Under 5 May 2018

Under 5 WIN or

Magazine of the Pre-school Learning Alliance

May 2018

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Dance like nobody is watching Bringing music into your setting

Learning for boys

Unlock learning with practical ideas

Be sun safe Take care of children’s skin

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Contents 4

News round-up

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My Under 5

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

16

A chance for Alliance member settings to share news of recent events and projects

10 Letters to the editor

Under 5 readers share their views

12 Unlocking learning for boys

Ali McClure shares some ideas for gender appropriate practice

14 Safeguarding update

A round-up of recent changes that might impact your setting

16 How to be sun safe

Taking care of children’s skin in the summer months

19 Handling a disciplinary

Part one of a mini series explaining the disciplinary process

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20 Safeguarding and data

How to comply with safeguarding rules under GDPR

24 Keeping on top of training

An update from EduCare on the free training available through the Alliance

26 Coming together

How one London setting is embracing diversity

28 One, two, three, jump!

Improving physical development in your setting

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30 “Dance like nobody is watching”

Melanie Pilcher, quality and standards manager at the Alliance, shares ideas for bringing music and movement into your practice

32 Protecting against tooth decay

The Infant & Toddler Forum shares ideas for promoting good oral health in your setting

33 Competition

WELCOME & CONTENTS

Welcome Welcome to Under 5 Last month, the Education Support Partnership reported that its confidential helpline has seen a 35% increase in the number of calls it receives in the past year. The helpline offers support for those working in education and can give up to six counselling sessions over the phone (read the full story on page six).

The statistics make for worrying reading, but to those familiar with the sector it’s unlikely to be surprising. It’s been a little over six months since the 30-hours ‘free childcare’ offer launched and between the headlines on our news pages and reader emails in my inbox, it’s easy to see the impact this policy and its funding rate are having on early years practitioners.

With technical problems with the Childcare Service website, additional admin and financial pressure, its easy to see why so many people in the sector are feeling stressed.

This is particularly disheartening when so most early years practitioners regard their work as a vocation and not just a job.

That’s why I am particularly looking forward to the Alliance’s annual conference next month. This year’s event will focus on the importance of protecting mental health for all in the early years: both children and practitioners. The conference will take place on Friday 1 June at the Hilton London Bankside in Southwark, London. If you’d like to book your place to join us, visit www.pre-school.org.uk/conference2018.

Children’s wellbeing is another key concern in recent months, with the government still pressing ahead with plans to reintroduce a baseline assessment for four-year-olds. The Department for Education has appointed a contractor to design and deliver the assessment, with trials due to start soon (page six). Testing children at such a young age is a growing concern for many practitioners, with many worried about increasing pressure on children to meet inappropriate expectations.

Ali McClure, who will deliver a practical workshop at the conference, has shared some tips with us that could help fix some of these common problems (page 12).

Another key update sure to be concerning practitioners this month is the deadline for complying with the new data protection rules. We’ve got lots of information on the GDPR and what it might mean for your setting this issue, including some clarification on how this will impact safeguarding procedures (page 20). If you’re still in need of help, the Alliance has helpfully pulled together a set of resources, including a mini-guide and an updated policies and procedures. Visit www.pre-school. org.uk/gdpr to see all our helpful tools in one place.

As ever, please do keep sharing your stories with us here at Under 5. Get in touch at editor.u5@pre-school.org.uk Rachel Lawler, editor UNDER 5

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in brief...

LEFT BEHIND: A report from the children’s commissioner has warned that children from the north of England face both greater deprivation and poorer schools than other regions.

50,000 summer term 30-hours codes have not been validated

round-up Treasury Committee recommends higher funding rate for 30-hours scheme The government should pay a higher hourly rate for the 30-hours free childcare scheme, according to a report by the Treasury Committee.

The unanimously-agreed Report on Childcare has made a series of recommendations to the government, asking for the childcare voucher scheme to be kept open and improving awareness of tax-free childcare. It has also called for improvements to the Childcare Service website.

The Treasury Committee is a cross-party group of MPs that examines the work of HM Treasury. Its Report on Childcare follows an inquiry into the government’s childcare policies and their impact on the economy.

“Misleading” figures Report on Childcare explains that the £4.94 rate quoted for the 30-hours scheme is “misleading” as the rate passed on to early years providers is often much lower at an average of £4.34.

The report also notes that the Department for Education’s estimate that the average cost of childcare, at between £4.25 and £4.37 an hour, was calculated before the introduction of the National Living Wage. The increased wages mean that the average cost to providers is likely to be £4.68 an hour.

Annual funding review The report recommends that the government pays a higher hourly rate to providers, one that better reflects their current costs. It says this rate should be updated annually and that the government should ensure that local

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authorities pass on all the money to providers.

Nicky Morgan, MP and chair of the Treasury Committee, said: “The government’s own figures on how much it provides per hour to fund 30-hours free childcare are often misleading and out-of-date. One estimate suggests that there would be a total sectorwide shortfall of over £157 million per year from 2017-18.

“As a result, some childcare providers are altering their services, potentially redistributing resources away from low income parents towards higher income parents.

If the government wants to avoid these consequences, it should pay a higher hourly rate to providers that more accurately reflects their current costs.”

Recognisable concerns Neil Leitch, chief executive of the Alliance, said: “This important report paints a stark picture of the state of the government’s childcare policy.

But, unfortunately, it is one that will be instantly recognisable to both parents and providers.

“The report makes clear that the government’s current calculations of how much it costs to provide high quality childcare are way off. And, while the Alliance has been saying this since before the 30 hours policy was rolled out last year, there’s little satisfaction to be taken from the committee’s agreement when every week we hear of more passionate providers being forced close.

“The committee’s recommendation of an annual review of the funding rate signals the appearance of a broad consensus between families, practitioners and politicians.”

The Department for Education has published statistics on the number of 30-hours codes issued and validated for the summer term 2018. A total of 377,535 codes were issue by 31 March but just 327,558 have been validated by a provider. This means that around around 50,000 eligible families have not been able to validate their code and secure a 30-hours place.

Nadhim Zahawi, parliamentary under-secretary of state for children and families, tweeted: “The number of parents securing a code for 30 hours of free childcare has risen to over 377,000. This offer is saving hardworking parents money on their childcare bills and giving them extra cash in their pockets.”

Neil Leitch, chief executive of the Alliance, commented: “With 50,000 parents yet to have their codes validated, it’s clear that the government is going to face a real challenge in ensuring the delivery of sufficient 30 hour places during the summer term.

“Given the Department for Education itself has acknowledged that the demand for places during this term will bring ‘a variety of challenges’, it’s clearly vital that providers are encouraged to engage with the 30 hour offer – but the fact is that this simply won’t happen unless the government addresses the issue of underfunding.

“Given that most providers will have seen little to no change in funding rates this April – despite significant increases in minimum wage requirement and other costs – it would not be surprising if many were unwilling to consider increasing the number of 30-hour places they offer, meaning that many areas of the country are likely to see a shortage of available places. This is all fixable – but only if the government accepts that its current head-in-the-sand approach simply isn’t working.”

WATERSHED: Jamie Oliver has called for a 9pm watershed on TV adverts for junk food in a bid to reduce levels of childhood obesity.

SCHOOL AT THREE: Children in France will soon start school aged three as part of reforms designed to reduce inequality in education.

1,000 children’s centres have closed since 2009 1,000 children’s centres have closed since 2009 and many more have reduced the number of services on offer, according to a new report from the Sutton Trust.

Stop Start: Survival, decline or closure? examines the services offered

by Sure Start children’s centres. It found that in 2009 there were 3,632 centres with 54% located in the most disadvantaged areas. By 2017, the number of centres had dropped by 14%.

Unclear picture There is no clear definition of a ‘children’s centre’, which makes it difficult to measure the precise drop in numbers, but the Sutton Trust says that the number of registered centres has dropped by 30%, which suggests that more than 1,000 in total may have closed.

The number of services offered at children’s centres has also decreased.

More children’s centres were found to be operating on a part-time basis than in previous years. The report says that almost a fifth of local authorities said that none of their centres were open full-time and 55% said that the number of services offered at the centres has reduced.

