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    Monday 3 December 2018
 
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In this Issue:

FEEE: Payments

Training Courses: The Big conference - special offer

Safeguarding: Competency Framework Briefings

Local News: Early Years SEN inclusion web pages

National News: Ofsted updates

Congratulations..... 

To Little Explorers Playgroup in Harborough district who has achieved an Outstanding Ofsted grade.
 
 
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FEEE


FEEE Payments

The Autumn period adjustment payment and the Spring period initial payment will be made by Friday 14th December.  Please do not call the FEEE helpline for details of the payments made before your breakdown of payment report is received.  Please email the FEEE inbox if you have a query with your payment.  We are not able to give your breakdown details over the phone.
 
Details of headcount, adjustment tasks and payment dates for 2019 can be found here.
 

Spring Period

Unless a child has carried forward any unused hours from the Autumn period, the maximum that can be claimed in the Spring period is 180 / 360.  Full details are available here.
 
Parent promotion

We are encouraging parents who want to take up a 30 hours place in the Spring to apply now, to get their code in good time. HMRC sometimes needs more information from the parent to check whether they're eligible, so parents should allow time for this.
 
The grace period is for you to use as a last resort, not for parents.  We had over 100 parent's not re-confirming eligibility last term.  There were some large bills for parents!
 
Parents should be reconfirming their eligibility for 30 hours and / or Tax-Free Childcare every 3 months, so please use the expiration dashboard on the provider portal to keep you up to date with the current situation and remind parents to renew with HMRC.

 
Parent Enquiries / Temporary Codes for Extended Entitlement

If parents are having difficulty in getting a code or are issued with a temporary code, we will need to see written evidence from HMRC to make a payment.  Parents should request for HMRC to add all conversations/ correspondence to their gateway accounts.
 
Please inform parents that the local authority can only pass on funding when parents have a valid code.  We cannot get involved in any disputes between a parent and HMRC.  All enquiries must be settled with HMRC. – contact them on 0300 123 4097.

 
Signing in to the provider portal

Guidance has been produced to support you in logging in to the Provider Portal if you forget your password.  Please find details here.
 
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Training


Spring 2019 courses are now available to book on Eventbrite.  As well as including a suite of Safeguarding courses, First Aid courses and the conferences detailed below these also include, amongst others;
 
 
The Big Conference: School readiness
Only £15 to £35 per day. Book Friday and get 50% off Saturday

Friday 8th and Saturday 9th March 2019 at NSPCC Centre, Beaumont Leys
 
Held on two separate days, this is an excellent opportunity to hear from leading professionals on this year's focus; school readiness.  It will involve key speeches, two workshops per day, numerous information stands, lunch and refreshments and the opportunity to network with other providers.
 
On Friday Julie Fisher will deliver the Key Note: Interacting or Interfering?
Julie Fisher is an independent Early Years Adviser and Visiting Professor of Early Childhood Education at Oxford Brookes University.  She held the post of Early Years Adviser in Oxfordshire for 11 years, before which she was lecturer in early childhood education at the University of Reading.  She has taught children from 3 to 12 years and has been headteacher of two urban, multi-cultural schools.
 
On Saturday Kirstine Beeley will be delivering the Key Note Speech and a workshop on transition and the characteristics of effective learning.
 
An experienced early years and special needs teacher, Kirstine now works as an early years training consultant and author as well as writing regularly for Teach nursery Magazine.  Her passion is for developing engaging and exciting learning environments where children lead the way with their own learning. She believes this can be done on even the smallest of budgets and hopes to inspire practitioners with lots of practical and affordable ideas.
 

 
Out of School Conference, Partnerships in Play - The power of working together:  Only £15.

Saturday 2nd February 2019.  Leicester Racecourse, Oadby

An interactive day which will include a combination of key note, workshops and networking with other schools and providers of out of school care:  More information
here.
 
