Interesting links, articles, news and blog posts sent out to members on 30/10/23.
Policy Research Briefing: Supporting children’s physical activity beyond the COVID-19 pandemic – University of Bristol
October 2023, Prof. Russ Jago, Dr Danielle House, Dr Ruth Salway, and Dr Robert Walker, University of Bristol. Physical activity is central to the future health of the nation and preventative healthcare strategies. Active children are more likely to become active adults, and childhood is a key period for developing physical skills and confidence:
Link: https://www.bristol.ac.uk/policybristol/policy-briefings/childrens-physical-activity/
Article: 30 hours expansion: DfE commits £100m in funding to expand provision and EYFS regulatory changes – Nursery World
27 October 2023, Katy Morton. The Government has announced £100m in capital funding for early years providers to expand their provision ahead of the 30 hours extension, along with regulatory changes to the EYFS to provide more ‘flexibility for settings’:
News: Overwhelming support for Online Safety Act as rules making UK the safest place in the world to be online become law – Department for Science, Innovation and Technology and The Rt Hon Michelle Donelan MP
27 October 2023. Raft of voices below have thrown their support behind Act protecting children from online harm, while empowering adults with more choices over what they see online:
Press release: Earlier mental health support announced for thousands nationwide – Department of Health and Social Care and Maria Caulfield MP
25 October 2023. The government has announced almost £5 million to fund early support hubs nationwide to deliver mental health support for children and young people:
Link: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/earlier-mental-health-support-announced-for-thousands-nationwide
News: Parents have right to see sex education content, says minister – BBC News Online
25 October 2023, Christina McSorley. Education Secretary Gillian Keegan has told English schools that parents have a right to view the sex education material which is being taught:
Link: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-67199816
Article: One million children experienced destitution last year – Nursery World
24 October 2023, Katy Morton. A million children experienced destitution in the UK in 2022, the most severe form of hardship, according to a major new report into poverty:
Link: https://www.nurseryworld.co.uk/news/article/one-million-children-experienced-destitution-last-year
News: Former inspector says Ofsted statement that most England state schools are good is ‘nonsense’ – Guardian Online
24 October 2023, Sally Weale. Sir Michael Wilshaw says Ofsted’s headline judgments ‘provide parents with false comfort’:
News: More than 1 million UK children experienced destitution last year, study finds – Guardian Online
24 October 2023, Patrick Butler. Severe material hardship no longer a rarity, as study reveals impact of benefit cuts and cost of living crisis:
News: Children at ‘existential risk’ from climate crisis, UK’s top paediatrician says – Guardian Online
21 October 2023, Andrew Gregory. Physical and mental impact on young people needs immediate action, Dr Camilla Kingdon says:
News: Mental health help for under-fives overlooked – report – BBC News Online
21 October 2023, Smitha Mundasad. More support is needed to prevent babies and young children developing mental health problems in later life, leading doctors say:
Link: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-67173008
Article: Reception Baseline: Just 3 per cent of teachers believe test provides ‘accurate’ information on children’s skills – Nursery World
20 October 2023, Catherine Gaunt. Most teachers believe Reception Baseline tests in English and Maths for four- and five-year-olds are inaccurate and do not provide a good experience for children, according to a new survey:
Podcast: Childcare in the UK: Inefficient or underfunded? – Social Market Foundation
19 October 2023, Hari Menon. The answer lies not just in comparing the costs to parents, but also the societal costs of providing childcare – which are surprisingly difficult to work out, requiring bottom-up data gathering and calculations. In this blog, SMF’s Hari Menon compares the cost of provision between UK and Sweden, to open up the discussion on childcare accessibility:
Link: https://www.smf.co.uk/commentary_podcasts/childcare-in-the-uk-inefficient-or-underfunded/
Research and analysis: Children’s social care questionnaires 2023 – Ofsted
19 October 2023. What children and young people have told us about their experiences of living in social care settings, including children’s homes, boarding schools, living with foster carers and staying at residential special schools:
Link: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/childrens-social-care-questionnaires-2023
Article: NDNA to launch Institute of Early Years Education – Nursery World
17 October 2023, Catherine Gaunt. The National Day Nurseries Association is in the process of developing an Institute of Early Years Education, an independent membership body for the early years workforce:
Link: https://www.nurseryworld.co.uk/news/article/ndna-to-launch-institute-of-early-years-education
Article: Alliance calls for a ‘comprehensive long-term plan’ for the sector to be made a priority by the next government – Nursery World
16 October 2023, Katy Morton. The Early Years Alliance is calling on the next government to provide an emergency financial rescue package for early years providers before carrying out a wholesale review and ‘overhaul’ of the current childcare system:
News: Celebrating the importance of sport and physical activity on children’s mental health – England Athletics
13 October 2023. Mental health has been at the forefront of not just our minds at England Athletics but the world, with World Mental Health Awareness Day being celebrated. Alongside key stakeholders from the sporting sector and MPs, England Athletics came together in Liverpool on World Mental Health Day to launch a new open letter to government to place physical activity as a means of supporting and preventing mental health issues at the forefront of their policy making decisions:
Opinion: Over 105,000 Childlline counselling sessions in the past year were for children struggling with mental health issues – NSPCC
10 October 2023. In 2022/23, the NSPCC Childline service delivered more than 105,000 counselling sessions on mental and emotional health and wellbeing. Out of these, more than 30,000 were specifically related to stress and anxiety: