The pace of change across the education sector continues to accelerate, with the early years once again frequently taking centre stage in education news. Following this Spring’s Early Excellence Senior Leader Briefing, the summary below highlights key education headlines, guidance, and actions for you and your team.
DfE Updates
Reminder: School Accountability Reform – Consultation Launched (3rd February 2025)
The Department for Education (DfE) is seeking views on:
- School accountability principles
- School profiles – a new digital service providing information about schools
- A stronger approach to school improvement through intervention
➡️ Access the School Accountability Reform Consultation here
Statutory Guidance: Early Education and Childcare (Updated 21st February 2025)
This guidance applies to all settings offering the 15-30 hours entitlements for children aged 9 months to 4 years.
➡️ Access the latest version of the Early Education and Childcare Guidance here.
Additionally, a free model agreement outlining the information local authorities should include in their agreements with early years providers is available:
➡️ Access the Free Early Years Provision and Childcare: Model Agreement here. (Updated 21st February 2025)
The Early Years Funding Benchmarking Tool, which provides indicators of local authority early education services and allows comparisons between authorities, has also been updated:
➡️ Access the benchmarking tool here. (Updated 14th March 2025)
Family Hubs and Start for Life Programme: Local Authority Guide (2022–2025)
Guidance for 75 pre-selected local authorities participating in the Family Hubs and Start for Life Programme between 2022 and 2025 has been updated.
Notably, the Early Language and Home Learning Environment expectations have been amended, extending the age range from 3-4 years to 2-4 years.
➡️ Access the updated guidance here. (Updated 25th February 2025)
Early Years Stronger Practice Hubs
Latest information for early years practitioners about stronger practice hubs is available:
➡️ Access the latest information here. (Updated 4th March 2025)
Accessing Support from School Hubs
Guidance on how school leaders can access support from other schools in their locality to improve teaching or leadership has been updated.
➡️ Find more information here. (Updated 12th March 2025)
School Readiness – Reception Ready
The latest Kindred Square Report on school and Reception readiness highlights a growing concern among teachers:
- 49% of teachers report that school readiness has worsened since September 2023.
Starting Reception
This month a new guide was published to help parents and carers support children in becoming ‘Reception Ready’. Created by a coalition of early years organisations, the guide focuses on four key themes:
- Growing Independence
- Building Relationships and Communicating
- Physical Development
- Healthy Routines
We recommend using this alongside other professional tools to support conversations with families and settings while acknowledging the unique contexts and needs of each school community.
Early Years Pupil Premium (EYPP)
In December 2024, the DfE announced a 43% increase in the EYPP rate.
To support schools and settings in making effective use of EYPP, the Education Endowment Foundation has published a guide. Additional tools and resources will be added over time to complement this guidance.
➡️ Access the EYPP guide here.
Ofsted
Reminder: Consultation on a new model of inspection
Ofsted has released a video explaining its proposed new inspection model:
The consultation invites feedback from parents, carers, professionals, and learners on proposed education inspections and new report cards for providers.
➡️ Participate in the consultation here.
Deadline: 11:59 pm on 28th April 2025
Play Matters
This month, the Play Matters report was published, highlighting the importance of play in learning and its essential role in child development.
➡️ Find out more about Play Matters here.
Stay Informed
As always, we aim to keep you fully informed of all the latest news and changes.
You can still access a recording of our Spring Senior Leader Briefing, which explores these updates in greater depth—providing invaluable support for strategic leadership in schools and settings.
At Early Excellence we continue to offer a broad range of tools to support you and your team. Explore our Leadership Reflection Tools, School Leader CPD programme, and our Head-to-Head Podcasts, to discover more.
Access a recording of our Spring Senior Leader Briefing, which explores these updates in greater depth—providing invaluable support for strategic leadership in schools and settings.
Explore expert training with a school improvement focus to support the effective leadership and day to day management of the EYFS and KS1.
Join our monthly Head to Head podcasts developed by Headteachers, for Headteachers as we explore a range of key issues that really matter to school leaders.