day events or introduces some that children are unlikely to have tried before. However, these kits are often make of foam and plastic which are not particularly durable and there is no challenge or sense of satisfaction for a child trying to throw a foam javelin that doesn’t travel in a straight line – or very far! Of course, real javelins are not practical for the early years, but if your activity is throwing, why not try welly-wanging instead?

It may work to have a theme for the day to group together appropriate activities instead.

Here are some ideas:

Reuse and recycle – Don’t buy special equipment, use what you already have.

Large cardboard boxes with cut out holes

ACTIVITY CORNER

y the playful way make great targets for beanbags or balls.

Two-litre plastic bottles make good skittles or can be used to replace cones to mark out an obstacle course. Bounce balls into large saucepans or washing up bowls for hand-eye co-ordination. Use water pistols to shoot targets of different sizes off a raised platform, liquid detergent measures are particularly good for this. If you have time, add googly eyes and ears to make them look like small creatures. Rummage through your junk modelling resources to see what you can find. The possibilities are endless.

Anyone for tennis, or cricket, football, or rugby…? Stick to one sport as a theme for your event. Most sports require a range of skills to be developed long before a racquet, ball or bat is involved.

The emphasis will be the core physical skills that you already incorporate into your educational programmes.

International sports day. There are many fascinating sports events that take part in other countries. Make your sports day a real global event. Begin by thinking about the children who currently attend your setting.

Find out about sports from their cultures by talking to their families. As with any defined sport, you will need to make adaptions to make them suitable for young children.

Have you heard of these?

Kabaddi is said to be the national sport of Bangladesh. It is a contact sport that involves tagging your opponents, as they try to avoid you. Adapt this for your children by taping short pieces of coloured ribbon to tee-shirts with the aim of children removing one ribbon from another child then placing it in the correct coloured bucket.

Yukigassen originated in Japan and combines dodgeball with snowball-fighting.

Replace snowballs with scrunched up paper and nominate one adult – complete with double-sided tape on their clothing, to stand as a target for the children. The aim of the game could be to see how many snowballs stick!

Fierljeppen (far-leaping) is a popular sport in the Netherlands that originated as a practical way to navigate a swampy canal by climbing as high as possible up a pole before

it falls towards the opposite bank. If you take away the ‘pole’ and instead base your ‘farleaping’ on puddle-jumping, you can jump your puddles from a standing start, or, even better, see who can make the biggest splash as they land squarely in the middle.

Your children will be of course aware of the many high profile sporting events that happen over the summer, which will help to give context to your chosen sport theme. Many of the professional associations for sports will have an early years focus. Just visit the appropriate website to get some inspiration for sports day, or to find out how you can take part in one of their training programmes.

This is a great way to spend part of your Early Years Pupil Premium for eligible children, particularly those who may not have the opportunity to play safely outdoors or whose overall development would benefit from more focused physical activity.

Finally, despite the fact that we may want to celebrate events together after last summer’s restrictions curtailed so many, this year’s Sports Day might look slightly different due to social distancing rules that may still be in place. It will be important to check the latest guidance issued by the DfE when planning yours.

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ADVERTISING

Navigating the storm Lucy Lewin, founder of the Profitable Nursery Academy, explains what inspired her to help early years providers develop their business skills

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wning a small business can be challenging at the best of times.

Throw a global pandemic into the equation and you will quickly learn how solid your foundations are. Alongside all the challenges of 2020, last year also gave early years providers a look at how effective their business models are and find new ways to improve them.

In the first lockdown period my own 85-place nursery in Rutland closed as we didn’t have any key worker or vulnerable families that needed care. I decided to use the spare time I had to support other providers with motivational training, coaching and general support.

I am so proud of the early years sector.

We have passionate small business owners who deliver high quality care and education to families. However, I know from first-hand experience that the business of business itself is often given a back seat! For almost nine of the 10 years I spent managing my own nursery, all I focused on was the quality of care we offered, pleasing Ofsted and making sure the parents were happy. As long as we had enough money to pay our suppliers and staff, I felt that was enough.

