This week's update includes information on:

• Nominate a Provider Portal User
• Early Education Entitlements
  • Disability Access Fund Summer 2025 Term
• Speech, Language, and Communication
  • Children’s Speech and Language Therapy Advice Line 
  • Deadline Extension for Spring Term WellComm Data Collection
  • Early Talk Boost

Please feel free to share this update with anyone you think would benefit from accessing this content. 

If you have any questions or feedback, please contact familyinformation@birmingham.gov.uk.

Nominate a Provider Portal User

As you may already be aware, the Early Years and Childcare Team has launched a new Information Portal for providers called the Nexus Provider Portal. 

Many providers have already nominated a Nexus Provider Portal user. If you haven’t already done so, please do this today using our online form. You can have accounts for up to four people within your organisation. 

The introduction of this portal will enable us to:

• strengthen the information that we collect from you, to support our sufficiency data
• improve the information that we can provide to parents and third parties when they are looking for childcare options
• contact you more efficiently.  

Please note: Completing this form does not immediately create your account. After we verify the nominated user form, we will send you a link to create your Provider Portal account.

If you have any queries about the Nexus Provider Portal, please contact FamilyInformation@birmingham.gov.uk.

Early Education Entitlements 

Disability Access Fund Summer 2025 Term

Are you missing out on extra funding?

The Disability Access Fund is a one-off annual payment of £938 for each eligible child per annum in your setting. 

• DAF can be claimed once per year, which can help with children’s education and support. 
• You must ensure that any child who you claim DAF for is in receipt of Disability Living Allowance. 
• There is a section on the parental declaration form which must be completed for eligible children.

PVIs can make a claim on your headcount claim on the portal; you should only make one claim per year. This will be paid in full in your final 20% payment.

You can apply for all age groups and entitlements. Children do not need to access their full entitlement for you to claim Disability Access Funding.

Schools can identify DAF on their Census claim.

Please speak to parents to find out if children are eligible.

Speech, Language, and Communication

Children’s Speech and Language Therapy Advice Line 

For the attention of all Early Years and Childcare providers.

Call: 0121 466 6231

Open Monday – Friday 9am – 4pm.

The Speech and Language Therapy advice line is available to Early Years settings and parents for advice and strategies to support children’s communication needs or eating and drinking concerns. They can take questions about your WellComm screening and give advice for children that are not making progress.

This is a voicemail service, so leave a message and a qualified Speech and Language Therapist will respond in a timely way. Leave your contact details and the best time to contact you, and SLT will return your call. You can also contact the SLT team by email at bchnt.childrens.slt@nhs.net. This is monitored daily, and staff will respond to you in a timely way.

You can also visit their webpage for advice, strategies and support.                                                 

Deadline Extension for Spring Term WellComm Data Collection

For the attention of EEE providers.

Thank you to the settings that have returned the Spring Term WellComm Data Collection Form. We appreciate that the end of term is a busy time; therefore we have extended the deadline for submission to 4th May 2025.

Complete the survey here.

WellComm Data Spreadsheet

The WellComm Data Spreadsheet is intended to assist in collating your WellComm screening results. The spreadsheet includes instructions for its use, a page for entering all your children's screening results, and an automated analysis page. This analysis page offers a comprehensive summary of the data required for completing the WellComm Data Collection Form. Using the spreadsheet is optional, as you may have already developed your own. The spreadsheet is for your use only and not to be returned to us, we instead ask that you share your screening data through the online data collection form.  

If you would like support with using WellComm to screen children or with the WellComm data spreadsheet and form, please contact your local DLP team or Early Years Consultant Birmingham Early Years Networks | Developing Local Provision or email eyduty@birmingham.gov.uk

Early Talk Boost

This training is FREE and funded by Birmingham City Council, suitable for Birmingham EEE Funding Registered Day Nurseries, Nursery Schools and School Nursery Classes.

Early Talk Boost is a targeted intervention aimed at 3-4-year-old children who need help with talking and understanding words, helping to boost their language skills to narrow the gap between them and their peers. The programme aims to accelerate children’s progress in language and communication by an average of 6 months, after a nine-week intervention. 

Children selected to take part in the intervention will attend three sessions per week during circle/story time, each lasting 15-20 minutes delivered by an early year’s practitioner. The sessions activities include the foundation skills in speech, language, and communication that children need for learning and understanding new words, as well as having conversations. The training is delivered face to face and each setting will receive 2 boxes of Early Talk Boost resources.

The sessions take place at 9.30am – 3.00pm with a 20-person capacity:

• Thursday 1st May 2025, Wyndcliffe Primary School, Little Green Lane, B9 5BG
• Tuesday 6th May 2025, Perry Barr Family Hub (Rookery Children's Centre), 60 Mount Pleasant Avenue, B21 9QA
• Wednesday 21st May 2025, Wyndcliffe Primary School, Little Green Lane, B9 5BG
• Thursday 22nd May 2025, Erdington Family Hub (Lakeside Children's Centre), 22 Lakes Road, B23 7UH
• Friday 6th June 2025, Erdington Family Hub (Lakeside Children's Centre), 22 Lakes Road, B23 7UH
• Monday 16th June 2025, Selly Oak Family Hub (Chinnbrook Children’s Centre), 213 Trittiford Rd, Birmingham, B13 0ET
• Friday 20th June 2025, Perry Barr Family Hub (Rookery Children's Centre), 60 Mount Pleasant Avenue, B21 9QA

Please fill out the Microsoft form to choose your preferred date and location.