On September 2nd, 2024, Ofsted made a significant change to its school inspection framework by removing single-word judgements for schools and maintained early years settings. Previously, schools have been given an overall rating like ours Outstanding, Good, Requires Improvement, or Inadequate. These terms will no longer be used; instead, a new rating system will be introduced, which will still […]
Risk assessments are crucial for ensuring safety in early years environments, but too often they become just another box to tick. Understanding their true purpose is essential for protecting children, staff, families, and the business itself. A robust risk assessment process not only identifies potential hazards but also provides actionable steps to mitigate them, making […]
The Aesthetics: More Than Just a Pretty Picture In the early years, we often find ourselves creating visually appealing activities, whether it’s a beautifully arranged tuff spot or an inviting table-top setup. These attractive displays can certainly capture the children’s attention and spark their interest, and there’s nothing wrong with that! However, we must be […]
What are schemas? Put simply, schemas are repeated patterns of behaviour that children display as they explore and make sense of the world around them. As experienced practitioners we often observe children engaged in play that they revisit time and time again and we wonder why that is. Chris Athey, who has studied these extensively […]
The human brain is an amazing organ. Research into how the brain works is very new. Thanks to new technologies we are continually learning more and more about it and that knowledge can be transformational to our nursery practice. The brain contains over 100 billion neurons, each of which can connect to over 7,000 other […]
Whether you’re in England and dealing with April’s new funding changes, or you’re a setting in the rest of the UK exploring how funding works for you, it can be a lot to get your head around. You might be working on paper, or spreadsheets with clever formulas, but both of these can become easily […]
As we approach the end of this school year and we consider our children who will be making the transition to primary school, the topic of school readiness has again become a keen focus for many parents and practitioners. The concept of school readiness, however, is not uniform across the board. Parents and early years […]
Imagine you’re visiting a vibrant nursery bustling with the laughter and chatter of children. As you walk through, you notice that all the educators, both men and women, interact with the children with equal enthusiasm and skill. But this scene is far from common. In reality, nurseries across the UK see a stark underrepresentation of male educators, […]
For all early years settings, success hinges on the strength and cohesion of our team. While in the current climate, recruitment itself can be a hugely challenging and stressful process, the journey doesn’t end once you’ve managed to onboard those wonderful new team members. Effective communication is the key to fostering alignment, a shared understanding, […]
Building self confidence as a leader Thinking about progressing into a management role? New to leadership and looking for advice and tips to make the transition as successful as possible? This blog is for you and will outline some helpful strategies to guide you through the process. Stepping into a leadership role in Early Years […]
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