Early Years Pupil Premium Part 3: Easy does it

A move into the unknown is always a bit scary, and four-year-old Jack* was feeling especially anxious about his upcoming transition to ‘big school’. His mother was also apprehensive about the move, as she was afraid Jack’s anxiety about it would disrupt the progress he was making with a speech and language therapist. Staff at Jack’s nursery, Meadowview Pre-School in Brighton, say they are concerned for such children during this transition, so with six out of 15 eligible for Early Years Pupil Premium (EYPP) funding, including Jack, the pre-school decided to focus spend in this area.

‘The first big transition for many children is often from pre-school to Reception, where lots of the things they have come to know and trust are suddenly going to change,’ says Meadowview supervisor Alison Groves. ‘Children’s early experiences of transition will impact on the way they perceive change throughout their lives. Transition itself is a learning experience, and we want it to be a positive one for all our children so they learn to feel positive about change and the benefits it can bring.’

Meadowview spent some of the funding on Ready for School staff training from a consulta-ncy and training body that examines best practice and considers school readiness. Other expenditure went on extra staff hours and cover for staff accompanying children on visits to the school, and resources, such as books, book bags and examples of uniform, for the setting’s Big School role-play area.

Big School role play introduces children to the idea of sitting at tables instead of the floor and reassures them that they will still have sand, paint, playdough and water to explore at big school. Jack and his mother had extra visits to the new school, with the chance to meet Reception year teaching assistants, the designated speech and language support worker and the special educational needs co-ordinator (SENCO).

Photos of the visit and key members of staff were compiled into a ‘My New School’ book, which Jack took home after his last day at preschool. His mother made a point of returning to Meadowview in October to tell staff how the book helped her son recognise them and remember their names, and Jack paid a visit to tell other children about his new experiences.

‘Transition is not a single event but a process, so staff have agreed that we need to begin preparing children much sooner in small ways, and continue to monitor their well-being and assess how well they are adapting in the post-transition phase,’ says Ms Groves.

Meadowview, a small, packaway setting operating out of a community centre, had already established links with one local primary school, which organises a teddy bears’ picnic in a local park for children, parents and teachers to meet and share any concerns. Meadowview plans to offer school readiness workshops to parents next year based on guidelines produced by The Early Childhood Project charity.

To track the effectiveness of EYPP spend, staff visited the Reception class eight to ten weeks after the start of term and observed the leavers to assess how confident and prepared they were. Future spend could include buying duplicate copies of children’s favourite books which they can take with them to Reception.

Children can also be supported as they transition between different age-appropriate areas or different early years settings, as was the case with another EYPP-funded child at Meadowview. Three-year-old Luke* had severe speech delay and was offered a place at a specialist speech and language nursery for five afternoons a week. His mother was reluctant to move him as he had settled so well at pre-school, so Meadowview’s SENCO arranged to accompany her on visits to the nursery, asking questions on her behalf and building her confidence in the new environment.

Meadowview was also able to offer Luke two morning sessions a week so that he could maintain friendships with other children who would be attending the same primary school. EYPP funding was used to support him, with resources including a ‘Now and Then’ Makaton symbols board with photos of him at both settings.

*names have been change

Further information

• EYPP guide for local authorities 
• Funding toolkit for early years
• Learning Together About Learning shares best practice on EYPP spend

CASE STUDY: HARDINGS PRE-SCHOOL, HERTFORDSHIRE IDEAS FOR TRANSITIONS

For ‘outstanding’-rated Hardings, the decision to spend some EYPP funding on supporting transition to school was obvious, since there was so little time between receiving the money and the five eligible children leaving the setting – an issue which many providers have complained about.

‘We found out who the children were in June and received the money at the beginning of July; unfortunately, all the eligible children were set to leave at the end of the month,’ explains Jane McCullagh, pre-school manager. The setting now has one eligible child and has just received funding for him, but he is leaving to start nursery school in January. ‘This is one of my bugbears about EYPP,’ says Ms McCullagh. ‘You are getting the money very last minute for children who need it right now.’

Meadowview used EYPP money to create several ‘transition packs’, plastic wallets containing a story about going to school, a template with which children can design their own school uniform, a game involving the logos of all the local schools and a piece of paper on which children can write what they like about Hardings, with the intention of taking that to their next school. Children can take the pack home and return it the next week, as they do with the setting’s 40-odd other home learning packs, initially created with a £350 grant from charity Book Trust.

EYPP funding was also used to pay for one eligible child to attend full days – she had previously only been attending morning sessions, but staff felt she would benefit from a taster of a full school day. ‘We paid for her to stay for lunch club and afternoon to get her ready for that move to Reception,’ says Ms McCullagh.

The setting also spent funding on staff training in running ‘nurture’ groups, and resources geared to meet the specific needs and interests of the eligible children, including princess-themed puzzle books for a girl who could do with a bit of a push in maths, and dress-up capes for a boy who loved superheroes, to boost his confidence.

With the last inspection in 2011, Ms McCullagh expects Ofsted at her door any day now, and has kept meticulous notes on the EYPP-eligible children. ‘We have their names, interests, areas for development, how staff supported them, which resources we bought, and how we supported parents,’ she says.

She feels that providers need more information about how EYPP money is supposed to be spent, as while the way in which the money is spent is down to the nursery, the aim is to close the attainment gap so resources bought for funded children will usually stay with the setting.

Working with local schools to deliver joint summer holiday sessions.

Creating transition packs to take home (see case study).

Taking photographs of the new environments, and the new key adults, to use in home packs or a display in the setting.

Having examples of the new uniform, to help develop a sense of belonging for the next setting.

Putting on a social event such as a teddy bears’ picnic or end of term party where families can be ‘buddied’ with others who are transferring to the next setting. School staff could also be invited.

Extra school visits for children who may need more time to allay their anxiety. A child’s key person could accompany parents if they are feeling anxious about the move.