1. Hertfordshire County Council www.hertsdirect.org Early Years in Hertfordshire Approximately 10,000 practitioners working with children aged 0-5 in Hertfordshire

2. Hertfordshire County Council www.hertsdirect.org The Early Years Foundation Stage Profile (EYFSP) The role of the Early Years Consultants What is the EYFS? What is the EYFSP and who has to complete it? What are the statutory targets set for Hertfordshire? How do we use the data to improve outcomes for children? Special projects supporting the most vulnerable children in Hertfordshire

3. Hertfordshire County Council www.hertsdirect.org Early Years Team based in Standards and School Effectiveness- our remit Implementation of the Early Years Foundation Stage and profile Quality Improvement and support for practitioners working with children 0-5 Training and consultancy Ofsted preparation and post support Meeting targets Supporting integrated children’s services Working in partnership with lots of different professionals Supporting the development of Children’s Centres and Extended schools Inclusion 0-5 Herts Quality Standard kite mark District responsibilities Various projects both national and local International links

4. Hertfordshire County Council www.hertsdirect.org EYFS/EYFSP The EYFS is a comprehensive statutory framework published in 2007 by the DCSF All registered early years providers required to use the framework from September 2008 and complete the EYFS profile for each child at the end of the academic year in which they reach the age of 5 Derived from the early learning goals, each child’s development is recorded against 13 assessment scales each of which has 9 scale points spread across all six areas of learning Primary purpose of the EYFSP is to provide year 1 teachers with reliable and accurate information about each child’s level of development at the end of the EYFS to plan for future learning

5. Hertfordshire County Council www.hertsdirect.org Statutory targets set for Hertfordshire Set at LA level only – not school level % of children scoring 6 or more in all Personal, Social, Emotional Development scales (PSED) % of children scoring 6 or more in all Communication, Language and Literacy (CLL) % achieving both of the above % of children with a total of 78 points or more across all areas of the profile % of children achieving 78 points and 6+ in PSED and CLD % gap between median and bottom 20% Targets set until 2011

6. Hertfordshire County Council www.hertsdirect.org Top line details of EYFSP 2009 79.9% achieved 6+ in PSED (76.9% 2008) Target 80% 63.2% achieved 6+in CLL (60.7% 2008) Target 56% 59.5% achieved 6+ in PSED and CLL (56.6% in 2008) Target 54% 81.9% achieved 78 points across the EYFSP (80.5 in 2008) Target 82% 59.4% achieved 78 points AND 6+ in PSED and CLL (56.6% in 2008) Target 54% 31.4% gap between median and bottom 20% (34.3 in 2008) Target for 2009 - 31.6

7. Hertfordshire County Council www.hertsdirect.org What does the data tell us? Continued improvement over a three year period Gap narrowed this year and overall results improved too Partnership working enabling children to achieve better outcomes Data analysis and targeted support working well Various projects having an real impact

8. Hertfordshire County Council www.hertsdirect.org Where is the data less good? Boys underachieve in every single area but 5 hot spots: 1.Writing (17.9) 2.Creative development (13.3) 3.Emotional development (9.5) 4.Social development (8.8) 5.Reading (8.8) Writing is low for both girls and boys

9. Hertfordshire County Council www.hertsdirect.org Targeted projects The EYFSP results are about attainment on exit from the reception class but we must not forget the importance of achievement and the progress children make during their early learning experiences across EYFS Projects targeted in children’s centre communities concentrate on improving outcomes especially for the most vulnerable children and their families An example of such a project is the Stevenage Speech and Language Project funded through the Standards Grant but now being supported by health funding Projects such as developing observations and assessments through a national “buddying” initiative have been rolled out in type 1 children’s centre communities where data indicated there was a need The children’s centre managers and members of the EYs team work closely to identify needs within the community data

10. Hertfordshire County Council www.hertsdirect.org Implications for 2009 -2010 Emphasis on boys achievement Planned support for “stuck” schools – i.e. still in the lowest 20% after intensive support and their pre school settings New group dropped into lowest 20% - targeted support needed More data analysis in districts and children’s centre communities to identify trends and then match appropriate projects to localities Extension of successful targeted projects into other areas Achieve the next set of very challenging targets whilst keeping upper most in our minds that every child matters

11. Hertfordshire County Council www.hertsdirect.org Finally, what does quality learning look like for a child in Hertfordshire? We hope for most children, learning is fun!

12. Hertfordshire County Council www.hertsdirect.org Thank you! Lucy Connolly Early Years Team Leader for Hertfordshire