February 2024: The latest early years sector news

A sense of agency

Your free myNDNA early years activity!?

When children develop a sense of agency, they understand that they can make their own choices and decisions. This helps them to influence events and control their own lives. Our free myNDNA activity will help children to develop a sense of agency. By supporting children’s emotional well-being and making them feel valued in this way, we can promote independence, build confidence and independence, and work toward a more positive separation from the main carer.

Download activity (pdf)

Teaching children about patterns?

Your free myNDNA early years tips!?

Pattern is an integral part of everyday life - it is all around us - visible and invisible. The most obvious and visible patterns are found in things such as clothes and materials but there are lots of invisible patterns too, such as routines. These free top tips will develop the confidence of early years educators in teaching children about patterns.?

Download tips (pdf)

England: Childcare expansion?

Urgent Budget boost needed to deliver on Government’s plans:

83% of nurseries say their costs are higher than the funding for three and four-year old places. Their average shortfall is a staggering ￡2.36 per hour per child or ￡1,345 over the year for a 15-hour place.

NDNA has surveyed the nursery sector and found it’s not as healthy as it should be to deliver the childcare expansion, with 73% of respondents expected to make a loss or break even this year. The situation in areas of deprivation was worse where 50% expected to make a loss.

What else did we find?

• 14.4% – average staffing bill increase from April 2024
• 8.5% – average fee increase to parents from April 2024
• Business performance: 34.8% expect to make a loss this year; 37.5% expect to break even
• Business performance in the 30% most deprived wards: 50% expect to make a loss; 28.7% expect to break even
• 83% of respondents say the hourly funding rate for three and four-year-olds does not cover their costs – this increases to 86.6% for nurseries in areas of deprivation
• The estimated average shortfall for three and four-year-olds is ￡2.36 per hour per child (in 2023 it was ￡2.31)
• 58.9% of respondents say that the two-year-old funding does not cover their costs – the average shortfall is ￡1.69 per hour per child.

Find the full results of our survey in our press release.

Continuous provision factsheet?

Your free factsheet of the month!?

Are you making resources readily available, clearly labelled where appropriate and accessible to children, so they can make their own choices? Our free factsheet explores how you can encourage children to return to materials and experiences that interest them, so they can deepen and further their thinking and learning.

Download factsheet (pdf)

Have you updated your nursery’s policies according to the new EYFS 2024???

Here are the key changes to look out for from NDNA’s free updated templates?

Following the release of the updated EYFS in January 2024, NDNA has made all the required amendments to our free policies and procedures templates. To help save nursery owners time, we have listed the key changes in our summary here.?

Download policies and procedures

Learn the basics of the EYFS to ensure you meet legal requirements within your practice

Our 'Introduction to the Early Years Foundation Stage' FREE (for members) online course is ideal for new early years educators.

?Our course will ensure you can:?

• Implement the educational programmes and the learning and development requirements
• Identify the overarching principles of the EYFS and the early learning goals
• Understand assessment in the EYFS?
• Explore the safeguarding and welfare requirements?
• Understand your role in meeting the safeguarding and welfare requirements?

Book now