When asked why they had cut back on the services offered at children’s centres, 84% of local authorities blamed financial pressures.

Review promised The Sutton Trust has recommended that the government conducts a review of the children’s centre programme, as initially promised in July 2015. It has also suggested that the government refocuses children’s centres on promoting positive child and family development for children under five.

Sir Peter Lampl, founder of the Sutton Trust and chairman of the Education

Endowment Foundation, said: “Good quality early years provision makes a substantial difference in the development of children especially those who come from the poorest homes.

“It is a serious issue that the services that Sure Start centres offer are much more thinly spread than they were a decade ago. Additionally, since 2010 there has been a precipitous decline of 30% in the number of Sure Start centres.

Thousands of families are missing out on the vital support they provide.

“The Government should complete its long-promised review of the programme. Instead of trying to serve all age groups, children’s centres should reconnect with their original purpose of promoting child and family development for the 0-5 age group.”

Inspections paused Neil Leitch, chief executive of the Alliance, said: “Over the past few years, sustained cuts to children’s centre funding have resulted not only in widespread closures, but also – as this report rightly points out – the hollowing out of many of those services that remain technically open. Add to this the fact that children’s centre inspections have been ‘on pause’ for nearly three years now, awaiting a consultation that shows no sign of ever being published, and it’s difficult to have any faith that the government does, in fact, have a plan for the future of these centres.

“If the government is truly committed to supporting disadvantaged and vulnerable families, it simply must ensure that children’s centre services are adequately supported. This means not only greater investment, but also a much clearer policy on what children’s centres are meant to achieve, and how the government intends to support them to do so.”

Number of childminders drops again in latest Ofsted statistics The number of childminders in England decreased by 500 between 31 August and 31 December 2017, according to the latest statistics from Ofsted. The statistics also reveal that the number of early years providers working in nondomestic premises increased very slightly in the same period.

“That over nine in 10 settings are achieving good and outstanding ratings as they grapple with underfunding is testament to the dedication and quality of childcare providers.”

There are 80,500 childcare providers registered with Ofsted, which has changed little since Ofsted’s last update but is still a significant decrease from 2012, when there were 96,200 providers.

Ofsted rated more than nine in 10 early years providers ‘good’ or ‘outstanding’ in the last quarter of 2017. This is consistent with previous years, but is still a 20% improvement since 31 August 2012.

Neil Leitch, chief executive of the Preschool Learning Alliance, said: “These figures make clear that nurseries, preschools and childminders are continuing to provide quality, passionate childcare that fosters in our youngest children the curiosity, skills and confidence a lifelong love of learning requires. And this is despite the barrage of challenges the sector currently faces.

“That over nine in 10 settings are achieving good and outstanding ratings as they grapple with underfunding and resist the political drift towards schoolification and ever earlier assessment is testament to the dedication and quality of childcare providers in this country.”

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NFER chosen to deliver baseline assessment The government has appointed National Foundation for Educational Research (NFER) to design and deliver baseline assessment tests for reception children in England.

In September 2017, the government announced that it was planning to introduce a statutory assessment in autumn 2020.

The assessment will be administered by schools soon after children start reception to allow schools to measure progress from the start of reception until the end of primary school.

National Foundation for Educational Research The Department for Education has appointed NFER to deliver this reception baseline assessment, including through the trial and pilot phases which are due to start in September 2018.

The government is planning to spend £10 million introducing the tests, which will see four-year-olds undertake a one-to-one test in their first six weeks of school.

Education helpline reports 35% increase in calls The Education Support Partnership has reported a 35% increase in the number of teachers calling its confidential helpline in the past year.

The helpline is available free to those working in education in England, Scotland and Wales and offers up to six sessions of over-the-phone counselling. The number of teachers calling increased from 2,321 in April 2016 to 3,136 in March 2017, with the helpline taking a total of 8,668 calls from education staff overall.

The most common reasons behind the calls were workplace stress and work performance issues.

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Support for speech and language problems still limited Pressure on children Neil Leitch, chief executive of the Alliance, commented: “The simple fact is that no test-condition assessment can be designed well enough to reflect the complexities and variation of a child in reception.

“A baseline test, conducted on a tablet and before a teacher has had a chance to develop a relationship with the child, won’t tell teachers anything about the children they work with and won’t be of any use to parents. Instead, what it will do is pile pressure on to our very youngest children: from those forced to sit an exam at the tender age of four to those in settings under pressure to get pre-schoolers ‘test ready’.

“Ministers’ determination to see this through would be admirable were it not so wrong-headed. This policy has failed twice before and there must be very few parents, teachers or academics who believe this time will be any different.

The fact that some of the companies involved in the last abandoned attempt to introduce baseline ruled themselves out of contention completely this time around speaks volumes.”

The most common reasons behind the calls were workplace stress, with 2,681 calls related to this, and work performance issues, with 1,029 calls concerning these problems.

Julian Stanley, chief executive at the Education Support Partnership, said: “The numbers are high, however put into context, the true scale of the problem is fully revealed. The majority of those accessing our support are doing so at a late stage; once they have reached a crisis level. This can and should be avoided.

“If you are in education and worrying more than usual, finding it hard to enjoy your life outside work or having thoughts and feelings that are difficult to cope with; these are all things that can lead to prolonged poor mental health if not dealt with. I would strongly encourage you to access the support that is available when this occurs, as this provides the best chance of addressing the symptoms before they turn into something more serious.”

To contact The Education Support Partnership’s confidential helpline, call 08000 562 561.

Speech, language and communication needs (SLCN) are still “not sufficiently prioritised” 10 years after the Bercow Report was originally published.

The follow-up report found that just 26% of children with SLCN make expected progress in the EYFS compared to 69% of all children. The report argues that regional differences in access to support have created a “postcode lottery” for children with SLCN. 42% of parents of children with SLCN said that they felt child’s needs had not been picked up on early enough. More than 50% of parents said that they had to wait for more than six months to get the help they needed for their children.

Bercow: 10 years on Bercow: 10 years on argues that there is still “no joined up across education and health” to deal with the problem. The reports authors spoke to around 2,500 parents, educators and health workers through surveys, oral evidence, focus groups and three in-depth reviews of local authority areas.

Since 2008, the report found noted some improvements to SLCN support, including the inclusion of language and communication as one of the three prime areas of the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS). However it also noted that austerity and cuts to local services have seen specialist speech and language therapy job roles lost.

The report also highlighted inequalities in SLCN. While just over 10% of children have SLCN, in areas of social disadvantage this increases and just over 50% of children in these areas start school with delayed language or other SLCN.

Promise “not fulfilled” Bercow: 10 years on argues that while much good came of the original report in 2008, its “promise has not been fulfilled”. John Bercow, MP and Speaker of the House, said: “It is my hope that this report will act as a call to action to all those involved in supporting children and young people, to come together and do what is needed to make a difference to the lives of those for whom communication is more difficult.”

Early intervention Melanie Pilcher, the Pre-school Learning Alliance’s quality and standards manager, said: “Speech and language are vital building blocks for every child’s future learning and development.

Early years settings have an important role to play in this. By creating a language-rich environment early years settings ensure children have the best opportunity possible to master the essential communications skills they will need throughout their lives.

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Hard work pays off

Stepping Ston es Pre-school in Wincheste latest Ofsted r has been gr inspection. Th aded ‘outstan e inspector prai ding’ in its highly effective sed the “creat ” teaching an ive, inspiratio d no nal and te d that “children’ in all areas in s achievemen their learning ts ”. ar N e at ou as tstanding ha Jarvis, manag manager, I co er at the setti uldn’t be mor ng e , pr sa ou id d : “As of my team and every one of th I would like to em for their pe thank each an rseverance, ha d rd work and th eir belief in us .”

