This week's update includes information on:

• Nominate a Provider Portal User
• Keeping Children Safe This Summer
• Sign Up for September: Free Online Courses to Support SEND in Early Years (from Nasen)
• Early Years and Childcare Providers: Connect, Network and Professionally Develop (CPD)
• Early Words Together
• Early Education Entitlement
  • WellComm Data Collection
  • EYPP (Early Years Pupil Premium) / FSM (Free School Meals)
  • NRPFs (No Recourse To Public Funds) Summer 25
  • Parental Declaration Form Update Autumn Term
• SEND Support for Childminders
• Dingley's Promise Training - Early Years Inclusion Programme
• 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.

Keeping Children Safe This Summer

One child under ten is admitted to hospital every day after falling from a building – mainly from open windows or balconies.  And worryingly, these accidents peak in the summer months when windows are often left open to catch a breeze. 

Help us to keep children safe this summer by downloading and displaying our free warning poster Get yours here

More ways to keep children safe from falls:

• Read the new advice page on preventing serious falls.
• Share the falls fact sheet with the families you work with.
• Use the session plan for more tips on running engaging group discussions with families.

Plus, access translated fact sheets for families whose first language isn’t English. Available in Arabic, Bengali, Polish, Punjabi, Urdu and Welsh.

Sign Up for September: Free Online Courses to Support SEND in Early Years (from Nasen)

The Department for Education have partnered with Nasen to fully fund a 2-hour online webinar, suitable for Early Years Practitioners, Childminders and New SENCOs:

Course Title: Meeting the Needs of Every Child

Meeting the Needs of Every Child will provide Early Years Practitioners with an overview and understanding of inclusive practice for SEND in Early Years settings. The 2-hour webinar will cover the following topics:

• What do we mean by SEND?  
• Responsibilities of a setting towards children with SEND.
• The role of the SENCO and the key person.
• What effective inclusive practice looks like in an Early Years setting.
• How to use Nasen's free resources and materials.

There are multiple booking options available:

1. Wednesday 3rd September 2025: 10.00am – 12.00pm.
2. Monday 8th September 2025: 3.00pm – 5.00pm.
3. Tuesday 16th September 2025: 5.00pm – 7.00pm.
4. Thursday 25th September 2025: 10.00am – 12.00pm.

Follow this link to book yourself on to a suitable date Events listing | Nasen

Early Years and Childcare Providers: Connect, Network and Professionally Develop (CPD)

Summer is a great time to update your connections, subscriptions and to consider upcoming CPD opportunities.  So, we are taking this opportunity to remind you to check that you are still receiving emails and communication from three of our key partners:

1. Stronger Practice Hub.
2. Birmingham Early Years Network.
3. Department for Education.

Stronger Practice Hubs

The Stronger Practice Hubs offer CPD suitable for all roles and interests. There are currently 18 Stronger Practice Hubs working to support Early Years settings. Birmingham’s Stronger Practice Hub is called HEART Midlands – we share this Hub with Coventry, Herefordshire, Solihull, Warwickshire, and Worcestershire.

The CPD opportunities on offer via Heart Midlands Stronger Practice Hub are of a high quality and are fully funded.  For example, this Summer the Stronger Practice Hubs have scheduled Webinars aimed to support you with:

• Developing you climate action plan.
• Deepening your understanding of children’s emotional development.
• Developing effective staff supervision.

They have also shared calendar dates which will help you to plan CPD opportunities up to March 2026.

The easiest way to remain up do date with our Stronger Practice Hub is by joining their mailing list. 

To join, sign up for free here: Join our Hub | Stronger Practice Hubs

Access Heart Midlands website: Resources | Stronger Practice Hubs

Access Heart Midlands YouTube for Short Sparks videos:  HEART Midlands Early Years SPH - YouTube

Birmingham Early Years Network

Are you receiving email updates from Birmingham Early Year Network?

The Birmingham Early Years Networks (BEYN) is a place for the whole Early Years Community to connect, collaborate and communicate for the purpose of improving educational outcomes for the young children of Birmingham.

Birmingham Early Years Network support:

• Childminders.
• Private Voluntary & Independents settings (PVIs).
• Maintained nursery schools.
• Infant and primary schools.
• Special schools.
• Out of school provision.
• Children's Centres and all those working with children under 5 and their families.

There are blogs to explore, CPD opportunities, information for families and more.

Join the Birmingham Early Years Network mailing list here: Birmingham Early Years Networks | Contact

Website: Birmingham Early Years Networks

Department for Education

The Department for Education have a new communication channel, specifically for early education and childcare providers.

We encourage you to subscribe to their channel to receive direct access to:

• News and updates.
• Resources, helpful information and tips.
• Training and events.

