Management

Good management and leadership skills have always been crucial for running a quality early years setting and never more so than in the current economic climate.

With the twin pressures on sustainability from rising costs and static, or even falling, income, nursery managers have to work even harder than ever to maintain viability.

It is a common observation that most people come into the early years sector because of a desire to work with young children or because they can not find a setting they like for their own children - precious few take the plunge for purely business reasons.

In standalone settings and small chains there is unlikely to be the scope to hire in professional business expertise. So if you are a nursery proprietor or manager and have not got wide business management skills - acquire them. Nursery managers who would automatically send staff on training to enhance their practice are sometimes reluctant to pay for courses to enhance their management and leadership skills.

ACORN CHILDCARE TRAINING

• Healthy eating for under-fives: one-day course on healthy eating for those responsible for the provision of nursery and pre-school meals.

• Effective management skills: five-day course exploring management skills and techniques and how to apply them. These include planning, objective-setting, questioning skills, communication, reviewing performance, influencing skills, managing stress, monitoring and control, effective meetings, leadership and time management.

• The effective deputy manager: three-day course for inexperienced deputies. For all supervisors or newly promoted assistant and deputy managers. Topics include the supervisor role, presentation skills, effective communication styles, identifying staff development needs, developing thinking skills and strengthening assertiveness.

• Time management for childcarers: topics include the individual analysis of time management, the use of time logs, establishing priorities, and delegation skills.

• Marketing support for small childcare businesses: half-day course that provides those running small childcare businesses with new skills and strategies for marketing and promoting their business.

• Sales support for small childcare businesses: three-hour course that provides promotional skills and strategies to those running small childcare businesses.

• Business support for childcarers: this course, spread over five 2.5-hour sessions, allows managers (both experienced and those new to management) and business owners (including childminders) to explore ways to expand and sustain their business.

• Assertiveness for childcarers: the course is aimed at those who would like to improve their personal effectiveness through communication, focusing on interpersonal skills including recognising aggressive, submissive and assertive behaviour, questioning, listening and summarising.

• Employment law for childcarers: one-day course designed to give line managers an appreciation of how employment legislation affects their day-to-day activities.

• Performance management for those working with children: three-hour overview of the different techniques for managing performance.

• Personnel management for childcarers: one-day course for everyone with a management role in childcare, but little or no formal training in personnel management.

• Leadership and management for those working in childcare: an overview of the key skills for effective leadership and management.

• Equal opportunities: one-day course suitable for all staff to help them recognise and deal with discrimination. It will also help the development of an equal opportunities policy. Topics include forms of discrimination, benefits of an equal opportunities approach and how to apply equal opportunities in the workplace.

• Anti-racist practice: short course designed to examine issues relating to race and prejudice in any childcare setting.

• Child sexual exploitation

• Leadership & Management Development Programme

• Leadership and Management Development Programme

BRATHAY

Brathay runs a series of programmes to help members of the children’s workforce to gain the skills and inspiration to improve the lives of children and young people. These include multi-agency working: for staff working in multi-agency teams, and positive educational outcomes: team development work across the education sector.

THE CENTRE
In-house and open courses designed for people planning and managing in the early years and childcare sector:

• Strategic planning

• Project management

• Moving into management: taking on your first management role

• Moving up in management: extending your management skills

• Supervision skills: managing people and teams

• Introduction to leadership

• Time management for administrators: managing time and workload

THE CHILDCARE COMPANY

The Childcare Company has developed an online training programme linked to an e-portfolio system known as the "Laser" which is written and updated by childcare professionals and teachers. Courses include:

• First time leadership: exploring the difference between leading and managing, the art of negotiation, and the importance of time management.

• Continuous professional development: allows participants to consider not only their personal development, but also that of their team members. The course explores learning styles and opportunities, and how to plan and evaluate learning. Participants will learn how to help others to set up a CPD file and how to lead others to professional development.

CHILDCARE CONSULTANCY

• Handling enquiries and sensational show-rounds

• Aiming high: achieving sustainability for your setting/as a childminder

• Marketing your childcare setting

• Managing staff: introduction to leadership and management

• Effective recruitment

• Managing performance - appraising and disciplining staff

• Customer care and handling complaints

• Reflective leadership: three one-day sessions over three months to develop leadership capabilities and a reflective approach to managing staff.

COMMON THREADS TRAINING

• All you need to know about management - in a day! this course provides a whistle-stop tour of the most important roles of a manager in a child-centred setting - devising and using aims and objectives, promoting and developing practice, time management, assertiveness and creativity.

CREATIVITY IN PRACTICE

• Coaching and mentoring: two three-hour sessions for practitioners who have leadership and mentoring responsibilities. The course will explore the nature and potential for coaching and mentoring (based on the GROW model and a selection of simple tools) with opportunities to practise and develop key skills.

CRECHENDO TRAINING

• Management of early years practice: 60-hour course equipping qualified or experienced practitioners with an understanding of effective verbal and non-verbal communication, group dynamics, effective teamwork, team-building and conflict resolution.