Smiles all round

rations Rednal Easter celeb ns Church in at St Stephe

. aygroup ies and chicks Play Days Pl ng up as bunn si es dr a by d ye er st years enjo celebrated Ea ths up to four on m x The si . m nt fro in an egg hu Children aged and took part es iti e hats tiv th ac e tiv rade, with range of crea and bonnet pa et sk ba ted a vi in ed host were also setting also Older siblings e. m ho ith w at s, e ay mad ster holid and baskets ssion in the Ea se ily m fa l ia ec es. to join in a sp ildren of all ag ed to suit ch gn si de es iti activ

Pirate adventures

Children at Allexton Day Nursery in Leicester have been taking part in the ‘healthy teeth, healthy teeth smile’ campaign. The setting has been running supervised tooth brushing sessions each day and paying regular visits to a nearby dental practice. The activities were originally just for on three- and four-year-olds, but the setting has decided to welcome twoyear-olds as well.

Barbara Betts, deputy manager at the setting, said: “These visits are fun, relaxed and very focused on the children.”

Nursery and PreChildren at Jellybabies volunteer Darren ting school have helped set with a day of y celebrate his 26th birthda well as dressing As . pirate-themed activities following clues d oye up, the children also enj rned about lea and to find buried treasure has been a ren Dar ps. life on board pirate shi 10 years. und aro for volunteer at the setting setting, the at er nag Jacqueline Walker, ma a great and all for day said: “This was a lovely tion ica ded his for ren way for us to thank Dar to nt orta imp is it to Jellybabies. We feel the role of volunteers recognise and celebrate

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Mayoral visit

success aded t has been gr Inspection dge, near Ken

port rs in Sellin ection. The re Little Learne nt Ofsted insp ce re t ising os ra m ’ in its dedication to ‘outstanding mpromising co un , an ng tti ow rs sh r of the se says: “Leade l Martin, owne ry he C . ve n” ha re I r child ement that outcomes fo of this achiev ld ously proud m or en am in 2004. I wou y “I said: g the nurser in en op ork.” e w nc ds si tion and hard worked towar r their dedica fo f af st e th all of like to thank

World Down Syndro me

Buttercups Nursery in Teddington has been paid a special visit by the Mayor of Richmond upon Thames, councillor Lisa Blakemore. The Mayor wore full ceremonial robes for the occasion and spoke to the children about her role. She also shared a leaflet about her work written by her own grandchildren. The visit was part of the setting’s ‘Mystery Guest of the Month’ programme, which invites different people to talk to the children about their jobs.

Day

St John’s Under 5’s Pre -school in Dewsbury has celebr ated World Down Syndrome Day. Children and staff wore bright ly coloured, patter ned or odd soc ks to the setting. The event hel ped to raise money for one of the families who attend the setting and is in need to new medical equipm ent. World Down Syndrome Day is held on 21 March every year and aims to raise awareness of Down Syn drome.

Signing the way is ion St Franc celebrat chool at -s le re b P u o t School ils n ta D orley Infa n at Bob H re t a ild l h o c o re-sch etting Staff and obtails P er both s all and B le win aft H b u h o rc d u a h were C brating settings y are cele ted. The fs O y b oth ’ b in Crawle tanding 018 and f ded ‘outs anuary 2 J d n anager o a m 7 were gra 1 e Palmer, tober 20 n c ti O s u in J s . d m areas my tea inspecte ing’ in all that both ‘outstand er proud p u s ting as a re received ra a one ope aid: “We h s it , s w g n in e tt v nt, e both se judgeme the same received g.” ay settin pack aw

Beenham Pre-school in Berkshire has received a Makatonfriendly accreditation after adopting the signing system in its setting. All staff have undergone training and the setting invites a Makaton tutor to visit one a month, leading signing sessions with the children and staff together. Paula Read, manager at the setting, said: “It has been absolutely brilliant to see children as young as two teaching their parents to sign.”

What’s been happening in your setting?

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

HAVE YOUR SAY

Letters to the editor STAR LETTER More 30-hours concerns I agree with all the comments made by Charlotte Warren about the 30 hours funding and the time spent on administration for the scheme (Letters to the editor, Under 5, March 2018). But I am also concerned about the level of funding and the total misapprehension that it can be offered for ‘free’.

I have spent many hours helping a parent and liaising with the local authority because HMRC noted down a child’s date of birth wrongly when a parent was applying over the phone last summer. Despite sending them the birth certificate and making numerous calls, emails and a compensation claim, the problem has still not been resolved.

Our nursery is carrying the debt of 15 hours funding from the autumn term 2017. Subsequent eligibility claims have been successful, but HMRC cannot sort out a basic error retrospectively.

I will be evaluating the cost of providing the 30-hours before signing up to the scheme in the next academic year.

Linda Gillham, director, Thorpe Nursery Pre-school Unfair fees The Information Commissioner’s Officer tells us that if we retain any information digitally, providers will have to continue paying them an annual fee until the youngest child we cared for is 21 and three months old (the retention period for certain information required by the Limitation Act 1980), by which time it is unlikely that the

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digital media will still be accessible – and as pointed out by many providers, they will have been retired for several years.

However, if we retain information in paper format, we can stop paying when we retire or leave the profession. Good news? Certainly for those providers who have unlimited printer ink, don’t use digital systems and are happy to keep storage boxes full of paperwork in cupboards or lofts for years to come.

Please spare a thought for those providers who are using online systems, believing themselves to be paperless and eco-friendly and who will now be forced to spend hours printing – or, of course, continue paying the ICO in perpetuity.

Sarah Neville, Knutsford Childminding

Send your letters to Under 5 magazine, Pre-school Learning Alliance, 50 Featherstone Street, London, EC1Y 8RT or email: editor.u5@pre-school.org.uk using the subject line ‘Letters’.

This issue’s star letter wins a Box of Treasure full of craft kits, loose parts, craft materials and ideas sheets from Reuseful UK. Reuseful UK is a charity supporting a network of Scrapstores and Creative Reuse Centres throughout the UK. These centres are a treasure trove of creative resources for playgroups, nurseries, community groups, individuals and artists. Visit www.reusefuluk.org.uk to find your nearest store and get creative.

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BEST PRACTICE

Unlocking learning for boys What is the key to unlocking learning for boys in the early years? Education consultant Ali McClure shares some ideas

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hat is the key to learning for boys in the early years?

Strangely enough, the answer lies with our teenagers. One of our main challenges in the early years comes from what is happening with our 18-year-olds. A-levels have become the baseline qualification, with so many more people getting degrees. We have found ourselves at the starting blocks in a race to learn more, to learn sooner and even the ‘race to read’.

It takes a confident early years practitioner to stand up to the relentless pressures raining down on the sector at the moment. These come from people in high places who believe that “the sooner they start, the more they will achieve”.

But this is far from the truth. As our colleagues in continental countries show us, formal learning at aged five or six proves times and time and again that we can actually cause damage from drilling our little ones to write before they have the skills to do so. They can sometimes become “disaffected from learning” right from the start. I call these dictates: Developmentally Inappropriate Expectations.

The acronym tells us what it can do to a child’s love of learning. The approach we need is what our friends in the US call ‘Developmentally Appropriate Practice’. Not such a memorable acronym, but maybe if we apply it to boys it can tell us something. How about: Gender Appropriate Practice?

The gap between boys and girls learning is still an issue, with current figures in England being 64% for boys compared to 76.5% for girls at the end of the foundation stage.

Different approaches Why is this? Well, while every child is a unique individual, and must not be defined by their gender, many boys do have some characteristics in common which can help us to understand and match what they really need in our settings. Because of the difference in the way boys and girls’ brains are wired before birth, many boys benefit from being able to learn visually. They need to see in real terms what a number means.

Subitizing Look for opportunities to practise arrays with egg boxes, seed trays and a whole variety of loose parts. This helps all children to see what six looks like, without having to think about it and translate the digit into reality. This is often called ‘subitizing’. When they see 10 made with pebbles, coins or toy cars, they can see that it is made up of two rows of five, establishing the successful foundations for times tables further on in education with no need for drills.

In reading, recognising letter shapes is trickier for many children when the idea is abstract.

What connection is there between an ant walking up your arm and the shape of the lower case “a”? If “a” is taught using an apple, the shape matches the letter and making gooey “a” shapes using cooked apple flesh, then the learning comes to life. I know that many of you reading this already encourage gross motor work, but how many of you really understand and embed the stages of development in this?

