1. Our current focus and activity…..
Early Years Policy
Our current focus and activity…..
January 2018

2. DfE Early years responsibilities
Sarah Lewis
Director
Susie Owen
Quality & Outcomes
Helen Waite
Entitlements
Joanna Mackie
Strategy
Emily Arch
Funding
EYFS (incl reforms)
Inspection policy
Workforce
EY social mobility programmes, incl HLE
Delivery of EY entitlements:
Universal 15 hours
2yo offer
30 hours
Spending review preparations
Maintained nursery school funding
Early years national funding formula

3. Policy Update…..
Focus on ensuring second year of 30 hour delivery runs smoothly
The Childcare Works contract has been extended for a further year (until October 2019). Focus for the extension is on:
All universal and targeted early years entitlements for two, three and four-year olds
Promoting take-up of least advantaged families of all entitlements.
Sufficiency of places and childcare sufficiency assessments.
Provider flexibility, change and sustainability.
Supporting LAs and providers with SEND.
VCS grants awarded to two consortia led by nasen and NCB to provide workforce training on SEND and to support LAs, parents and practitioners to shift towards SEN inclusion
Hourly funding rates published 1 December. Initial allocations will be published soon.
Headcount data and parent survey were published in late December

4. SEND in the Early Years
Ensuring children with SEND can access the free entitlements and receive the support they need is a priority.
The January 2018 SFR data showed that 6.3% of the children accessing the universal 15 hours and 2.6% of the children accessing 30 hours have identified SEND.
There could be many reasons why the 30 hours figures are lower, however, when they meet the eligibility we do want to ensure that where it is in the best interest of the child they are able to access the offer.
The independent evaluation of 30 hours indicated that some LAs reported local SEND budgets are challenging and it can be difficult to provide additional support beyond 15 hours.
Anecdotally, we also hear that providers do not have the capacity and capabilities needed to meet the needs of children with SEND and that some LAs lack capacity to support providers.
This is why we have placed a strong focus on SEND this year, working with our partners, to build capability and share best practice.

5. Consortia Project – CDC, Contact, ICAN, NASEN
This is a strategic project working across key partners – LAs, practitioners, parents, VCS – to reduce compartmentalisation of an issue which is at heart about multi agency working.
Aim to move towards an inclusion as default culture – at setting and LA level – with SEND a ‘business as usual’ part of planning, spending and practice.
Investing in training and workforce capacity - this grant sits alongside our VCS grant with NASEN -  also a member of this consortium – to provide over 500 accredited level 3 SENCO qualifications.
Specific strand to support parents, led by Contact.
This project sits well alongside DfE’s social mobility programmes such as the early years social mobility peer review programme being delivered by the LGA and EIF. Our general approach is to empower and build capacity at local level.
This project also links well with wider work DfE is doing in partnership with Public Health England to develop a speech, language and communication pathway guidance document – for LAs, Clinical Commissioning Groups and public health authorities – to be published in March.

6. Policy Update – Social mobility programme
THE HOME
LOCAL SERVICES
EARLY YEARS SETTINGS
We need to drive change in
Convening / campaigning
Supporting ‘place based’ sector led improvement
Improving practice in schools
Improving practice in pre-reception settings
Our work involves
Building the evidence base
By 2028, the percentage of children who do not achieve at least expected levels across all goals in the ‘communication & language’ and ‘literacy’ areas of learning at the end of reception year (EYFSP) is reduced by half
To improve outcomes for children

7. Policy Update – Social mobility programme
THE HOME
HLE coalition
VCS grants focused on HLE
HLE summit held and behaviour change model published on 14 November
VCS grants awarded focused on HLE
Next steps:
Continue to build business coalition - building on over 13 business commitments already secured
Develop government communications campaign
Mobilisation phase of VCS grants
HLE trials
Bid round for HLE trials completed and following projects are due to be funded in the north of England (subject to contract negotiations)
TripleP
Making it REAL
Tips By Text
Family Lives

8. Policy Update – Social mobility programme
LOCAL SERVICES
EY Local government programme
SLCN training for health visitors
Take up of entitlements
Local government programme:
EY dashboard – draft versions with LAs. Aiming to publish spring 2019
Peer review: pilots complete and wave 1 (10 LAs) due to begin soon
Early outcomes fund: bid round launched in Nov – closes 18 Jan. EIF maturity matrix: Speech, language and communication in the early years published
Speech, language and communication partnership with PHE
Contract for health visitor SCLN training awarded to Institute of Health Visitors
Procurement for SCL assessment tool currently live
Take up of entitlements
Report into take up of free entitlements in London published Sept
Childcare Works contract extension in place, focused on improving access to entitlements for lower income families

9. Policy Update – Social mobility programme
EARLY YEARS SETTINGS
Improving practice in schools
English Hubs schools announced in October
Schools nursery capital fund closed 22 November
EYFS reforms
24 schools part of pilot testing draft revised ELGs and streamlined assessment guidance. NatCen conducting evaluation – report due autumn 2019
Full public consultation on revised EYFS due autumn 2019
Improving practice in pre-reception settings schools
Professional development fund
PIN published in Sept. Market engagement event held Oct. ITT due to be published shortly
Webinar with selected LAs held in November
EEF what works fund
First bid round complete and following projects funded:
Manor Park Talks
Early Years Toolbox
Learning Language and Loving it – the Hanen Programme
Second bid round launched 14 Nov

10. Useful links
Hourly funding rates: guidance
Behaviour change model:
Early outcomes fund:
EIF EY speech, language and communication maturity matrix: language-communication-early-years
Take up in London:
English hubs:
EEF funded projects:
EEF round 2 bid guidance: