The big day has come and gone - the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) has truly arrived and nursery chains are in an upbeat mood. From now on it is all about getting on with the business of embedding the new framework and, having spent the past 12 months meticulously preparing for it, this is something they are equipped to do.
A lot of thought has gone into training over this period, and while chains have used different approaches, all have prioritised on ensuring every member of staff is involved.
At Children's Place in West Yorkshire, the emphasis has been on carefully phased training throughout its seven nurseries, starting with managers and cascading down to junior members of staff.
Director Karen Walker says, 'We began gearing up last year, with managers attending awareness evenings held by local authorities. The EYFS then became the focus for our training days, with managers and their teams having the opportunity to look at areas they felt most uncertain about.'
Nursery managers have certainly had their work cut out in the past year; not only have they had to assimilate the EYFS themselves, but they have also had to disseminate that knowledge to their staff.
This process has been enthusiastically embraced at the ten-strong Nu Nu chain in Derbyshire. Chief executive Linda Knight says, 'Managers and their assistants have had intensive training to equip them to give their teams feedback on subsequent training days. They have also been responsible for giving presentations to the senior management team to prove they can convey the information to all staff.'
At the Westminster Children's Society, the approach has been to find someone in each of its 15 centres to lead on the EYFS. 'It has been that individual's role to look at the policies and requirements, and measure our resources against the guidance,' says chief executive June O'Sullivan. 'It has been a case of scrutinising our practice and spotting the gaps.'
A particular challenge for chains has been ensuring that all sites benefit equally from training and have the same approach to implementation.
For a large chain such as Child Base, which operates 33 nurseries, this has gone smoothly. Education co-ordinator Sue Andrews says, 'There are no differences, as we have a strong, consistent approach to training across all nurseries.'
Bright Horizons Family Solutions also prides itself on a consistent approach. Hands-on support is provided by Nicola Amies, director of education and training, and her colleague Judith Callis, who ensure they are always accessible to centre managers - even if it is via Blackberry.
'We value each centre as being unique and individual, rather than one of an identical link in a chain, so support is responsive to the needs of each centre,' says Ms Amies.
At Children's Place, Ms Walker says there are some differences in understanding and interpreting the EYFS between its sites. 'But this is to be expected with such a diverse workforce,' she says.
Feeling spontaneous
Now that chains are embedding the EYFS, they have a sharper sense of how their day-to-day practice might change.
For most, however, it has been a case of aligning existing practice.
'We were never going to change radically,' says June O'Sullivan. 'The four themes fit very well within our existing ethos. Our children have always been involved in their own planning, but what we like about the EYFS is the way it has made this more explicit and created simpler learning journeys.'
For most chains, the emphasis on the quality of observation and interaction has been very welcome. At Nu Nu, Linda Knight says, 'One change for us is that the staff will have a lot more time to play with the children, as we have moved into a more spontaneous approach to observation without a particular focus in mind. We are also seeing the staff taking indoor activities outdoors more.'
Children's Place says it has made changes to some of its care, learning and inclusion policies, and these will be ongoing throughout its review process. 'Our main change is in the way we record some of our work. There is the new Look, Listen and Note booklet to be handed on to schools, and we are discussing with the schools how best this happens,' says Karen Walker.
'We have also slightly simplified some of our record-keeping, which had rather expanded over the past few years, with the arrival of more teachers into our settings. So we have held a series of meetings with teachers and Early Years Professionals and looked at how we could streamline our observation and planning.'
Meanwhile, Nicola Amies maintains that no major changes have been made at Bright Horizons in the wake of the EYFS, though there have been some revisions around observation, assessment and planning.
'These have been changed to encompass the terminology of the EYFS,' she says. 'The most significant change for staff working with under-threes is, of course, the loss of the Birth to Three Matters framework, which so many of us have enjoyed using as a guide. For this group, there has been a greater need to make adjustments around the practice guidance.'
Child Base is now making sure that its planning and learning journeys follow a very child-centred approach, as well encouraging its team to be reflective practitioners. 'We are using the Principles into Practice cards for practitioners to question what they are doing, look at ways to improve practice, as well as celebrate effective practice,' reports Ms Andrews.
Onwards and upwards
Chains recognise the importance of accessing funding for further training as the EYFS unfolds.
'Children's Place has a big commitment to continuous professional development, and each of its settings have allocated graduate leader funding that will support members of staff as they increase their professional qualifications,' says Karen Walker. 'We are offering staff four days continuing professional development each year, including two company training days and two days of their own choice.
She adds, 'We remain actively involved in training in each of the local authorities we sit in, ensuring that we feed back suggestions and ideas for developing the training programme.'
Child Base has a long history of investing in in-house training, and the EYFS has now been linked to its established Sound Foundations programme so that the two run in parallel.
Sue Andrews says, 'We are also devising additional training programmes that will be implemented over the coming months. These will provide tiered levels of training, designed to meet the different levels of need, from simplified induction training to more in-depth sessions for management teams.'
Over the next few months, chains are determined to scrutinise their approach to the EYFS and improve upon it, if possible.
As Nicola Amies says, 'Each day is new and full of potential. Learning is a journey for all - not just children.'