Pivotal points We should not focus on age-related milestones – such as, “he is 30 months old, therefore he should be able to…” Instead, consider the way a child’s physicality develops in a certain order, cranial to caudal (or head to tail) then proximal to distal (or close to distant).

Understanding these ‘pivotal points of development’ and the neuroscience behind it and how we can simply and effectively manage our provision to offer to every child, boy or girl, exactly what they need to progress, has proven that getting these pivotal points right can be the key for learning to boys. It can work for many girls too.

Find out more You can learn more about getting it right for boys by registering to attend Ali’s lively, interactive and unforgettable workshop at the Alliance’s Annual Conference on 1 June 2018. Alliance members get a 50% discount on every delegate place – prices start at just £65. Sign up at www.pre-school.org.uk/ conference2018 If you’d like to hear more from Ali in the meantime, visit www.alimcclure.co.uk or contact Jackie at office@alimcclure.co.uk or read Ali’s acclaimed book, Making it Better for Boys.

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working together

Earlier this year, the government released their response to the Working Together to Safeguard Children consultation. Among the key changes are proposals to replace Local Children’s Safeguarding Boards with three primary safeguarding partners: the local authority, the clinical commissioning group and the chief officer of police.

The current serious case review system will be replaced by a new system of local and national reviews. Child safeguarding practice reviews will be carried out locally, with new procedures governing criteria and how to commission them.

A national safeguarding practice review panel will consider lessons from the most serious cases. The responsibility for child death reviews will also move from the Department of Education to the Department of Health.

Early years changes For early years practitioners, the new recommendations include a need for providers to be alert to any matters causing concern in a child’s life. The recommendations also include the need for practitioners to have and implement a policy for safeguarding children, including an explanation of the action to be taken when there are safeguarding concerns about a child. Settings will also need a policy and

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procedure for mobile phones and cameras used on site and a procedure for dealing with any allegations raised against a member of setting staff.

The recommendations also place greater emphasis on information sharing. This includes the need for sharing information when a child moves address and the need for good practice in gaining consent for data sharing. Early years practitioners may also be impacted by the proposed changes to thresholds. These will be called ‘criteria for action’ and should be “transparent, accessible and well-understood”.

Next steps The Houses of Parliament are expected to vote on the new regulations this spring and shortly afterwards the government will produce an updated version of Working Together to Safeguard Children and local authorities will have 15 months to implement the changes.

To stay up-to-date with the latest changes to legislation, make sure you are following Under 5 and the Alliance on social media and are signed up to the Under 5 newsletter.

Visit www.pre-school.org.uk/under-5magazine for all the relevant links.

SAFEGUARDING

Modern slavery

Updates for Prevent

Statistics from the National Referral Mechanism have revealed a 66% increase in the number of children referred as potential victims of trafficking and modern slavery. This is partially due to increasing numbers of children being exploited by criminal gangs and used to sell drugs. Typically, urban gangs will move into more rural locations and use children to transport drugs from a central location, as they are perceived as less likely to be stopped and searched.

Early years practitioners are more likely to encounter older siblings of children attending a setting potentially being used in this way. Pre-school children may also be cared for, or perhaps collected by, a vulnerable adult being exploited in this way.

The report also highlighted that children are continuing to be sexually exploited by gangs. There are some similarities between the way these children and those being used to sell drugs are both groomed. In 2017, more than 2,000 children were referred for help on these grounds, up from 1,700 in 2016.

There is evidence that gangs actively target vulnerable children in children’s

The number of people referred to the Prevent programme because of concerns about rightwing extremism has risen by more than a quarter in the past year.

16% of all referrals to the programme are now related to concerns about farright extremism. However, the number of referrals overall is down from 7,631 in 2016 to 6,093 in 2017.

Prevent aims to divert people away from terrorism before they commit an offence. Early years providers have a duty to refer people to the scheme if they suspect they are at risk of being radicalised. Like other forms of extremism, the language and behaviour of pre-school children could potentially indicate that they are being exposed to extremist views or materials. Pre-school children are unlikely to be recruited online in the same way that older children and teenagers are. However,

homes for recruitment in some areas.

Referrals to the national crime agency also highlighted an increase in the number of children from the UK being abused in this way. Children from Albania and Vietnam were the next most commonly reported as potential victims. Some children under five will be victims of these types of crimes, but practitioners may also encounter adults who are being exploited.

Any practitioner concerned that someone may be a victim of modern slavery or human trafficking should contact their local authority and/or the police. For potential child victims, you should complete a National Referral Form.

there is a risk to young children if their siblings or other family members are influenced by extremist groups.

As part of the government’s Prevent agenda, early years settings are asked to actively promote British values, which are implicitly embedded in the Eary Years Foundation Stage. The Counter Terrorism and Security Act (2015) places a duty on early years settings to “have due regard to the need to prevent people from being drawn into terrorism”.

You can download a mini-guide to the Prevent duty on the Alliance website in the member’s area. Visit: www.pre-school.org.uk/members-area

How to be sun safe Sunny weather is great for getting children outdoors, but it’s important to keep children safe from sunburn. Here’s how you can keep everyone protected, while still having fun

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unshine can feel like a rare treat in the UK. Warm, dry days offer a great opportunity to get out and about and explore your local area, without the need for coats and boots. But while everyone is keen to enjoy the sun while it’s here, early years practitioners must remember to ensure that children are enjoying it safely.

Not only can sunburn be painful and uncomfortable for children, but it can lead to more serious problems later in life. Skin cancer is the most common form of cancer in the UK, and the number of cases is increasing. Around 100,000 new cases of skin cancer are diagnosed each year and seven people each day die from the disease.

Dr Anton Alexandroff, consultant dermatologist and spokesperson at the British Skin Foundation, explains: “It is very important to protect young children from excessive sun light exposure. It catches up with them years later and can cause problems later in life.”

He also says that children need to be even

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more careful than adults when it comes to protecting their skin. Anton says: “Children’s skin is thinner than adults’, so it is more sensitive to the sun.”

Shade and light clothes One of the best ways to avoid sunburn is staying out of the sun during the hottest hours of the day – between 11am and 3pm.

Keeping children in the shade can also keep them safe. Anton says: “Children can safely enjoy being outdoors in sunny weather if they play in shaded areas or use sun protective clothing such as broad-brimmed hats, loose, long-sleeved tops and long skirts or trousers and sunglasses.”

Oversized t-shirts can provide great protection and there are swimsuits available in UV-protective fabric for any water-based activities. Trees and bushes can create lots of shade to play in, but if the shade available in your outdoor space is limited you could think about adding some parasols or an

awning or building your own tents and shelters for the summer.

Sunscreen You may also choose to use sunscreen to keep children’s skin safe. Anton says that lotions with Sun Protection Factor (SPF) are safe to use on children from age six months and above. “It is important to use sunscreen with a high SPF for young children to reduce the risk of sunburn at the time of exposure, as well as the risk of skin cancers when children are older.” He recommends lotions with SPF 30 or 50 for very sunny days. “Sunscreen should be reapplied every four hours, or more often if children have been swimming, sweating or playing in water. Be sure not to forget certain parts, such as the ears, back of neck, hands and feet!”

Early years providers may want to request that parents supply their own preferred sun-cream. Where this is the case they must ensure that it is a suitable SPF, clearly

BEST PRACTICE

labelled and in-date. It is fine to store it in a child’s day-bag, to go home each day, or if it is to be kept on the premises, it can be stored in the child’s basket/drawer as appropriate.

If the setting decides to supply suncream, parents should be informed of the brand, SPF and how and when it will be applied. In both circumstances, providers should obtain written permission to apply the sun-cream as required.

Most sun-creams have a shelf-life of up to three years, but NHS Choices recommends that it is replaced each year. If parents supply their own, give them plenty of notice ahead of the summer months. There is no need to record each application of sun-cream, unless it is a medicated product, sometimes used for children with a skin condition such as eczema, in which case it must be recorded as you would any other medication.

Children should be shown how to apply sun-cream correctly and older children should certainly be encouraged to ‘help’

apply it to their own bodies, with practitioners going over the exposed areas of skin to make sure that no areas have been missed.

Practitioners should also be sun-safe, applying sun-cream, wearing sun-hats or covering up too. It may be tempting to ‘catch a few rays’ on a sunny day, but remember that as role-models to young children we should always lead by example.

Fair skin Children with very fair skin will need to be more careful in the sun. You may advise their parents to dress them in protective clothing that covers their arms and legs, while also using a high SPF sunscreen. These children should also seek shade during the hottest hours of the day. Babies younger than six months old should always be kept out of direct sunlight, particularly around midday.

Don’t forget that children with darker skin tones also need to be careful in the sun.

Sunburn in darker skin may not look red but

could simply be tender to touch or they may complain that it feels tight or itchy.

You may want to recommend that parents get children sunglasses for the hottest days – they should look out for a CE mark on the glasses to ensure that they are offering sufficient UV protection.

Vitamin D Essential for healthy bone growth, vitamin D is an important nutrient for all growing children. It is usually sourced through a healthy, balanced diet and exposure to sunlight. However, in the UK it is difficult to get enough sunlight to prevent deficiency so the Department of Health recommends that all children under five are given a daily vitamin D supplement.

Sunscreen can prevent the skin from making vitamin D, but it should still be used to prevent sunburn. “Sun protection should take priority.

If parents are worried about their children’s vitamin D levels, suggest they speak with their doctor who can give further advice.”

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LAW-CALL

Handling a disciplinary Disciplining employees is an unfortunate but sometimes necessary task. In this first instalment of a two-part series, the team behind the Law-Call service, available to all Alliance members, explains how to get disciplinaries right.

While you may hope to never need to use them, disciplinary procedures are a vital piece of the employment relationship jigsaw. Getting it right can save significant sums of money in compensation for unfair dismissal claims or even avert claims altogether.

You should already have a disciplinary procedure in place, but even if you don’t you will need to follow certain steps as part of any disciplinary action you take. This will ensure that the action you take is robust, will stand up to scrutiny and is, above all, fair. There can be financial penalties in the form of enhanced compensation for successful unfair dismissal claims where employers fail to follow a fair procedure when dismissing an employee.

You can break the disciplinary action into three main components: investigation hearing appeal Employers cannot skip or avoid any of these elements, although they will apply to varying degrees in each particular case. In this first part, we will deal with the investigation and matters surrounding it.

Investigations You will need to establish if there is actually a disciplinary case to answer, even if it seems obvious. You should be very wary of making snap decisions or jumping to conclusions. Any allegation of misconduct by an employee must be carefully investigated. You should speak to everyone involved in the incident, including the person accused of misconduct. Consider any other supporting evidence that might assist you – such as cctv footage or documents.

Only people who can give a relevant account of what happened should be approached for a witness statement. You should not automatically interview all staff. Remember that your employee is entitled to confidentiality and you must impress this upon any person you interview.

You should take written witness statements and use them to form the evidence upon which

you will conduct any disciplinary hearing. If a witness refuses to cooperate, or asks for their statement to be anonymous, you will need to contact Law-Call for further advice.

Be careful not to let your investigation turn into a mini-hearing. Remember that this exercise simply needs to gather the facts to allow you to properly establish whether misconduct has occurred. While you must be thorough in your investigation, you are not expected to take on a police-style forensic examination of the evidence. If you decide that the investigation has established that you need to invite an employee to a disciplinary hearing, this will be their opportunity to give a full account and explain or defend their actions.

Wherever possible, you should have different individuals dealing with the three components – investigation, hearing and appeal. This may not always be achievable in small teams. You should also refer to your own disciplinary procedure, if you have one, to check whether there is a prescribed hierarchy of people who should be involved in the hearing.

Suspending an employee Suspension should not be an automatic response to a disciplinary allegation, even in childcare settings. It should be decided on a case-by-case basis. You should consider the seriousness of the allegation and whether there is a risk of the employee interfering with the investigation. Short notice absences may be

difficult for small employers to accommodate, particularly as these should usually be paid absences in these circumstances.

If you do decide to suspend an employee, be prepared to justify it and ensure that it is for as short a time as possible. The employee should be told in writing that they are being suspended pending a disciplinary investigation and that they will be paid. You should include any other information they may need about what is expected of them during their suspension in this letter.

Next steps Once you have gathered your evidence, which you must do within a reasonable timescale, particularly if an employee is suspended, you must decided whether to take the next step and go to a disciplinary hearing. You will need to send to the employee everything you intend to rely on to make the disciplinary case in advance of the hearing. Ideally, you should send it with your invitation to the disciplinary hearing. The content of this letter is important and will be covered in detail in part two, which you can read in the June issue of Under 5.

More information Alliance members can access Law-Call, a 24-hour helpline offering advice on legal issues concerning your setting or childminding business. Contact details can be found on your membership card. Alternatively, contact Information Services with your membership number for Law-Call’s details on 0207 697 2595.

SAFEGUARDIN How to comply with existing safeguarding rules, while still meeting the new requirements of the GDPR

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ith General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) coming into effect on 25 May, early years providers need to make changes to their policies and procedures. GDPR will affect all activities that involve collecting or sharing personal information and there are specific requirements for sensitive data, which is referred to as ‘special category data’.

Sensitive data Sensitive data includes information about a person’s racial or ethnic origin; religious beliefs; physical or mental health or condition; sex life or orientation; commission or alleged commission of an offence; and any proceedings related to offences, or alleged offences. Much of the information that early years settings routinely collect, including information related to safeguarding concerns about a child and family, are likely to come into this category.

All early years staff must know the circumstances under which they may share personal data with other agencies about individuals. Practitioners also need to understand their organisational processes in the event of a data breach – which should be reported to the data controller, who can then decided whether it needs reporting to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO). Any reports to the ICO must be made within 72 hours

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of discovering the breach. If the breach may cause a risk to an individual’s rights and freedoms, you will need to report it to the individual(s) concerned as well.

All data collected must be: 1. processed fairly, lawfully and in a transparent manner in relation to the data subject 2. collected for specified, explicit and legitimate purposes and not further processed for other purposes incompatible with those purposes 3. adequate, relevant and limited to what is necessary in relation to the purposes for which data is processed 4. accurate and, where necessary, kept up-to-date 5. kept in a form that permits identification of data subjects for no longer than is necessary, for the purposes for which the personal data is processed 6. processed in a way that ensures appropriate security of the personal data, including protection against unauthorised or unlawful processing and against accidental loss, destruction or damage, using appropriate technical or organisational measures

Privacy notice Individuals must also be informed as to how their personal data is being collected and processed in line with these

principles, which is best provided by way of a privacy notice. This should clearly outline how providers will fulfil their obligations.

You must ensure that individuals whose personal data you hold receive a GDPR compliant privacy notice. For example, you could initially provide this to all current parents when they collect or drop off their child. After which a copy should be given to new parents when collecting their personal data, for instance, at the point of registration.

Policies and procedures Providers will need to review their procedures to ensure compliance, and for example will need to consider, how to implement and share privacy notices, retention and transferring information, how to respond to data breaches and subject access requests and how to train staff in relation to the new requirements. Alliance publication, Essential Policies & Procedures for the EYFS, has been updated online with GDPR related changes.

Employers must also be mindful of the personal data they collect relating to staff.

Staff will need to be issued with GDPR compliant privacy notices and given appropriate training on GDPR. Further details can be found in the Alliance’s publications, Recruiting Early Years Staff and People Management in the Early

BEST PRACTICE

NG AND DATA Years. Alliance members can also contact a free legal helpline, Law-Call, for guidance.

Safeguarding and GDPR Where there are concerns about a child being at risk due to possible neglect or abuse, Local Safeguarding Children Board (LSCB) procedures advise that it is best practice in most circumstances to seek consent before making a child protection referral. If consent is withheld and the concern remains that a child may be at risk of significant harm, the referral should still be made.

The GDPR defines the different kinds of lawful basis needed to process data. In circumstances where there is a safeguarding concern, it is unlikely that the lawful basis of ‘consent’ would be most appropriate. For children’s social work services, ‘public task’ is more likely to be appropriate.

For early years settings, the same information might be processed under the ‘legal obligation’ premise. The lawful basis of ‘vital interests’ refers to life-anddeath emergency situations only, so this will only be useful in limited situations.

The ‘legitimate interests’ basis requires a balancing test to be undertaken regarding the organisations and the individuals’ rights.

Special category data, including information relating to safeguarding concerns, needs greater protection than

other types of data. One of 10 conditions will need to be met before settings can process this type of data, in addition to the first lawful basis. The most relevant conditions for recording and keeping sensitive safeguarding and welfare information include: getting explicit consent needing the data to carry out your obligations under employment, social security or social protection law, or a collective agreement needing the data for reasons of substantial public interest according to UK laws, taking into account proportionality and safeguarding.

necessary for the purpose of: protecting an individual from neglect or physical and emotional harm; or protecting the physical, mental or emotional wellbeing of an individual.

This covers all situations where a child may be at risk of significant harm due to neglect or abuse. This also applies to referrals made to the local authority for any children considered to be a ‘child in need’.

It may also apply to early help referrals, but practitioners should refer to their LSCB procedures, which usually require early help referrals to be made only where consent has been gained. This may be amended in light of the GDPR.

Data Protection Bill The upcoming Data Protection Bill is designed to supplement GDPR and extend data protection laws to areas not already covered by this regulation. From 25 2018 onwards, it will introduce a new category of child abuse data, defined as physical injuries (non-accidental), physical and emotional neglect, ill treatment and sexual abuse. When passed, the bill will allow all organisations to process personal data for safeguarding purposes lawfully, and without consent where necessary.

The bill provides a lawful ground for the processing of special category data, without consent if necessary, when it is in the substantial public interest and

Practitioners should follow LSCB safeguarding procedures at all time, and this remains unchanged by GDPR. Other statutory guidance, such as Working Together to Safeguard Children and the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) may help support your decisions on whether or not to process data under a legal obligation, social protection law or public interest.

Non-statutory guidance, such as What to do if you are worried a child is being abused, and Information Sharing Advice for Safeguarding Practitioners, may also be helpful in making any decisions to process data under ‘legitimate interests’.

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GDPR offer: 10% off key GDPR publications Purchase any or all of the following Alliance publications during May to receive 10% off

Essential Policies & Procedures for the EYFS (Ref: A081) £10.95 members £13.95 non-members Be updated with the latest online changes to a vast array of sample EYFS policies and procedures, provided as downloads in Microsoft Word.

Recruiting Early Years Staff (Ref: A128) £10.95 members £13.95 non-members Sharpen up your recruitment practices, with comprehensive guidance and template documents from screening applications through to setting terms and conditions of employment.

People Management in the Early Years (Ref: A129) £10.95 members £13.95 non-members Succeed in retaining and developing your greatest asset, with advice on navigating the complexities of employment law and other requirements.

Safeguarding Children (Ref: A157) £14.95 members £22.95 non-members Address the central importance of effective policies and procedures to safeguard children and identify your role in the child protection process.

Order by 31 May, quoting GDPR to receive this offer.

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Ready for GDPR? Visit the Alliance website to download a mini-guide to the GDPR, access GDPR compliant procedures and more. www.pre-school.org.uk/gdpr

Make the most of your FREE CPD training 20 FREE, CPD online courses

avalable to Alliance member’s staff every year.

Over 150,000 Educare courses have already been completed by Alliance learners.

Don’t miss out! To make it even easier, all Alliance members will automatically be enrolled on EduCare’s new improved learner platform from May.

Need more help?

Simply contact the Information Service team on T. 020 7697 2595 E. info@pre-school.org.uk.

Keeping on top of qualifications As qualification levels start to decline in the early years sector, the Alliance remains committed to free training for members and their teams through EduCare

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n testing times, it can be hard to prioritise training. We all know that rising cost pressures, recruitment difficulties and recent changes to funding rates are currently major barriers to improving qualification levels in the early years workforce.

Research shows that many providers are

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experiencing real difficulties attracting and retaining well-trained staff.

In fact, results from a CEEDA survey shared last summer revealed a growing recruitment crisis developing across the sector. It estimated that there were 24,600 vacant childcare posts in 2017. Four fifths of those surveyed indicated

that they had failed to fill vacant roles with suitably qualified staff. Sara Boretti, director of the Education Policy Institute, said: “If those [practitioners] want to upskill and obtain a Level 3, they would do so at a pretty steep cost… reasons to worry about the future sustainability of a qualified early years workforce.”

TRAINING

Make the most of your free training In such challenging times, we believe that flexible and comprehensive training is invaluable in supporting practitioners to attract and retain committed, quality and caring teams.

As an Alliance member, our special partnership with EduCare, an awardwinning CPD-training provider, gives you and your team FREE access to more than 20 different courses every year.

Every Alliance member and their team receives access to: more than 20 high-quality free courses personalised certificates for all learners comprehensive reports to evidence learning large discounts on additional courses through the online shop Since the start of the partnership 153,327 courses have been completed by Alliance learners and 72,654 practitioners have registered for the service.

Our free training from EduCare remains one of the largest and most popular benefits.

“The value of the partnership with EduCare is enormous. The reality is that many Early Years providers struggle to balance their limited budgets against their training and development needs because more and more local authorities are withdrawing access to free training. The offer to provide members with access to free CPD recognised training is a win-win for both the Alliance and our members.”

Neil Leitch, Chief Executive, Alliance

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Ready for you The value of the free training for one practitioner is worth £350 every year. For an average early years setting with 10 staff, the training is worth

£3,500 with new courses becoming available to access for free or at heavily discounted rates throughout the year.

This month, to make things easier for you, the registered manager of all settings with Alliance membership have been automatically enrolled onto the new learning platform. This administrator simply needs to upload any learners they would like to access the training.

Over 20 courses available for free every year – what’s available now!

The complete set of free Alliance courses are: 1. Being Safe: Effective First Aid Management in your Setting 2. Characteristics for Effective Teaching and Learning 3. Characteristics of Effective Leaders 4. Effective Safeguarding Practice 5. **NEW** Effective Use of the Early Years Pupil Premium 6. Equality and Inclusion in Early Years Settings 7. **NEW** Getting to Grips with the EYFS 2017 8. **NEW** Guide to Employing an Early Years Apprentice 9. Improving Children’s Learning through Play 10. Managing your Ofsted Inspection 11. Promoting Positive Behaviour 12. Reflective Practice in the Early Years Setting 13. Setting up your Childminding Service 14. Special Educational Needs and Disability 15. Supporting Children with SEND in Early Years (new) 16. Supporting Early Language Development 17. Sustained Shared Thinking in the Early Years 18. The Prevent Duty in an Early Years Environment 19. The Role of Trustees in Delivering the EYFS 20. Understanding Children’s Rights 21. **NEW** Being a Key Person in an Early Years Setting

Watch this space - more new courses are coming soon New courses due for release over coming months include Being a Key Person in an Early Years Setting, Data Protection guidance (GDPR) for managers in an early years environment, The Importance of self-evaluation and, in collaboration with the Early Years Nutrition Partnership, Providing a healthy food environment in early years settings.

Being a Key Person in an Early Years Setting will be launched this month on the new platform.

This course aims to raise your awareness of the significance and value that you have as a key person in a child’s life. It begins by looking at the role and the requirements that must be fulfilled before shifting focus to the importance of developing a relationship-based approach to working with children.

Improved learner experience We are delighted to share that EduCare has launched a new, GDPR-compliant, learning platform to further improve and enhance your learner experience with us. This new environment gives you and your team an even more engaging, contemporary and interactive environment in which to update your skills and knowledge.

All the best elements of the old platform will continue – excellent quality, informative courses delivered in an easy to use, flexible and friendly learner environment. Kate Atwell, head of customer service and sales at EduCare, says: “EduCare are very proud of our high-quality online courses. We are always looking for ways to review and improve our learner experiences. This is why we’ve made considerable investment into a new learner platform. Alliance members and their teams can now enjoy even easier access to their training and reports. We are delighted with the new platform and hope you are too!”

Not yet accessed the free EduCare training?

Visit www.pre-school.org.uk/educare to find out more.