 
Pricing:

Although prices shown on Eventbrite may be between two prices such as £15 - £67, the highest price is for non – Leicestershire providers.  We continue to subsidise the reduced prices introduced in the summer term for Leicestershire childcare providers.  These are:
 
Customer TypeFull Day TrainingHalf Day Training
Leicestershire Early Years Providers registered to take 1-8 children£15    (was £20)£10    (was £15)
Leicestershire Early Years Providers registered to take 9-30 children£25    (was £35)£15    (was £25)
Leicestershire Early Years Providers registered to take 31 or more children£35    (was £45)£20    (was £30)
 
Full day safeguarding courses are charged at £45 and refreshers £20 for Leicestershire Providers. 
If you have a training enquiry please email our new training address eytraining@leics.gov.uk
 

 
Partner Training
 

Purposeful Physical Play Training
Date: Wed, 05 Dec 2018
Venue: SportPark, 3 Oakwood Drive, Loughborough, Leicestershire, LE11 3QF
 

Risky Play
Date: Wed, 12 Dec 2018
Venue: Leicester-Shire & Rutland Sport, SportPark, 3 Oakwood Drive, Loughborough, Leicestershire, LE11 3QF
 

Vista Raising Awareness of Visual Issues
Date: Tue, 15 Jan 2019
Venue: Leicester-Shire & Rutland Sport, SportPark, 3 Oakwood Drive, Loughborough, Leicestershire, LE11 3QF
 

Storytelling through Dance & Mini Yo! Yoga
Date: Mon, 21 Jan 2019
Venue: Leicester-Shire & Rutland Sport, SportPark, 3 Oakwood Drive, Loughborough, Leicestershire, LE11 3QF
 

Storytelling through Dance (Twilight Session)
Date: Mon, 21 Jan 2019
Venue: Leicester-Shire & Rutland Sport, SportPark, 3 Oakwood Drive, Loughborough, Leicestershire, LE11 3QF
 
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Safeguarding


Competency Framework Briefings

The LSCB have now successfully launched the new streamlined Competency Framework.
Follow the link above to find out more and book onto briefings.


Child trafficking leaflets

The NSPCC's Child Trafficking Advice Centre (CTAC) has produced a leaflet, translated into 12 languages, for children who have come to the UK from another country. The leaflet explains: how to ask for help; who to ask for help; what words like "refugee", "asylum seeker" and "trafficking" mean; what help is available for children who have come to the UK from another country.

Inspecting Safeguarding in the Early Years

Ofsted has updated guidance for inspectors to use when inspecting safeguarding in early years, education and skills settings. The update clarifies guidance about individuals who start work in settings before their Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) certificates are available

Anti-Bullying Week 2019

The Anti-Bullying Alliance (ABA) has launched a range of resources for Early Years settings and schools for Anti-Bullying Week 2018.
 
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Local News

Early Years SEN Inclusion Team Web pages

The web pages have moved and can now be found at http://resources.leicestershire.gov.uk/education-and-children

Our advice line hours have been extended and it now runs from 12 to 4.00 on Wednesday afternoons in term time. The number to call is 0116 3059400. This service is available to all providers, including childminders.

Leicestershire Early Years Panel for Referrals to Education Services for Children from 0 to school entry with Special Educational Needs and Additional Needs

W= West E = East

PANEL DATES FOR ACADEMIC YEAR 2018 / 2019
Applications to be received by Specialist Teaching Services no later than:Panel Date:
Monday 26th November 2018Tuesday 4th December 2018
Monday 7th January 2019 Tuesday 15th January 2019 W
Monday 21st January 2019 Tuesday 29th January 2019 E
Monday 4th February 2019Tuesday 12th February 2019 W
Monday 25th February 2019Tuesday 5th March 2019 E
Monday 18th March 2019Tuesday 26th March 2019  W
Monday 1st April 2019Tuesday 9th April 2019 E
Monday 29th April 2019Tuesday 7th May 2019 W
Monday 13th May 2019Tuesday 21st May 2019 E
Monday 3rd June 2019Tuesday 11th June 2019 W
Monday 17th June 2019Tuesday 25th June 2019 E
Monday 1st July 2019 Tuesday 9th July 2019  W
Please ensure correct postage is paid on applications to avoid delay
 
Early Years Pupil Premium (EYPP)
 

Read how an outstanding Leicestershire nursery has used EYPP to make a difference. This case study outlines the process the nursery practitioners went through in allocating the funding and the impact it had on individual children.
 
