From this month all childminders, pre-schools, nurseries and reception classes will be required to follow the new Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) and will be inspected under it by Ofsted.
The EYFS has been designed to provide a new set of standards relating to the care and education of our youngest children, ensuring that whatever setting parents choose, they can be confident that their child will receive a quality experience that supports their development and learning preparing them for starting school.
EYFS includes the steps the provider must take to safeguard and promote the welfare of children and details the learning goals expected for under fives in areas such as their Personal, Social and Emotional Development, Communication, Language and Literacy, Problem Solving Reasoning and Numeracy, Knowledge and Understanding of the World, Physical Development and Creative Development.
Preparing for the introduction of the EYFS the County Council has been helping childminders and nurseries by providing training for the new framework.
Last year the County Council’s Director of Children’s Services, Matt Dunkley made a high-profile presentation on the Council’s work preparing for the EYFS at a national conference. In this he highlighted how the Council had laid the foundations for the future of EYFS by establishing partnerships with over 250 private, voluntary and independent nursery providers.
And council officers from East Sussex working on the implementation of the new EYFS were also asked to share good practice with colleagues from across the south east.
Councillor David Elkin, the County Council’s Lead Member for Learning and School Effectiveness said: “Young children are entitled to high quality early years education and care and this is fundamental to their well-being and development. Of course it also lays the crucially important foundations for their later learning at school.
“Of course at this very young age, learning and development is basically about play and interaction with others. But the EYFS sets out new standards and expectations for learning and care which will ensure greater consistency across all settings. The introduction of the EYFS is a very important and significant step but we have been preparing for it for some time.”
Notes to editors
The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) is a single framework for care, learning and development for children in all early years settings from birth to the August after their fifth birthday. It builds on the previous Curriculum Guidance for the Foundation Stage, the Birth to Three Matters framework, and the National Standards for Under 8s Day Care and Childminding.
It aims to increase coherence, provide a flexible approach to care and learning, and raise quality throughout the Early Years sector. It is intended to play a key role in improving the life chances of all children, regardless of their family circumstances by setting a clear expectation of the care, learning and development they will receive, whatever the setting they attend.
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