Primary schools will get one of three levels of “support” from government school improvement squads aimed at boosting reception teaching, with English and maths hubs expected to do much of the heavy lifting.
The government will also develop a new training course for reception teachers and put more early years content into National Professional Qualifications for heads as part of its strategy to create the “best start in life”.
But further details on the proposals in the government document, published this afternoon, are scarce, and it is not know how much extra funding specifically the school system will get to embed the reforms.
It comes after the prime minister Sir Keir Starmer set a target of 75 per cent of children being school-ready by 2028.
‘A golden thread’
The 52-page strategy states that a strong early years workforce “is the foundation of high-quality care and education.
But “too often, early years staff feel overworked, overlooked and undervalued”.
The document states the government wants a “clear ‘golden thread’ of high-quality evidence to underpin the training, support and development for people working in the early years”.
“We will work hand in hand with early years providers and schools to make sure they have the tools, training and support they need to meet every child’s needs.
“We are backing this plan with £400 million over the next three years, on top of existing funding, to improve quality in early years settings and reception classes and drive better outcomes for children.”
It is not clear how much of that funding will be for schools.
Updating training and development
But the NPQ for headship – a qualification for aspiring headteachers – will be “enhanced” with more early years content.
Government is also “developing a new training course for reception class teachers” and creating a “new professional development offer for setting leaders”.
The DfE will also fund more places on the NPQ for early years leadership, but has not said how many, or how much this will cost.
Hilary Spencer, chief executive of the Ambition Institute, a provider of NPQ courses, said “many headteachers we work with [say] they would like greater support to deliver excellent early years provision”.
But she said the organisation’s analytics “also tell us that early years leaders often struggle more than other parts of the workforce to find the time to engage in professional development, and so we would welcome a focus on ensuring that more of this vital workforce are able to engage with the NPQ”.
Three levels of reception RISE support
Education secretary Bridget Phillipson announced earlier this year that the quality of the reception year would be one of four priorities for the government’s regional improvement for standards and excellence (RISE) teams.
Today’s strategy states “all schools will receive support to improve reception teaching, with some schools being eligible for enhanced or more intensive offers”.
A “universal reception offer” will see all schools given access to “better data and analysis” on early years foundation stage profile assessment at the end of reception. They will also be “invited to participate in face-to-face and online training”.
An “enhanced reception offer” will give some schools “additional early years engagement from specialists in language, literacy and maths through English and Maths Hubs”.
English hubs will deliver “new literacy-focused audits” to schools, to “supplement those already focused on language and reading”.
Maths hubs will put more schools through their mastering number training and deliver “consolidated teacher training on number and spatial reasoning”.
And an “intensive reception offer” will see some schools get more assistance from hubs, including “dedicated time with a literacy expert and engagement from maths hubs to increase participation in other training”
No further details have been provided, and the government has not said if the hubs will receive more funding to support the extra work.
Family hubs involve school staff – but who pays?
It comes after the government announced this morning it would fund “best start family hubs” in every council area, effectively extending the current network of family hubs created under previous governments.
These hubs will “include professionals working across all local teams, including health and education, and will work with nurseries, childminders, schools, health services, libraries and local voluntary and community groups”.
Again, no details have been provided on how exactly school staff will be involved, nor whether schools will be paid for their time.
Government said the rollout could see up to 1,000 hubs across the country by 2028, with one in each council area by April 2026. The hubs are backed by more than £500 million funding, government said.
New funded ‘partnerships’ with nurseries
The government also said it was funding “new partnerships between schools and local nurseries to strengthen transitions into school – so children feel confident, prepared and supported when they start school, and schools are ready to meet each child’s needs”.
The partnerships will allow staff in schools and nurseries to “spend time learning from each other and sharing knowledge, expertise and best practice, strengthening local early years systems”.
“They will also help parents and children build relationships with schools and other local services, help teachers spot issues early, and ensure parents know how to effectively support their child’s development at home, so that they feel at home in the classroom when they start school.”
No further details have been provided.
Your thoughts