How training improves childcare

Project
Early years leaders

Purpose
To ensure high-quality childcare provision for two-year-olds by developing the skills of early years leaders

Funding
The project was part-funded through the National Children’s Bureau sector specialist peer support programme, with £20,000 from Kirklees Council

Background
Free childcare for two-year-olds from disadvantaged families has the potential to improve the wellbeing of vulnerable children and parents and reduce inequalities. With 1,100 children eligible, Kirklees Council wanted to ensure provision was of high quality. It decided to invest in enhanced training for early years leaders, with an emphasis on education and care for this group.

Action
It successfully bid for support from the National Children’s Bureau and launched a programme of continuous professional development for early years professionals (EYPs). The scheme, which ran for a year, consisted of 10 training days based on various aspects of leadership and practice. Half of these were led by an NCB sector specialist, while the other half were led by the council or external trainers. Twenty people took part in the project with 250 families benefiting. The group, which included settings managers, identified aspects of practice they wanted to improve, created action plans, and recorded changes and shared success stories.

The programme has helped boost EYPs’ knowledge and understanding of the specific needs of younger children and led to changes in approach. “It has improved their confidence in working with vulnerable and sometimes dysfunctional families,” says Kirklees Council leader Mehboob Khan. “And they have started to see themselves as champions for these families.” Staff have also become more confident about working with GPs and Jobcentre Plus staff. Continuing the scheme now that funding for two-year-olds has been channelled through schools is the next challenge.

Outcome
Before the programme, only 36 per cent of EYPs said their confidence was “high” when it came to engaging with vulnerable families, but afterwards that improved to 79 per cent. Ninety-three per cent said they had seen an increase in staff confidence in working with vulnerable families, while 86 per cent felt they had helped increase children’s wellbeing and achievement, and 79 per cent noted improvements in relationships between staff and parents.

The EYPs’ case studies showed significant changes at individual settings. At one setting, 50 per cent more parents of two-year-olds were reading and singing to children at home, while another showed a reduction in the proportion of children who were behind for their age, from 15 per cent to five per cent over two months.

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