This article has been brought to you by Slough Borough Council's Service Lead for Early Years and Prevention, Michael Jarrett, for the attention of the Early Years Sector.
Please find below communications from the Early Years and Prevention Service to keep you informed of various different initiatives and government updates from 21/05/2020. We hope you find this informative and if you have any suggestions about content please contact us on earlyyears@slough.gov.uk
It is important to keep in contact with families during this time, so please share this information across all of your contacts.
What’s New
Children Accessing Childcare Across Two Settings
We know this is still a huge issue for most of you. The advice from Public Health England is that children should only attend one setting wherever they can, but DfE recognises that’s not always possible. The DfE has said this will be covered in the new guidance which is due out this week.
New Government Updates for 21/05/2020 & 20/05/2020
What Parents and Carers Need to Know About Schools and Other Education Settings During the Coronavirus Outbreak
Information for parents and carers about the wider opening of nurseries, schools and colleges, transport, attendance, free school meals and remote education. Added information about the bank holiday and half term. Updated information on 30 hours free childcare, transport and SEND. To find out more please click here.
Coronavirus (COVID-19) | Safeguarding in Schools, Colleges and Other Providers
Guidance for schools and colleges to support them keeping children safe, including online, during the Coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak. Updated to provide guidance on what schools and colleges should be thinking about as they plan for more children to return from week commencing 1 June - especially around updating the child protection policy, designated safeguarding lead arrangements, protecting vulnerable children and mental health. To have a look at the guidance in more detail please click here.
Coronavirus (COVID-19) | Guidance for Educational Settings
Guidance for schools and other educational settings about Coronavirus (COVID-19) can be found here. Added updated poster.
Coronavirus (COVID-19) | Apprenticeship Programme Response
Guidance for apprentices, employers, training providers and assessment organisations in response to the impact of Coronavirus (COVID-19) can be found here.
Coronavirus (COVID-19) | Attendance in Education and Early Years Settings
A summary of how many children and teachers attended education and childcare settings since Monday 23 March.
Click here to view the full article.
Actions for Schools During the Coronavirus Outbreak
What schools need to do during the Coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak. Click here to learn more about the actions that need to be taken.
Guidance on The Wider Opening of Education and Childcare Settings
Guidance on the actions for education and childcare settings to prepare for wider opening from 1 June, at the earliest, can be found here.
Guidance on implementing protective measures in education and childcare settings can be found here.
Keeping in Touch and Targeted Support for Early Years Settings
During this unfamiliar time the team would like you to know that we are here to offer you support, in whatever way you may need it? We are on the other end of the phone or email and will continue to provide you with daily email updates. Even if you are currently closed the team can offer a range of support from discussing government guidance documents to reviewing local area initiatives.
We understand that this is a difficult period for everyone and in these uncertain times it can often help to share concerns, questions and queries with others, so please do keep in contact and pick up the phone anytime for a catch up.
You can email and call individual members of the team or for general enquiries contact earlyyears@slough.gov.uk or call 01753 476554.
If your setting is currently still open and are considering closure please discuss with the Early Years Service and for further information, advice or guidance please contact the team on 01753 476554 or email earlyyears@slough.gov.uk.
Reminders
Early Years and Childminder Settings Reopening from 1st June 2020
Following the Governments announcement on the proposed opening of nursery and childminder settings from 1st June 2020, the Early Years Team would like to support all Slough settings with preparing to re-open their setting. The Early Years Team will be making contact with all settings to discuss your plans and offer our support.
As you all know (hopefully) this week is Mental Health Awareness Week and now more than ever it’s important to be kind to ourselves and others. Our Public Health website has lots of resources, information and tips to help you look after your mental health which you can access here.
Health and wellbeing of CYP
The University of Oxford are conducting a free online survey which will assess the health and wellbeing of CYP in schools across Slough and include questions relating to the current pandemic. After the online survey is completed and analysed by University of Oxford, schools will receive a full report on the findings.
To learn more about the survey please click here.