DAYCARE TRUST

• Business planning for sustainability: a course helping childcare setting managers to develop skills needed to sustain their settings.

EARLY EDUCATION TRAINING AND RESOURCE CENTRE

• Funding for your future: a course tackling the funding challenges faced by early childhood education settings in the wake of budget cuts. Topics include fundraising, using money cleverly, and cost recovery.

• Leadership for change: one-day course supporting leaders in removing or reducing the real and perceived barriers that can inhibit positive change in early years settings.

EARLY YEARS CPD

Offers a range of online courses related to leadership training as part of a Learning to Lead Series for the professional development of new and existing early years managers. Topics include Leading Meetings, Interview Skills, Managing Emails, Mentor Training, Presentation Skills, Prioritising your Workload, Professional Emails, Time Management, Coaching at Work and Leading Effective Teams.

EARLY YEARS EQUALITY

• Men as carers: exploring men’s experiences as carers in early years settings and in the home, traditional gender roles in relation to caring for children, and tools to support, attract and retain men in the usually female-dominated environment of the early years.

EARLY YEARS ORGANISATION

• Committee management: this six-hour workshop (in two sessions) is specifically designed to meet the needs of management committees of early years settings and day care centres. It is particularly targeted at new members of management committees.

• Availability of funding for early years settings: two-hour course for management committees of early years settings introducing sources of funding and advising on making grant applications.

• Start a business in childcare: this 18-hour course (six three-hour sessions) is for entrepreneurs wanting to start a childcare business. It explains the significance of a business plan, the importance of marketing and financial planning, and the legislation and requirements of a childcare business.

EASTERN LEADERSHIP CENTRE

ELC supports a series of programmes that concentrate on the needs of leaders within multi-agency and early years settings.

• Wake up to better governance – getting the best from your advisory board: one-day workshop introducing participants to the structure, role, responsibility and requirements of advisory boards and helps children’s centre leaders learn strategies for their effective involvement in decision-making.

EXPERIENTIAL PLAY

Motivation day: this day is for all who are passionate about their jobs and who want to get together with like-minded professionals. There will be challenges, both physical and mental.


4 TRAINING AND CONSULTANCY

4 Training and Consultancy offers a wide variety of consultancy services in specialist fields. Examples include:

• Setting up a nursery

• Recruitment and selection procedures

• Getting the best from your staff   

• Team building and group learning events

• Training needs analysis and workforce development plans

• Raising your Ofsted inspection results

• Health and Safety for your workplace

FPM

• Getting enough money for your service - skills for enterprise: this one-day seminar covers understanding financial models and plans, managing costs and efficiency, and understanding margins and profit/surplus.

• Planning for success and sustainability: one-day seminar exploring the principles of business planning for public services, development of business plans, and leading and developing a culture of enterprise.

• Reviving your team's performance: one-day seminar explaining how to build a culture of high performance, coach for resilience and performance, negotiate change, and develop new teams for the new culture.

GROUPWORK CONSULTATION AND TRAINING

• Leadership development: two-day course exploring leadership behaviours and styles, individual leadership qualities and strengths and the way communication works.

• Leading by example – Professionalism: one-day workshop exploring what is meant by professionalism, and how it can be identified.

• One/two-day team building workshop: this workshop is for team members who wish to further their understanding of team dynamics. It aims to raise awareness of effective teamwork, look at the processes that enhance and hinder teams, explore some strategies for greater team effectiveness, and gain support and consultancy for working methods and practice.

HEMPSALL CONSULTANCIES

Hempsall Consultancies provides specially designed development training for anyone working with children and families, and early years and childcare practitioners in particular. Topics covered include working with parents and children, equal opportunities, promoting positive behaviour, involving and consulting, and assertiveness.

HENRY

• Let's get healthy with HENRY: eight-week programme designed to cover key health and nutrition lifestyle areas with parents and carers. Each session begins with family time and young children are then cared for while parents and carers explore the topic of the week.

KIDSCAPE

• Personal development: includes programme development, circle time, friendship skills, self-esteem, assertiveness, handling conflict, pupil support, and guidance and welfare.

• Staff development: includes stress management, developing teamwork, counselling skills, assertiveness training and working with parents.

KORU DEVELOPMENT

Koru Development runs a number of communication, organisational and leadership and management courses, including:

• Developing Leadership and Management Skills

• Time Management: Triumphant Strategies for Workload and Life Management

• Team Excellence during Change

• Coaching Skills for Managers

• Negotiation, Persuasion and Influencing Skills

• Essential Emotional Intelligence for Leaders

LEARNING THROUGH LANDSCAPES (LTL)

Provides a range of training for teachers, governors, parents and school grounds practitioners. Topics include early years provision for the outdoors and taking the formal curriculum outdoors. LTL's Early Years Outdoor Service helps settings plan and manage high-quality creative outdoor play. In addition to running training itself, LTL is developing networks of accredited trainers throughout the UK. The first network consists of school grounds professionals who can provide training events that help schools identify how they can develop their outdoor space by involving the community.