In December 2018 all this changed when the setting started to struggle with cash flow issues. After paying my rent arears, I couldn’t pay my staff. I felt terrible. My team work

so hard, with almost half of them holding degrees in education, and all for little more than the minimum wage. I had one job – to make sure that they were paid – and I had failed! I vowed that from that day onward that I would do whatever it took to create the business that my team and I deserved.

Over the next few months, I started working on my business skills. I attended the Federation of Small Business (FSB) events in my local area and started networking. I developed the skills I needed to be able to save my business.

When the national lockdown was announced on 23 March 2020, I knew my business model and the key figures from my cash forecasts. Because I had invested in processes and strategic planning, I had time to think and respond. I was able to make decisions quickly and then focus on how best to support my families.

I was able to offer services virtually, offering my families daily activities and stories while building an online community for them. If I hadn’t learned the previous lessons and built a sustainable business in 2018, I would not have had the headspace to lead my team and families through the crisis. Thanks to my previous training and experience, I was able to put my families first without forsaking cashflow and processes.

I am now on a mission to help my

colleagues in the early years sector to understand business processes. Previously, I didn’t understand how these processes and systems could sit in a child-centred business – after all, children need freedom and creativity. However, I now know that I was wrong. With the right systems in place, you can improve the quality of your provision too. Staff productivity has improved too, now that the team better understand what is expected of them.

I am still learning too – I am currently enrolled on the Cambridge Judge Busines School course, How to prepare your business for the post-pandemic recovery, and have recently started the University of Leicester’s Small Business Leadership Programme.

Find out more The Profitable Nursery Academy supports single-site childcare providers and childminders, through a 12-week programme that covers what Lucy has identified as the five key steps to success. After completion, learners will have lifetime access to the course materials and remain part of the alumni knowledge hub, with its weekly coaching sessions.

To find out more, visit theprofitablenurseryacademy.com.

NUTRITION

all foods in moderation can form a healthy diet. Demonising certain types of food and restricting children’s access to them can increase children’s temptation or tendency to eat these foods as they get older. Keep all food on a neutral playing field and be aware of using emotive words like “good” and “bad”.

Preventing obesity in toddlers 4-10 July was National Obesity Week – here, the Infant and Toddler Forum shares tips for preventing obesity in toddlers at your setting

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besity is arguably one of the biggest public health challenges the UK is currently facing. It is estimated that the UK now has the highest rate of childhood obesity in Europe. The early years are crucial in the formation of dietary and lifestyle habits as, sadly, children with obesity are likely to become adults with obesity.

As an early years professional, you may have noticed that children do not always eat for the right reasons. While they are typically very good at self-regulating their appetite, they look to adults to provide meals and snacks that meet their nutritional needs and certain habits can set toddlers on a path towards overriding their internal signals of hunger and fullness. This leads to an increased likelihood of overeating or forming habitual behaviours that contribute to excess weight gain.

Here, we’ve got some practical tips to incorporate into toddlers’ routines to support healthy weight management: 1. Develop healthy eating habits – Involve children in planning, shopping for and preparing meals. Use these activities to understand children’s food preferences and teach them about nutrition. Encourage them to explore a wide variety of foods.

Healthy eating is all about balance, so try to

combine foods from all five groups to make sure toddlers get plenty of dietary diversity.

2. Plan sensible portions – The amount of food that children eat varies day to day and meal to meal. Knowing the right amount of food from each group to feed toddlers is important for a healthy balance but it can be tricky. The ITF has created portion guidelines that offer a visual guide for the quantity of foods toddlers may consumer – you can download these from our website.

Remember that taller or more active children will eat larger portions than shorter or less active children and that portion sizes can vary each day.

3. Limit calorie-rich temptations – Parents should be encouraged to keep fewer high-calorie, low-nutrient foods at home.

You should help children understand that sweets and high-fat treats, such as confectionery, sweet drinks and savoury snacks, are not everyday foods. Ideally, these should be limited to one item, once a week. Parents should avoid restricting occasional treats though – this can make them more likely to overeat.

4. Avoid labelling foods as “good” or “bad” – It’s important to remember that

5. Help children stay active – In the digital age we are living in, children are at risk of getting caught up in sedentary activities like watching television, playing computer games and browsing their mobile phones for longer hours. Encourage families to enjoy regular physical activities together such as walking, bike riding, hiking and active games.

6. Avoid meals and snacks in front of the television – Eating in front of the TV may make it difficult for children to recognise feeling full. This can lead to overeating.

Needless to say, this also applies to activities like browsing on phones.

While establishing healthy eating habits is important, you should remind families that they shouldn’t make changes to their child’s diet based solely on their own perceptions that they are overweight. If a parent or carer is worried that their child may be overweight, you should advise them to speak with a healthcare professional first who will be best placed to offer support.

Additionally, keep in mind that weight loss is not a recommended approach for most young children, since their bodies are still growing and developing. Overweight children should not be put on a diet unless a supervised by a healthcare professional for medical reasons. A restrictive diet may prevent a child from getting the energy and nutrients they need for normal growth and development. For most very young children, the focus should simply be on maintaining their current weight, while they grow normally in height.

Find out more The ITF offers a variety of resources to help parents achieve the right balance when it comes to feeding, including which foods to offer, how much and how often in order to encourage healthy habits for life. Head over to www.infantandtoddlerforum.org where you can view our Portion Size Table, buy our Toddler Menu Planner and discover other resources.

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Keeping childre safe and secure Providers are required to take all necessary steps to keep children safe, well and secure, including by maintaining records, policies and procedures. Providers can be reassured that the revised EYFS does not require a complete overhaul of their current approach. Changes to the safeguarding and welfare requirements are straightforward but require a review of a setting’s current policies and procedures, to reflect new terminology, updated legislation, or clarification of existing requirements. Additional clarification and further actions that may be helpful to implement some of the key changes to the safeguarding and welfare requirements are offered here:

Child protection As of September 2019, all Councils in England replaced Local Safeguarding Children Boards (LSCBs) with Local Safeguarding Partnerships (LSPs). The new LSPs consist of representatives from three partners: the local authority, clinical commissioning group and a chief officer of the police. All three safeguarding partners have equal and joint responsibility for local safeguarding arrangements. Early years providers should check that their safeguarding policies and procedures reflect these changes to ensure that they remain in line with any revised guidance and procedures relevant to their LSP as required in the EYFS. There is also reference to safeguarding children and practitioners online.

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Safeguarding Children and Protecting Professionals in Early Years Settings: Online Safety Considerations (UK Council for Internet Safety 2019) goes into some detail about why the guidance is necessary by linking directly to the EYFS requirements and Ofsted’s inspection criteria. These direct references will help to inform a setting’s procedures, by explaining what the risks are, who is vulnerable and what actions the provider can take to minimise those risks.

Oral health

personal, social and emotional development states that: “through adult modelling and guidance, they [children] will learn how to look after their bodies, including healthy eating, and manage personal needs independently”. As educators in the early years, you will need some knowledge of how this contributes directly to oral health and be clear in your own minds about how the activities and experiences you provide support this important requirement.

What you do and provide in your provision makes a difference to children’s wellbeing now and in their future lives.

The driving force behind the additional requirement to: “promote the good health, including the oral health, of children attending the setting” is clear – tooth decay is almost entirely preventable, yet it is the number one reason why children are admitted to hospital for treatment under general anaesthetic in the United Kingdom. What you do and provide in your provision makes a difference to children’s wellbeing now and in their future lives, so it is only right that oral health has become a requirement upon which an early years provider will be judged.

The educational programme for

Smoking and vaping

There is a new reference to vaping and e-cigarettes which will also need to be referenced in policies and procedures. This should be included on any ‘No Smoking’ signage that is displayed on the premises or where children are present.

When reviewing policies and procedures, it may be helpful for providers to include a brief explanation that acknowledges that while smoking is defined in law and vaping is not, the EYFS requirement is clear that “staff should not vape or use e-cigarettes when children are present” and that “providers must not allow smoking in or on the premises

SAFEGUARDING

en healthy, e when children are present”. These are two separate requirements that overlap but have different implications for visitors, parents, and staff, therefore clarity in how the provider communicates this will be essential.