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BEST PRACTICE

Coming together Alyth Kindergarten in north London is celebrating diversity with a new multi-faith event

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nclusive practice is important for all early years settings. Understanding the people and communities around them is a key lesson for all children and the Early Years Foundation Stage says that children should know about the similarities and differences between themselves and others.

Settings should also be able to demonstrate their inclusive practice to Ofsted inspectors and should be promoting ‘British values’ as part of the government’s Prevent agenda. These British values include tolerance of those with different faiths and beliefs.

Interfaith circle time Alyth Kindergarten in north London has been celebrating the diversity in its community with an interfaith circle time. The setting is based in a synagogue, it offers 45 spaces for children aged two- to four-years-old and prides itself on its inclusive outlook. In March, the setting hosted an interfaith circle time to celebrate diversity.

The group bought leaders from several different religions together to talk to the children and explore the many common ideas and beliefs that they share across Christianity, Islam and Judaism. Iman Yusuf Rawat, from Hendon Mosque and Islamic Centre; Rabbi Dov Kaplan from Hampstead Garden Suburb Synagogue and Reverend Robin SimsWilliams from All Saints Childs Hill all came together to speak with children at the setting.

Shared values The leaders each bought different items that were significant to them including a copy of the Qur’an, a prayer matt and various hats that could be shown to the children. They also shared pictures of different mosques, synagogues and churches. The children were then asked open-ended questions about what it means to be different, and how we can all try to look after each other. They were

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also given a chance to try on some religious or culturally significant costumes and outfits from the different faiths.

The setting was put in touch with the religious leaders by the Interfaith Matters charity, which aims to promote community harmony by enabling dialogue between different groups.

Steve Derby, director of the charity, said: “Inclusion, integration and relations between religious communities are increasingly important.

The multi-faith visit to the kindergarten not only taught about the participants’ respective religions but, more importantly, demonstrates the very convivial and constructive inter-religious relations the faith leaders have achieved.”

Future events Tor Alter, head teacher at the setting, said that the event has been such a huge success that the group will definitely be hosting similar circle times in the future. She hopes to explore food and other common themes, including languages. She said: “Children are never too young to learn about mutual respect and tolerance for those with different faiths. The children are learning to respect and celebrate each other’s differences and develop an understanding of diversity through people in the wider world.”

Vivi Ben-David, a teacher at the setting, added: “The interfaith talk was a great way to introduce the children to other religions and traditions, making them feel comfortable and familiar with people from different backgrounds and creating a sense of togetherness, peace, harmony and respect.”

Guide to the Equality Act and Good Practice £11.40 member price £14.25 standard price The Alliance’s updated Guide to the Equality Act and Good Practice explains the requirements of the revised legislation, and how you can meet these requirements in practical terms. The book is divided into sections to help you understand the law and how to apply it, starting with the basic principles of equality as the foundation of good practice. It explores the types of discriminatory behaviour that can be learnt early in life and describes how such attitudes can impact negatively on young children and affect their own behaviour.

To purchase a copy, visit shop.pre-school. org.uk or call 0300 330 0996 or email shop@ pre-school.org.uk

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CODE: Under5

One, two, th “One of the questions I asked inspectors at a recent training session was: “Put your hand up if you often see children in nurseries and pre-schools getting out of breath from being physically active?” Not one inspector put their hand up. It’s not something they see on inspection.

That doesn’t mean to say that you don’t do it, but I think it is interesting that they are not observing that on inspection routinely.”

Gill Jones, early education deputy director, Ofsted Being able to engage in a range of play opportunities, enjoy different environments and manage social situations with ease, are all determined by and dependent on having an agile, strong, balanced and coordinated body.

Physical development is one of the three prime areas of the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS), alongside communication and language and personal, social and emotional development. These three areas all have equal status, are interdependent and together from the very heart of all learning and development. But people often under appreciate how important movement-play is for supporting children in the specific areas of learning and development.

“We need to provide children with all the opportunities for playful movement and physical activity that their bodies and their brains require.”

Anne O’Connor

Literacy development Before children can use the fine muscles in their hands and fingers to hold a pen correctly and start to write, they need to have fully developed the larger motor skills in their arms, neck and shoulders. These gross motor skills are acquired through lots of vigorous activity including stretching, pulling, pushing, reaching, swinging and hanging – just the kind of activities that children love to use in their physical play.

These motor skills need to be in place before a child will be able to fully manipulate smaller muscles in their hands and fingers.

They will also be able to find a comfortable pencil grip that is relaxed and does not put an unwarranted level of stress on the whole arm when writing.

“Let children find things out for themselves through trial and error.

Mistakes are wonderful teachers, so allow children time to experiment and explore.”

Jasmine Pasch

Mathematical development Spatial awareness is very important for mathematical development. Interestingly, our physical experience of mathematical concepts actually begins in the womb, before we are even born. The growing baby developing in utero is already exploring space, shape, perimeter, forces and rhythm as their mother moves around throughout her daily life.

These early experiences are then built upon once a child is born and begins to take charge of their own movements in their surroundings. Having an intuitive understanding of how the body fits within space, and moves through it, in relation to other things within that space, is essential for developing spatial reasoning. This is the mental capacity to think about objects in three dimensions and imagine the paths they take as they move or are rotated. It is the starting point for understanding higher mathematical concepts, such as geometry and physics. It will also help with problem solving in number, measurement, algebra and data handling.

“A practitioner’s role will probably be to ‘hover’, just be present, sit with them, see what emerges and engage on a level that is appropriate for each child.”

Dr Lala Manners

Understanding the world Getting out and about for walks in their local area and meeting their local community is essential for children’s experience of the world. This will allow them to explore the familiar while venturing, when appropriate, into the unfamiliar.

PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT

hree, jump!

“As the young child becomes more physically able to move, explore their environment and be curious about their world, they will learn to make appropriate decisions, take risks and develop creativity in a wide range of situations and become life-long movers.”

Carol Archer

Expressive arts and design Young children are naturally expressive in their movements, showing delight with themselves, their world and their bodies through spontaneous movement and activity.

As they grow and become more physically experienced, they also enjoy channelling and containing these movements into increasingly skilled action. This might include, for example, dance and gymnastics. Having lots of early experiences in their own personal movement bank also helps children recognise and appreciate patterns in other art forms such as poetry, stories, film, sculpture and martial arts.

As well as all of the above, we need to remember that physical engagement with learning means that we are more likely to remember what we have learnt and that the first-hand, whole body memories we gain through movement-play provide us with firm experiences on which to build new learning.

This has strong links with the characteristics of effective learning and teaching, in which ‘active learning’ is emphasised along with ‘playing and exploring’ and ‘creating and thinking critically’ (EYFS 2017). The opportunity to make mistakes and take risks, to persevere and try new ideas and start making decisions for themselves is an important part of ‘active learning’ and is strongly linked to physical play, both indoors and out.

This is an edited extract from Moving Right from the Start (Pre-school Learning Alliance 2018).

Early bird offer: 10% off Moving Right from the Start Anne O’Connor, Jasmine Pasch, Dr Lala Manners, Carol Archer Pre-school Learning Alliance (Ref: A018) £12.25 for members, £17.50 for non-members

New Alliance publication, Moving Right from the Start, will enable practitioners to provide children with the quality and quantity of movement experiences that ensures they are physically able to respond positively to all opportunities and that they can depend on their bodies as a reliable resource in an ever-changing world.

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“Dance like nobody is watching”

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ACTIVITY CORNER

T

he saying: “dance like nobody is watching” is sometimes attributed to Mark Twain, but has also been claimed by several songwriters over the years.

The lyrics “sing like nobody is listening” is also used as a similar way to convey the sheer joy of doing something simply because it feels good, with no concerns about someone else’s expectations of how it should be done, or worrying about not doing it right.

Anyone who has observed a young child dancing or singing when they are unaware that they are being watched will know how they become completely immersed in what they are doing. Young children have a carefree spontaneity to their actions that we tend to lose as adults. We are often worried about making mistakes or drawing attention to ourselves.

Developing skills Very young babies begin to communicate through movement before they start to speak.