THE LONDON EARLY YEARS FOUNDATION (LEYF)

• Nutrition in the early years – striking a healthy balance: one-day course on managing healthy eating in early years settings.

MARIA MONTESSORI INSTITUTE

MMI is the only centre in the United Kingdom authorised by the Association Montessori Internationale (AMI) to run its training courses. Diploma holders can use their qualifications to work with children or set up their own Montessori Children’s House.

• Association Montessori Internationale (AMI) 3-6 diploma: course leading to the AMI International Diploma which can be taken full-time in one year, part-time in two years or in a three summer format. Suitable for those working or planning to work with young children in the first six years of life, including with highly gifted or sick children.

• The Montessori Assistants Certificate Course: one-term, part-time course introducing the philosophy and practical skills required to become an assistant in a Montessori School.

• Montessori Lecture Series: a series of lectures to be held in September 2011.

NATIONAL DAY NURSERIES ASSOCIATION (NDNA)

• ILM Level 3 Award in First Line Management: aimed at Level 3 practitioners and managers and focusing on problem solving and a range of optional units that will fit within the PVI childcare sectors.

• ILM Level 3 Certificate in First Line Management: aimed at Level 3 practitioners and managers and focusing on problem solving and a range of optional units that will fit within the PVI childcare sectors.

• ILM Level 5 Award in Management: this course includes a number of days of distance learning. It is aimed at practitioners and managers of Level 4 and above, and will focus on managerial activities within a childcare setting. It will cover planning, problem solving, understanding change and achieving objectives through effective time management.

•    Foundation Award in Workplace Mentors
•    Intermediate Award in Workplace Mentors
•    Effective Staff Induction
•    Recruitment, Selection and Retention

NOEL QUINN

• Leading and managing teams: an introduction to management and leadership skills. Topics include staff motivation and delegation, working with others, developing the team and managing time and quality. It is ideal for first-time managers.

• Safer recruitment: participants will develop the skills, knowledge and confidence to manage their own effective recruitment process and be able to ensure that they operate within the law and principles of good practice techniques.

NORTHERN IRELAND CHILDMINDING ASSOCIATION (NICMA)
NICMA provides courses for developing a childminding business, including:

• Quality business start

• Development policies and procedures

• Good business practice

• Promotion of a childminding business

OSIRIS EDUCATIONAL

• Outstanding leadership in Early Years: this course will look at the realities of leading in times of rapid policy change, consider what constitutes outstanding provision and provide hands-on approaches to preparing for Ofsted inspections.

PLAYGROUP NETWORK

Contact regional associations direct for details of training on:

• Preparing for inspections

• Operational planning

• Administration

• Managing staff

• Committee work

PRE-SCHOOL LEARNING ALLIANCE (PLA)

• Behind the scenes: series of three-hour workshops for all staff, volunteers, committee members and parents who want to develop new skills and cover aspects of managing pre-schools and parent and toddler groups. Topics include money matters, roles and responsibilities, the importance of written policies, appointing staff, health and safety, behaviour policy, insurance and the operation plan.

PROFESSIONAL SUPPORT AND DEVELOPMENT (PSD)

• Management and leadership skills: two-day course covering the role of a manager, including the skills needed, planning and theory.

• Time management: one-day course on how to manage time, prioritise workload and negotiate time.

• Budgeting: one-day course covering budgeting skills.
  
  

RDE ASSOCIATES

• How to improve sustainability in the childcare sector: online training seminar detailing how to develop a simple business information system and use it to control a childcare business and positively affect sustainability.

• Using Facebook to promote your childcare business: this online course guides participants through setting up a Facebook page for their childcare settings.

• Practical decision making for childcare organisations and management: explores the key stages of decision making, strategies to minimise conflict and ways of ensuring that everyone is able to have an input in the development of a childcare setting.
  
  

SQUASH NUTRITION

• Producing, harvesting and preserving: seven-hour course for setting managers, including hands-on activities and a Squash goodie bag.

• Creative early years and family nutrition: seven-hour course including interactive discussion with professionals and take-away resources and recipes.
  
  

STEPPING STONES TRAINING

• It's tough at the top: how to manage a team effectively - developing delegates' confidence and conflict management skills as well as teaching them to recognise the importance of investing in their staff and to deal professionally with performance appraisals.

TRAINING DESIGNS

• Building a successful team

• In a team? What does that mean? Team building for all!

• Being an effective and confident leader.

• Effective communication with staff and parents.

• Tools and techniques to improve your performance at work.

THE TRAINING EXCHANGE

• Building effective teams

• Group supervision

• Management & leadership

• Supervision skills

WEAVE RECYCLE

• Making learning visible: half-day workshop exploring the role of documentation and the important of making a young child’s learning visible within a setting and beyond.