Other legal duties As stated in paragraph 3.80, “the EYFS requirements sit alongside other legal obligations and do not supersede or replace any other legislation which

providers must still meet”. Much of the legislation is supported by the additional guidance referenced within the footnotes.

While footnotes can be easily overlooked, the guidance included in the footnotes provide vital structure for a setting’s policies and procedures and should be referenced within them wherever a specific requirement is in place, demonstrating that the provider understands their legal responsibilities and will take appropriate actions to fulfil them.

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NATIONAL WEEK OF PLAY: what you have been up to We asked everyone taking part in our National Week of Play in June to share some of the fun activities they were doing with us. Here are some of the best entries…

NE WIN

R!

ing Nature provides amaz s! rce ou res ng learni Who’s that looking back at me?

Sand and mirror play I look after a little girl who has just discovered reflections but hasn’t realised that it’s actually her. She loves playing with dry sand too so I made this indoor sandpit using mirrored fablon for the base and mirrors around two of the sides. We added different containers and scoops to support her learning shemes.

Georgina Hunter, Curious George’s childminder

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Walk and talk We went for a walk in the woods and collected sticks along the way. When we got back we wrapped string and twine around one end of the stick to make a handle. We then used them to sound out syllables in words.

The little girl I look after is going to school in September so this was a really fun way of getting her to think about how she is saying and hearing words. We ended up using them for singing and general conversation which was great.

Donna Paine, childminder

Play, play the colourful way!

Making potions At Busy Bees, we love creative, hands-on opportunities for play and learning. It’s fantastic to observe children immersed in rich play experiences, marvelling at the interaction and communication that arises. We’ve recently been exploring colour and a favourite activity has been potion play in the tuff spot! I used coloured water in jars with a range of tools and vessels. It bought the play to life as children made plans and shared ideas as they explored colour mixing. It was wonderful to watch!

Busy Bees Ledbury

PLAY

As part of National Week of Play Cliffdale Early Years linked the weeks activities to the Olympics. Children demonstrated resilience, determination and a willingness to try new challenges!

Painting by music Shaping up summer, learnin g maths through nature

Dance to the music!

We added some painting to a wonderful music activity. The children danced with paint on the soles of their feet and made some truly amazing patterns on a very big sheet of paper, which we had laid out on the floor.

Layer Pre-school

Summer mathematics Getting active Children at Cliffdale Early Years linked their Play Week activities to the Olympics. The children demonstrated resilience, determination and a willingness to try new challenges.

Cliffdale Early Years

After reading this fabulous book – Shaping Up Summer

by Lizann Flatt – we were inspired to go on a shape hunt in the garden. We used a tens frame to showcase, count and categorise our natural treasures.

Jen’s Little Owls

Explosions!

Making volcanoes The children had a visit from a local PCSO, created the most beautiful tablecloth using fabric paints and fruit stamps, ready for us to use at mealtimes and completed their sunflower competition. Finally, the children had shown a real interest in volcanoes and wanted to read books, see volcanoes on the computer and engage in role play. To extend their play, we decided to play ‘the floor is lava’ and even carried out our own science experiment, making our own volcano!

Little Holly Hedgehog Pre-school

Beautifully balanced Do you like my castle?

Queen of the castle This week we have been making cardboard castles and playing princesses!

Jim Radford

Stacking up The children concentrated and worked as a team to build the wooden resources in different ways, taking turns, counting them and watching with excitement to see if they would tumble over.

Lynsey Gilleard

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FAMILY CORNER

Watch out for button batteries With button batteries back in the headlines, we share advices for families to help keep children safe

T

he dangers of button batteries have hit the headlines again recently with the heartbreaking news of the death of two-year-old after she swallowed a button battery from a remote control. Her mother has spoken to the media in an effort to warn other parents, saying she wasn’t aware of the dangers of button batteries.

Mother of two, Linda*, knows only too well the terror of having your child swallow a button battery – it happened to her son Ben when he was just two years old. Linda spoke to us about her son’s experience, to help raise awareness of the dangers of button batteries, which many parents (and even some doctors) are not aware of, and to try and prevent it happening to more children. The incident happened in August 2015.

Linda said: “We’d just moved home – Lucy was four and Ben was two. We were three days into our move and my husband went back to work. It was on this morning that my son came to me with something in his hand.

He had hold of a button battery, (we think it may have fallen out of the bathroom scales). I took it off him and put it on the worktop in the kitchen. I didn’t realise how dangerous button batteries were.”

Linda then briefly turned away to help her daughter who was shouting from the bathroom. When she returned 30 seconds later her son coughed briefly, before crying, writhing in pain and starting to be sick. When she noticed that the battery was missing from the kitchen worktop, she rang her husband who quickly came home from work and then called an ambulance.

After waiting for 45 minutes, the family drove to them hospital themselves where Ben was eventually sent for an X-Ray, which showed the battery lodged in his oesophagus.

Share t his guidan ce with parent s and carers

He was then sent to Alder Hey Children’s Hospital for an operation to remove the battery. The family has since removed all items with batteries out of the reach of their children.

Linda warned parents that they may not realise straight away if a child has swallowed a battery. “When this happened to Ben, his immediate symptoms were coughing, crying and writhing in pain, complaining of back pain and vomiting. However, a couple of hours before he had the battery removed, he was running around and playing in the hospital and you wouldn’t believe there was anything wrong with him.

“Please don’t think that just because they seem ok, that they are. Get your child straight to hospital even if you’re not sure they’ve swallowed one and insist on an X-ray.

Speed is of the essence with button battery ingestion, the sooner your child is treated, the more chance you have to a full recovery.”

o thermometers o hearing aids o digital scales o musical cards o novelty toys o watches o flameless candles and nightlights.

*All names have been changed.

3. Avoid toys from markets or temporary shops as they may not conform to safety regulations.

Remember: Button batteries are dangerous when swallowed (if they get stuck in the throat), or if they get stuck in their nose or ear.

Lithium batteries are the most dangerous, but all button batteries have the potential to cause damage when swallowed, or when stuck in a child’s ear or nose.

Button batteries can be found in a wide range of objects, including (but not exclusively): o small remote controls o car key fobs o calculators

Batteries in children’s toys are covered by safety regulations and should be enclosed by a screw and secure. Check regularly to ensure battery enclosures are securely screwed in.

Top tips to keep children safe from button batteries 1. Keep products with batteries well out of reach if the battery compartment isn’t secured with a screw.

2. Keep all spare batteries out of children’s reach and sight.

4. Teach older children that button batteries are dangerous and not to play with them or give them to younger brothers and sisters.

5. Remember that even used batteries can be dangerous, so recycle them safely.

6. Most importantly of all, if you think your child may have swallowed a button battery, do not wait for symptoms to appear. Take them to A&E immediately, tell the doctor you think they have swallowed a button battery, do not let your child eat or drink, and don’t try to make them sick.

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For more advice and tips aimed at parents and families, visit familycorner.co.uk.

COMPETITION

WIN

a Rustic Hob Plank from Muddy Faces Muddy Faces specialises in outdoor play and education materials designed to help children connect with the outdoors. Muddy Faces are giving one lucky winner a Rustic Hob Plank – a lovely edition to any mud kitchen – it is portable, includes movable dials and is made from UK-grown larch which is untreated and naturally durable. The plank sits perfectly on four rustic log bases, shown in pictures, which are included with the prize.

The views expressed in Under 5 are not necessarily those of the Early Years Alliance. The editor reserves the right to shorten submitted material and to reprint copy from newsletters.

No responsibility can be accepted for loss of MSS, photographs or artwork. Unused material will be returned if submitted with a stamped, addressed envelope. The editor is unable to enter into correspondence about unsolicited copy.

Unless copyright is indicated, material from Under 5 may be reproduced without charge, for non-commercial purposes only, on condition that the source is acknowledged.

Acceptance of advertisements for Under 5 does not constitute endorsement by the charity of the advertisers’ products.

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UNDER 5 MAGAZINE ISSN 0969-9481 EDITOR: Rachel Lawler

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