Jo O’Raw

Leading your early years team – delivered by Jo O’Raw

This course is for everyone who leads the early years whether you are an EYFS Lead, Head of a primary or nursery school, or manager or leader in a PVI. It can be offered as a half or full day, a twilight, or a multi-session course, where delegates would implement changes and then examine the impact. It can be offered to single or groups of schools or settings.

Aims and objectives – Delegates will have opportunities to:

• Reflect on yourself as a leader of your team.
• Consider as a team what is unique about what you offer children and families.
• Identify what quality looks like as a team.
• Extend ways to know, support, and challenge your team.

Leading your new nursery – delivered by Jo O’Raw

This course is designed either for those creating or taking on a new nursery or new to early years leadership of nursery provision. It is aimed at Early Years Leads, Headteacher, Leaders, or Managers. It can be offered as a half or full day, a twilight, or a multi-session course, where delegates would implement changes and then examine the impact. It can be offered to single or groups of schools or settings.

Aims and objectives – Delegates will have opportunities to:

• Explore child development in practice and consider ways to meet the needs of every child.
• Consider the role of relationships in transitions and an effective settling in process.
• Examine the daily experience for nursery children.
• Discuss ways to create a language rich environment.
• Plan for how to develop the learning environment indoors and outdoors.
• Understand the role of emotions and behaviour.
• Explore how to develop your team.
• Share ways to monitor the quality of your nursery.

‘Like a family’ – Celebrating and developing mixed age approaches in the early years – delivered by Jo O’Raw

Whether you are developing or offering mixed age provision through design or circumstance this course will support you to explore the benefits and challenges and offer practical ideas and plans to take forward your provision. Mixed age provision can look very different and include mixes of 2-, 3- and 4-year-olds, Foundation Stage Units, and also cross phase such as Reception and Year 1 groups.  This course is suitable for EYFS Leads, Headteachers, Nursery and Reception Teachers and Leaders and Managers from PVIs. It can be offered as a half or full day, a twilight, or a multi-session course, where delegates would implement changes and then examine the impact.

Aims and objectives – Delegates will have opportunities to:

• Reflect on what it is like to be a child in your school or setting.
• Consider the benefits of younger and older children learning alongside each other.
• Discuss potential challenges and how to address them.
• Develop plans of implementation, monitoring, and evaluation.

‘I am unique’ – Working with families to include every child – delivered by Jo O’Raw

This course is for all Early Years Leaders and Practitioners who would like to further develop their inclusive practices in partnership with their families. It can be offered as a half or full day, a twilight, or a multi-session course, where delegates would implement changes and then examine the impact.

Aims and objectives – Delegates will have opportunities to:

• Examine what uniqueness and individuality mean for your children.
• Consider what a genuine partnership with families looks like through collaborative approaches.
• Explore ways to get to know and support your children with transitions.
• Review ongoing effective means of communication and relationship building.
• Build a deepening partnership to support learning at home and in the school / setting.

Designing your curriculum as a team – delivered by Jo O’Raw

This course is for everyone who seeks to use the talents and skills of their whole team to further design and develop their Early Years Curriculum. This course is for all Headteachers, Early Years Leaders, Managers, and Practitioners and can be offered as a half or full day, a twilight, or a multi-session course, where delegates would implement changes and then examine the impact.

Aims and objectives – Delegates will have opportunities to:

• Consider what is unique about the needs of your children and school or setting.
• Explore your ‘why’ and identify your motivations to make a difference.
• Review the different ways children learn and how you can consider progression.
• Examine the relationships and ways to effectively work as a team on your curriculum design.
• Design an implementation plan in collaboration with your team.

“Be careful!” – Exploring your team’s approach to risk and challenge and supporting capable learners – delivered by Jo O’Raw

This course is for everyone interested to consider and develop their approaches to risk and challenge in their curriculum. This course is for all Headteachers, Early Years Leaders, Managers, and Practitioners and can be offered as a half or full day, a twilight, or a multi-session course, where delegates would implement changes and then examine the impact.

Aims and objectives – Delegates will have opportunities to:

• Examine their own approaches in relation to risk and challenge.
• Consider the difference between risk and hazards.
• Explore how capable learners develop.
• Reflect on the impact for the children as learners approaching all new challenges.
• Design opportunities for risk and challenge for children.

Why early years is for everyone:
from EYFS on to KS1 and KS2 – delivered by Jo O’Raw

This bespoke course is for Primary Heads and Early Years Leaders who want to understand how their Early Years fits into the context of the rest of their Primary School. It can be offered as a one-off course, over half or a whole day, or as a programme of development with training and visits across a year.

Aims and Objectives

This course will help leaders and practitioners across Primary see learning through a developmental lens — not just in the Early Years, but across the whole school. It challenges assumptions about readiness, curriculum and ability, and equips participants to lead with greater confidence and precision.

By the end of this course, participants will:

• Recognise what genuine quality practice looks like in the Early Years — below the surface, not just what is visible
• See behaviour and learning across Primary through a developmental lens, moving beyond deficit thinking
• Understand why development comes before curriculum — and what that means for their school’s approach
• Recognise how language load, physical development and self-regulation affect children’s access to learning across all year groups
• Develop confidence in leading Early Years as a whole-school responsibility, not a discrete phase
• Use Early Years approaches as a lens to understand need and remove barriers to learning across Key Stage 1 and 2.

The Five Lenses — A Framework for Quality

At the heart of this course is a practical framework for observing and evaluating practice. The Five Lenses allow leaders to look below the surface of what children are doing and understand what is really happening for learners.

What the Training Includes

This package is designed to be immersive, reflective, and immediately applicable to participants’ own schools and settings.

• Immersive activities that place participants in the position of the learner — experiencing what it feels like when development needs are not met
• Case studies to explore the developmental lens in action across EYFS, KS1, and KS2
• Facilitated discussion and provocation to surface assumptions and challenge existing thinking
• Practical frameworks and tools to take back and use immediately
• Space for reflection on your own setting — what you notice, what you want to change, and how to lead that change

Longer programme option

For schools wanting to go deeper, this course can be expanded into a sustained programme of development across a year. This includes:

• An initial audit and baseline of current understanding across the leadership team
• A series of CPD sessions (typically 3–4) with space between to implement and reflect
• Learning walk visits to observe practice together and build shared language
• Support to develop an EYFS development plan aligned to whole-school improvement priorities
• A final session to review impact, celebrate progress, and identify next steps.

Who is this for?

• Primary Headteachers
• Early Years Leaders and Coordinators
• Individual schools, settings, or other providers
• Groups of schools or MATs
• Whole school teams or individual leader teams

How can it be delivered?

• Half-day session (standalone CPD)
• Full-day session (extended exploration)
• Programme of development over a year (training + visits)
• Suitable for experienced EY practitioners and those from other year groups