New edition of Birth to 5 Matters launched
The Early Years Coalition has launched the updated and expanded second edition of Birth to 5 Matters (Bto5M), non-statutory guidance for the Early Years Foundation
We’re pleased to confirm that after extensive lobbying from Early Education, the DfE has extended eligibility for the School-based Nursery (SBN) Capital Grant Funding to maintained nursery schools in the second phase of the programme. Application guidelines have been published and the scheme will open for applications on 22 September, with applications closing on 11 December. If unable to submit an application during phase 2, it will be possible to register interest for phase 3, which will be for local authorities to submit bids for multi-year funding.
The guidance states that:
The School-based Nursery Capital Grant 2025 to 26 is for state-funded primary-phase schools in England that already offer some early education (such as a reception class), seeking to create or expand an SBN, as well as maintained nursery schools in England seeking to expand nursery provision on the current school premises…. Schools that were successful in phase 1 and received SBN capital grant funding are not eligible to apply for phase 2, but will be eligible to work with their local authority as part of phase 3.
Schools can apply for up to £150,000 of capital funding to create or repurpose space for nursery provision. Unlike phase 1, the use of surplus space is not a requirement for phase 2 of the programme.
The DfE have stated that “Maintained Nursery School (MNS) bids will be assessed using the same criteria and process for all other bids. In the event of receiving a high number of quality MNS bids, the Department will allocate funding to the highest scoring bids up to a maximum total value of £4.5 million.”
The Early Years Coalition has launched the updated and expanded second edition of Birth to 5 Matters (Bto5M), non-statutory guidance for the Early Years Foundation
The Department for Education (DfE) have today launched a consultation on proposed changes to the early years funding system. It runs until 14 September 2026.
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The Secretary of State, Bridget Phillipson MP, has written to the Chief Executive of the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) to request that the CMA
An online survey has been launched to hear responses from across the early years sector to a draft of the revised Birth to 5 Matters
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Five years after its publication, Birth to 5 Matters, non-statutory guidance for the Early Years Foundations Stage, is to be reviewed and relaunched to ensure
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A survey of maintained nursery schools (MNS) in England carried out by early years charity Early Education in association with education unions the NAHT and
Government has today announced that free school meals (FSM) in England will be extended to all children in families receiving Universal Credit, including those on
Any changes to government policy on online safety and digital literacy must include a focus on children in the early years, three leading early years
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Ofsted is currently consulting on changes to how it inspects the education sector. This review was prompted by the tragic death of headteacher Ruth Perry.
We welcome today’s news from the Department for Education that it has selected 300 schools to receive capital funding for new or expanded nurseries. We
HMRC has provided guidance for early years providers on their eligibility to claim employment allowance. This confirms that settings which are currently eligible to claim
The Department for Education has published updated Statutory guidance for local authorities on the provision of early education and childcare which will apply from 1
The Department for Education has published its early years funding allocations for local authorities for 2025-26, including increasing Early Years Pupil Premium from 68p to
We welcome today’s “Plan for Change” government targets which bring a renewed emphasis on improving child development outcomes in the early years. While still committed
If you read the government’s guidance on applying for capital funding to open or expand nursery provision, you could be forgiven for thinking setting up
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Ofsted has today published its response to the “Big Listen” consultation. For the early years, it undertakes to: On the differences between early years and
We welcome the Department for Education’s announcement that the government are moving ahead with their manifesto commitment to scrap single-word Ofsted judgements for schools, effective immediately,
The National Audit Office’s new report, Improving educational outcomes for disadvantaged children, finds that in 2023-24, DfE allocated an estimated £9.2 billion to specifically focus
The letter below sets out our key asks for the next government.
On 10 June, Labour announced their plans for “over three thousand new nursery classes across England to open up access to childcare hours for families”,
The Conservative Manifesto has promised to extend Family Hubs to all local authorities. This would both extend funding for the 75 local authorities where they
The Lib Dems have published their manifesto, including commitments to incorporate the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child into UK law and to
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A report published by the National Audit Office (NAO) today finds that the timetable for the roll-out of the new funded early education and childcare
In response to recent queries about why the latest DfE guidance on providing the early education and childcare entitlements has removed references to additional charges
A new campaign to boost recruitment to the early years sector in England is being launched today by the government. The government press release says:
DfE have issued an update to address the issue of parents wishing to claim their codes for the new entitlements who cannot do so because
The Department for Education has today published its response to the EYFS consultation conducted in the summer. The changes will be implemented from January 2024
DfE has today launched a consultation on the new funding rates which will apply for 2-year-olds and under 2s when the new entitlements are introduced
The Department for Education has today announced that the extra £204m for early years announced in the budget will be allocated to local authorities as
In a speech today, Kier Starmer will set out Labour’s plans to expand opportunity via five “missions” including “Early years reform – to boost child development with an
The Department for Education (DfE) is currently consulting on proposals to amend the Early Years Foundation Stage. They propose relaxing the requirements around the minimum
DfE has issued slightly more detail about the planned uplift in the hourly rates for the current and new entitlements, following the announcements in the
In today’s budget the Chancellor has confirmed several new measures on early education and childcare: Our analysis The decision to relax the ratios for 2-year-olds
Today, Early Education, the NAHT, NEU and Unison have jointly written an open letter calling on the government to address the shortfall in early years
Today, teachers from the National Education Union are striking, including many working in nursery and reception classes. In the last week, the Department for Education
We welcome the news that our President, Professor Cathy Nutbrown, has been made a Dame in the year’s New Years Honours list. This is much
