Introduction to the early years team
About our services
Our team supports early years providers to develop high quality, inclusive early education and childcare places which meet local demand across the county.
Early Years Improvement Advisors provide information, advice and support for childminders, pre-schools, day nurseries, school-run early years provision and reception classes in maintained and independent schools and academies. We also support out-of-school provision where it is registered on Ofsted’s early years register.
Our aims
Our aim is for all our providers to achieve high standards of quality care and early education for all children, including vulnerable children, in their care, which meet the assessment requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage, and will be judged at least good by Ofsted’s inspection standards.
We aim:
- For all children to achieve a ‘good level of development’ in the early years foundation stage profile at the end of the reception year.
- For early education providers judged less than good by Ofsted to be supported and rapidly improving.
- For the number of providers judged good or outstanding by Ofsted to be above the national average.
- To ensure that newly established early years provision is meeting statutory and regulatory requirements and is achieving high standards.
- For families to be able to access funded early education places in a setting which is at least good.
- To fulfil the local authority statutory duty to ensure sufficiency of childcare across the county.
How Early Years Advisors can help you
Herefordshire Early Years Improvement Advisors will:
- Support high quality provision across the county by providing a range of universal services such as briefings, network meetings, webinars and providing resources via the website and social media platforms, and regular email updates
- Keep providers fully briefed on all local and national early years policy and guidance
- Arrange intensive support and challenge to providers not yet judged good by Ofsted, to ensure rapid improvement
- Offer advice and information to prospective providers and guide them through the registration process.
- Support newly registered providers in meeting the statutory requirements of the EYFS, and in preparing for their first Ofsted inspection
- Support all providers in achieving high standards of quality care and education, through information, advice and training
- Support providers to ensure that disadvantaged and vulnerable children have the best possible opportunity to reach their potential
- Support providers with inclusive practice for children with SEND
- Support new leaders and managers, newly qualified teachers and teachers who are new to EYFS
For more information, advice and support please contact: earlyyears@herefordshire.gov.uk
Help us keep in touch with you
We aim to maintain email contact groups for all early years providers in Herefordshire so that we can communicate important national and local information and news of interest to the sector. The email addresses we use are those associated with your Ofsted registration. If you are not receiving our emails, please check the email address used for your Ofsted registration. If this is not correct, please amend accordingly and notify earlyyears@herefordshire.gov.uk of the changes you have made.