How are our two-year-olds doing? It’s a really important question given that they will have lived most of their lives so far in the midst of a pandemic. As each month goes by, more is being learned about the impact this is having on their communication, social skills, wellbeing and general development. Particularly worrying is that according to Ofsted, take-up of funded places for two-year-olds is down since Covid hit, with fewer parents opting to place their children in early education at this age stage.
Taking this into account, it seems that the progress check at two has never been more important – and some might question why practitioners are still working to the same statutory requirements devised when it was launched in 2012.
However, the good news is that while the requirements remain the same, there is new non-statutory guidance to help bring practice up to date (see page 35). Practitioners can now draw on the advice of experts and sector colleagues to approach the check in a proactive way. The guidance is designed to encourage them to use the information they collect effectively as part of an action plan, rather than filing it away on the basis that all of the boxes have been ticked.
Historically parents have not felt as much a part of the check as they should, and this needs to change – something the new guidance reflects. Listening carefully to parents as a route to stronger, respectful partnerships is vital and the new guidance offers ‘possible discussion points’ linked to Development Matters, which will undoubtedly prove useful.
As our feature on page 32 underlines, involving parents and understanding their Covid experiences is key to addressing children’s wellbeing and development. With so many parents having been isolated and unable to access services, they may now need to be encouraged back into the fold.