To subscribe, or sign up, follow this link: Department for Education

Remember, the Department for Education also has the following website for providers: Help for early years providers : Get help for your setting

Early Words Together

Early Words Together by National Literacy Trust is a DfE approved programme that aims to support the communication, language, and early literacy of young children aged 3-4 through evidence-based activities which lead to improvements in their home learning environments. The programme is delivered to small groups of families over 6 weeks, led by practitioners and volunteers. It empowers parents to develop and enrich the home learning environment and support their child's early language and literacy.

Programme Aims

• Support communication, language, and early literacy of children aged 3–4 through evidence-based activities.
• Improve confidence and understanding of children’s language development.
• Support sustained positive changes to the home learning environment (HLE).
• Foster partnerships between practitioners and families, and across local systems.
• Close the language gap among children of different socio-economic classes.

Programme Objectives

• Close the language gap among children of different socio-economic statuses.
• Improve HLE as parents feel empowered as their child’s first educator.
• Foster educator-parent partnerships.
• Build practitioner networks using evidence-based strategies.
• Raise community expectations for children’s communication, language, and literacy (CLL) development.

Programme Content

• One-day practitioner training by the National Literacy Trust.
• Toolkits with six detailed session plans.
• Project management support including training, implementation, QA, and network facilitation.
• Volunteer training for peer support.
• Pre- and post-surveys for evaluation (provided by the Trust).

Benefits

• Parental Engagement: Improved communication and mutual understanding between parents and practitioners.
• Parental Awareness: Parents learn the importance of play and conversation.
• Home Learning: Parents gain ideas and confidence to support learning at home.
• Child Development: Improved school readiness and classroom outcomes.

This training is FREE and suitable for all Birmingham Early Years Providers, EEE Funding Registered Day Nurseries, Nursery Schools and School Nursery Classes, Childminders, Family Hubs and Children’s Centre settings.

Please complete the expression of interest form below to apply for a place on the Early Words Together programme by National Literacy Trust. Please note that spaces are limited, with capacity for only 30 settings to participate in Birmingham. The programme is funded by the DfE's Family Hubs initiative and all resources for families will be provided at no extra cost. To take part, your setting must have adequate space for families and children to work together. The programme is expected to begin in Autumn term 2 and continue through Spring term 2026. Places will be allocated on a first-come, first-served basis.

https://forms.office.com/e/WLeEgspKcb

Please feel free to share the Early Words Together programme flyer.

Early Education Entitlement

EYPP (Early Years Pupil Premium) / FSM (Free School Meals)

If you wish to claim a Free School Meal for any eligible 2, 3 or 4 year olds you must ensure that you are delivering their early education entitlement place in line with the terms and conditions of funding which state:

8.35. The Council will provide funding for Free School Meals (FSM) for eligible 2, 3 and 4 year-olds. To access a FSM the child must be attending their EEE funded entitlement for a minimum of 5 hours during core hours (9:00am to 3:00pm), and parents/carers must be in receipt of specific benefits. (See Appendix 5). Please note children who are eligible for a FSM are also eligible for early years pupil premium (EYPP) therefore the Provider can claim for both for eligible children. If the provider cannot deliver a FSM as detailed above then they should just claim EYPP.

This means that if a child only attends a morning session (e.g. 9:00am – 12:00pm) or only attends an afternoon session (e.g. 12:00pm – 3.00pm) you cannot claim a free school meal.

Parents can generate a code using the link below:

Eligibility (sentinelpartners.co.uk)

If a child is eligible for Free School Meals (FSM) they are also eligible for Early Years Pupil Premium (EYPP). You can claim EYPP regardless of whether you are able to offer and claim a free school meal.  

EYPP can be claimed for all eligible children aged 9 to 23 months, 2, 3 and 4 year olds.  FSMs are not available for 9 to 23 month olds.

NRPFs (No Recourse to Public Funds) Summer 2025

NRPFs Disadvantaged and Working Applications

Disadvantaged – As you are aware families who have no recourse to public funds (NRPF) may be eligible for 2 year funding. In these instances both parents need to have NRPF. If one parent does have recourse to public funds, then they would need to apply and be eligible under any of the other criteria e.g. universal credit and the income from work would be taken into account from the whole household.

When a family with NRPF completes an eligibility application it will return as ‘not eligible’ or ‘eligibility not confirmed’ which means you have to contact us, confirming that the family is eligible so that we can override the code

Eligibility applications for a place in a private nursery, Childminder or Independent school should be completed here

With immediate effect for any new requests you will need to submit the completed application form to enable us to override the code. The form must be fully completed and signed by both the parents and you the childcare provider. Incomplete application forms will be returned and not processed.