Our publication Making choices that make a difference. Allocating EYPP funding. A guide for nurseries, pre-schools and childminders contains further tips and ideas for using EYPP to support development within the Prime Areas of Learning.
 

Primary School Applications

Please remind parents that primary school applications close on 15th January 2019. This is for children to start primary school in September 2019, eg they were born between 1 September 2014 and 31 August 2015 inclusive.
https://www.leicestershire.gov.uk/popular-now/apply-for-a-primary-school-place


Leicestershire Ofsted Inspections

Teaching and Learning – offering challenge

Increasingly we are seeing the word challenge come through early years inspections under the heading of 'The Quality of Teaching and Learning'.
So what is high quality teaching and learning in the early years?
International perspectives influence our work, Reggio Emilia, Te Whariki, Montessori, to name just a few. These perspectives are based on research and experience but also in depth knowledge of a community
The starting point for high quality teaching is to know each individual child well, this can be achieved by:
  • Trusting and open relationships with parents and carers where their knowledge of their children can be shared
  • Excellent knowledge of the developmental stages of children providing information of the journey the child has been on and what you can expect them to achieve next
  • Tuning into the child, getting to know them well and listening and responding to them
Once you know the child well and they are settled in your care you can then begin to observe them, assess their development and wellbeing and plan your future provision (resources, environment and interactions) to ensure you offer them the appropriate level of challenge for them as an individual.
See our Planning and Curriculum materials for further support in getting to know the Unique Child and planning for their individualised learning.
The characteristics of effective learning, also highlight the characteristics of effective teaching and gives some examples of 'what adults could do' to support children in their learning and development.
There are also a variety of resources on our Teaching & Learning pages.
 
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National News


Improving the home learning environment

New DfE document, changing behaviour to help promote early language and literacy development through the home learning environment (HLE).


Ofsted – updates:

People connected with Ofsted-registered childcare - Clarified guidance on childminding assistants and suitability letters.

Applying to waive disqualification: early years and childcare providers - Guidance and forms have been updated following amendments to disqualification regulations under the Childcare Act 2006.

Early years provision in schools: apply for disqualification waiver - This form has been updated following amendments to disqualification regulations under the Childcare Act 2006. Disqualification 'by association' no longer applies to childcare provision in schools.

Childminders and childcare on domestic premises: registration - How to register if you want to look after children at home as a childminder, including what you need to do before you apply, fees, and working elsewhere for up to half your time.

Registration exemptions - Most childcare providers looking after children under the age of 8 must register with Ofsted (or a childminder agency).

Childminders and childcare providers: register with Ofsted - Guidance for childminders, nannies, nurseries and people providing other childcare on when/if you need to register with Ofsted, the process, fees and requirements.

The Ofsted registers - There are two Ofsted registers: the Early Years Register and the Childcare Register. Find out which to join and how to change registers.

Registration requirements - The requirements you need to follow if you register with Ofsted to look after children.

Childcare and the law - Introduction to Ofsted's role in registering childcare and the legal basis for our work.

The registration visit - If you apply to join the Early Years Register, we will arrange a registration visit. This will normally take place once all your checks are complete, but could happen earlier.

Daycare (childcare on domestic premises):registration - The application process for nurseries, playgroups, before- and after-school clubs and other daycare.

Fees - Information about the fees that Ofsted charges to register as a childminder, nanny or other childcare provider.

Suitability checks - Details of the checks we carry out, including health checks and local authority checks.

Inspections - If you are on the Early Years Register, we will carry out regular inspections.

Pausing your application - Situations where you can put your application on hold.
 
 
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This message was sent to Nicola.thompson@leics.gov.uk.
 
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