They might flap their arms excitedly when their carer approaches, or bob their heads in time to a nursery rhyme. Despite having limited control over their bodies, they enjoy rhythmical movement in their arms and legs and will often amuse themselves by kicking vigorously, helping to strengthen important muscles that will be essential as they grow and develop.

As time goes on, children will develop more control and will learn to refine their movements. This is the normal pattern of development from simple to complex actions that progress downwards from a child’s head, through the arms, hands and back and finally to the legs and feet.

Nursery rhymes and baby songs emphasise simple patterns of rhythm, setting a precedent for dance and movement as a pleasurable activity. Sometimes the rhythm can encourage movement and can be accompanied by uplifting music or singing.

At other times, the rhythm is used to soothe and relax with the intention of encouraging stillness through gentle rocking motions and soft music or crooning.

As children grow, they learn to move their bodies with more control and will match their movements to the rhythm of the music they hear. They will begin to experiment with the many different ways their bodies can move, testing out new ideas and pushing the limits

of their physical abilities as they continue to develop their gross motor skills. A lack of selfconsciousness means they will move freely, inventing new moves, making mistakes and repeating newly mastered movements until they are breathless or dizzy from the exertion.

Enabling environments Children of all ages will dance alone and on their own terms, with or without music.

But just as children’s play develops from solitary to cooperative, dance can become an increasingly social activity over time.

It is important to provide an early years environment in which dance is also valued for the learning and development it supports and not just as a quick fix for the days when children need to ‘let off steam’.

Children need plenty of opportunities to express themselves and dance is one of the most intuitive ways this can be achieved.

Providers should therefore create time and space for dance and movement. There should also be plenty of resources available as part of the setting’s continuous provision. This might include different styles of music that children can self-select, ribbons, streamers, scarves and other props, such as dressing-up clothes. Large mirrors at child height can also be helpful for developing self-awareness as children refine their movements.

Practitioners should also be aware of the type of music that children listen to at home. This can bring a sense of belonging when they hear familiar tunes and make connections between home and the setting. Children’s self-esteem is undoubtedly boosted when they can take on the role of teacher and show their peers the moves that they have learned from their family. Some children may also attend ballet or other music and movement sessions, or may have an older sibling that does, so chances are they will have plenty of moves to share.

Practitioners should be prepared to join in and lead by example. You might want to initiate an activity, demonstrate some new dance moves or simply mirror those made by the children. The health and wellbeing of practitioners is just as important as that of the children. There are not many jobs that enable us to take time out of our busy work schedule to do something else, simply because it feels good at that moment in time.

Stepping into all prime areas of learning Physical development Children use all of their muscle groups and a broad range of movement in dance. They have an opportunity to practice balance and coordination as they refine their moves.

There are dance moves that engage every part of the body, from a seated ‘hand jive’ to Irish dance, which requires the top half of the body to remain still.

Communication and language Children listen and respond to music. Don’t just have nursery rhymes playing in the background all day. Choose music that will help create an atmosphere and encourage spontaneity. Music and dance are important for all children, but particularly those with SEND.

Personal, social and emotional Dance helps children to explore and express their emotions. Practitioners should encourage them to ‘tune in’ to how different types of music and dance make them feel.

When children are given the opportunity to dance together they further develop their social skills as they become aware of how their peers are moving, copying and learning from each other, or maybe mirroring each other’s moves. Children who lack self-esteem, may become more confident, moving from the perimeter of the activity at a pace that suits them as they progress from watching their peers, to joining in and maybe even initiating dance as their confidence grows.

Next steps Next time you are planning for an area of learning and development think about the ways in which movement and dance can enhance the learning opportunities. Maths is a really good example to challenge your thinking of what maths ‘looks like’ as a learning activity. Twinkle, twinkle little star with babies incorporates the maths concepts of shape and positional language. For older children, choreographing a dance routine requires the skills of sequencing, counting and grouping – all maths skills and just one of the seven areas of learning and development that you can bring the joy of dance to.

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NUTRITION

Protecting against tooth decay The Infant & Toddler Forum provides information and advice on promoting good oral health among toddlers in early year settings and at home

R

ecent figures from Public Health England have shown that tooth decay continues to be the leading cause of hospital admissions for children, with a child needing a tooth removed in hospital every 10 minutes. This means that making sure that toddlers’ teeth are properly cared for has never been more important and early years providers are well placed to advise parents on how to prevent tooth decay.

Calcium, fluoride and vitamin D are the key nutrients for strong teeth. Toddlers need to have three servings of milk, cheese or yogurt each day to get enough calcium.

A daily supplement of vitamin D is also recommended. Fluoride can be provided in toothpaste and, in some areas, is included in fluorided tap water.

Decay and cavities Frequent consumption of sugar is detrimental for teeth. Tooth decay, and dental cavities, occur when the bacteria in the mouth feeds on sugars, creating acids in the process.

These acids damage and eventually soften tooth enamel, which can lead to the formation of a hole in the tooth or a cavity. Cavities can cause toothache, distress and discomfort to toddlers and disrupt their sleep, diet and behaviour. Parents may also be concerned about the appearance of their child’s teeth.

To help prevent this, sugary foods should not be given to toddlers more than four times each day – once at each meal and for one snack. The Infant and Toddler Forum recommends three regular meals and two

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or three nutritious snacks each day. It is important for toddlers to have a routine, as those who graze on food throughout the day are more likely to suffer from tooth decay.

Hidden sugars Many foods contain sugars listed on the ingredients label under other names. These names include: honey, sucrose, glucose, maltose, dextrose, fructose, hydrolysed starch, corn or maize syrup, molasses, raw/brown sugar, treacle and concentrated fruit juice.

Toddlers need six to eight drinks each day. Water is the best choice but milk can be given up to three times each day, or less if they are also eating yoghurt and cheese.

From the age of one onwards toddlers can drink whole cow’s milk, which has more vitamin A than semi-skimmed and skimmed milk. Children do not need to switch to lower fat milks and should not drink semi-skimmed milk before they are least two-years-old or skimmed milk before they are five.

Brushing teeth From the moment a baby’s teeth come in, they should be brushing twice every day, in the morning and last thing before bed.

Small toothbrushes specially designed for toddlers with soft bristles can be bought in most stores. They should be replaced every three months. Specially formulated toothpaste for toddlers should always be used on a dry brush.

Self-brushing should be encouraged, but children should be supervised until the

age of seven. Teach the toddler to ‘spit not rinse’, as rinsing with water will wash off the fluoride from the toothpaste. To brush a younger child’s teeth for them, try standing behind them in a high chair or sitting them on your knee. A good tooth brushing routine can instil future good habits.

To read more about tooth decay see our Factsheet 4.5 at bit.ly/2rd2MZ0 and visit our website to catch up with our new blog page.

Top tips for dental health Toddlers’ teeth should be brushed twice a day: in the morning and last thing at night, with a small, soft brush.

Fluoride toothpaste strengthens tooth enamel and makes it resistant to attack by the acid produced by plaque bacteria.

Avoid sweet drinks altogether. Giving sweet drinks in a bottle is the worst offender as slowly sucking bathes the teeth in sugar over a longer period, increasing the risk of tooth decay.

A daily vitamin D supplement is key to protecting the teeth.

If no sugar-free version of a medicine is available, then children should be given their dose with a meal and not last thing at night.

Avoid food and sweet drinks at night. Saliva in the mouth helps protect against tooth decay, so sugary food and drinks should be avoided if a toddler wakes up at night.

The Infant and Toddler Forum is supported by an unrestricted educational grant from Danone Nutricia Early Life Nutrition. The views and outputs of the group, however, remain independent of Danone Nutricia Early Life Nutrition and its commercial interests.

COMPETITION

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Suitable for outdoor use, the kitchen includes two hobs, one sink, four clicking dials, a set of six stainless steel accessories and a space for storage.

For your chance to win, simply email your answer to the following question, along with your full name

The views expressed in Under 5 are not necessarily those of the Pre-school Learning 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.

and postal address, to: under5. competitions@pre-school.org.uk with the subject line: “Wooden Mud Kitchen” by Friday 25 May 2018.

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UNDER 5 MAGAZINE ISSN 0969-9481 EDITOR: Rachel Lawler DESIGN: room111.co.uk

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