The form and guide are attached for your reference now but you will always find the most current version on document website

Working – Childcare / education funding is not a public fund, but the working parent entitlement does have residency requirements which cannot be met by someone with an NRPF condition attached to their visa.

A parent who has leave to remain with a 'No Recourse to Public Funds' (NRPF) condition cannot apply for the entitlement but can be included in an application made by a partner who meets the residence requirements.

If a parent is applying with their partner, the person who is applying must meet the residence requirement and both will need to satisfy the requirements relating to employment and income. For example, if one parent is a British citizen and their partner has leave to remain with NRPF, the British parent can make the application but both parents will need to be working and meet the income requirements.

Parental Declaration Form Update Autumn Term

As you are aware from previous communications, we have updated the parent declaration form (version 18) to be used from Autumn 2025 for all new and existing children.

You will note that the revised form asks for the child’s NHS number. It is imperative that you get this and that you check it for accuracy as it will form a key element of matching the child’s information to our child records. You will be required to submit the child’s NHS number onto the EEE portal when you enter your headcount claim.

Please ensure that parents are supported to understand what they are signing the parent declaration form for, and that all forms are fully completed at the beginning of every term. Dates of birth, names, addresses and NHS numbers must be verified against official documents such as a birth certificate or passport.

All eligibility codes must be checked and validated to ensure that they are eligible for the term they are going to be used for.

The parent declaration form is attached for ease but it can also be found on the BCC document library.

Please note this is directed to PVIs only.

WellComm Data Collection

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 of 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, and it is for your use only and not to be returned to us. We ask that you share your screening data through the online data collection form.

Thank you to the day nurseries, childminders and preschool playgroups that have shared their WellComm screenings on their EEE portal headcount submission in May. You will not be required to fill out the online WellComm data collection form as we already have your screening data.

If you are a school, maintained nursery school or PVI setting that has not shared your screening results on the EEE portal please complete the summer term WellComm data collection form.

The deadline for the form to be submitted is Thursday 31st August 2025.

To complete the survey, please click here.

SEND Support for Childminders

The following content is for EEE Childminders:

We wanted to take a moment to highlight the support available to you through the Early Years Childcare Service Team. Our aim is to support you in ensuring all children, including those with emerging or identified SEND, can access high-quality early years provision.

Our Team is here to help with the following:

• Early Years Consultant Inclusion Team offering practical advice for inclusive practice.
• Guidance on SEN Support Plans and Health Referrals.
• Advice on accessing funding streams, such as Early Years Pupil Premium, Disability Access Fund and Inclusion Support Early Years.
• Local Offer Birmingham website – Central hub for SEND Services and information.
• District network meetings – Valuable space to share experiences and best practices with peers.
• Enhance professional practice through Dingley’s Promise: Early Years Inclusion Programme. This FREE online training is designed to improve outcomes for children across Birmingham, with a particular focus on children with emerging or identified SEND. Courses available:
  • An Introduction to Early Years Inclusive Practice
  • Early Years SEND Transitions
  • Managing Behaviours that Challenge
  • Having Difficult Conversations with Families
  • Voice of the Child
  • Leadership and Management for Inclusion
  • Intersections within Early Years Practice

If you have any concerns or would like support, please don’t hesitate to contact us at EYCCSENDINCLUSION@birmingham.gov.uk

Dingley's Promise Training – Early Years Inclusion Programme

This content is for EEE Childminders, Out Of School (OOS) only (when running SAP include Holiday Playscheme) and EEE Early Years Providers:

We are pleased to share Birmingham Local Authority is part taking in the Early Years Inclusion Project, a Comic Relief-funded initiative delivered in partnership with Dingley's Promise.

This exciting programme offers fully funded online courses aimed at improving outcomes for children across Birmingham. The focus is on increasing access to early years and childcare places for children with emerging or identified special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).

Current courses available:

• An introduction to Early Years Inclusive Practice
• Early Years SEND Transitions 
• Managing Behaviours that Challenge  
• Having Difficult Conversations with Families
• Voice of the Child  
• Leadership and Management for Inclusion
• Intersections within Early Years Practice

These fully funded, FREE online training courses are available to all families and professionals from all services working with young children in Birmingham. Each course includes interactive workbooks, videos, and activities, and can be completed flexibly, at your own pace and at a time that suits you.

Keep an eye out for more information and the booking details which will become available next week.

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 two boxes of Early Talk Boost resources.

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

2 NEW DATES:

• Wednesday 13th August 2025, Edgbaston Family Hub (Doddington Children's Centre), 28 Doddington Grove, B32 4EL
• Monday 18th August 2025, Erdington Family Hub (Lakeside Children's Centre), 22 Lakes Road, B23 7UH

Fill out a Microsoft form and choose your preferred date https://forms.office.com/e/znJaMgzt9C