Publication - Research and analysis
Early learning and childcare trials discussion paper: analysis of responses
Analysis of responses to a discussion on establishing delivery model trials to support expanding the early learning and childcare provision.
ANNEX 3: Examples of Innovative Practice ( Question 6)
Examples of Innovative Practice within ELC Provision
| Topic | Initiative name | Location | Theme | Description | Reference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Providing flexibility | "Stretched funding" models | Various | Supporting parents | Spreading the allocated funding per child over a greater number of weeks ( e.g. 52 weeks) to provide out of term time provision but also to enable parents to budget and not be faced with higher out of term time costs. | Jaybees (Childcare) Ltd Busy Bees Nursery Inverness National Day Nurseries Association Individual |
| Providing flexibility | Altered hours for ELC settings | Orkney Islands | Supporting parents | Instead of a 3 hours 10 min model in full time settings, Orkney Islands adopted different models of ELC provision and allowed parents flexibility to align with parents' needs. | Orkney Islands Council |
| Providing flexibility | Learning from primary school flexible hours models | Highland Council | Supporting parents | Trialling flexibility models in 4 primary schools in Highland, 2 large schools offering 8-6pm provision, 1 offering 9-3pm using a 1:8 staff child ratio and a 4 th offering an early level class. View to transferring knowledge from these to ELC settings. | Highland Council |
| Increasing parent choice | Gloucestershire Model | Gloucestershire | Supporting parents | Parents are given ELC funding and enabled to choose how they spend this within accredited settings. | Individual |
| Increasing parent choice | Childminders delivering ELC | West Lothian | Enabling ELC in home setting | Use of childminders to deliver 600 hours of ELC. | Scottish Childminding Association |
| Increasing parent choice | Play and Care Stepping Stones for Families |
Ayrshire Glasgow |
Enabling ELC in home setting | High quality childcare in own home which is particularly beneficial where there are additional support needs or parents work various inconsistent hours ( e.g. shifts). | Stepping Stones for Families |
| Workforce | Opening Doors | Inverness, Ross-Shire and Sutherland | Increasing the skilled workforce | Flexible student-centred approach to mentoring potential childcare workers involving group learning days and one-to-one mentoring. | Care and Learning Alliance |
| Workforce | Childhood Practice Award | National | Increasing the skilled workforce | SSSC working in partnership with Education Scotland and other stakeholders to support a programme of enhanced learning in the sector. The Childhood Practice award and the virtual nursery are examples of innovative delivery and approaches to supporting learning. | Scottish Social Services Council |
| Partnership with parents | "Blether bags" | A nursery - not identified | Supporting families | Many of the children and the families using the service do not have English as their first language. These families are supported through the use of topic resource bags ("blether bags"). Older children in the school were encouraged to record the names of the items in the bags in both English and Polish. The bags can be taken home by nursery children and explored with parents. Parents were very much involved in learning and feel part of the nursery and school community. | Care Inspectorate |
| Partnership with parents | Families and Schools Together ( FAST) | UK wide | Supporting families | Programme run in the UK by Save the Children for parents of early primary age children. Designed to improve parents' confidence, their relationship with their child and their engagement with their child's education. This may provide a model for the early years' sector. | Save the Children |
| Data bank | "My World Outdoors" http://www.careinspectorate.com/index.php/my-world-outdoors |
International | Sharing innovative practice | Publication with examples of innovative and excellent practice supporting national guidance and Scotland's Play Strategy. | Care Inspectorate |
| Data bank | Childcare Commission resources | International | Sharing innovative practice | Childcare Commission's range of sources of international evidence. | Children in Scotland |
| Use of expressive arts | Pen Green Children's Centre and Research Base - http://www.pengreen.co.uk Thomas Coram Centre http://www.thomascoram.camden.sch.uk/# Reflections Nursery http://www.reflectionsnurseries.co.uk/light- everywhere/4577814764 |
National | Creative experience for children | ELC that uses arts and creativity at the heart of service delivery. | Starcatchers |
| Use of expressive arts | The Playground http://www.starcatchers.org.uk/sites/default/files/The Playground report WEB.pdf |
2 settings in South Lanarkshire and 1 setting in East Renfrewshire | Creative experience for children | Residency based projects delivered by Starcatchers which places artists in childcare settings for extended periods of time to support outcomes based on a consistency of contact between children, staff, parents and the artists involved. | Starcatchers |
| Child centred | Montessori approach | National | Child development | Holistic approach to child development | National Day Nurseries Association |
| Partnership working between organisations | Pen Green www.pengreen.org |
Corby in Peterborough | Multi-agency approach | Internationally acclaimed 'centre of excellence'. As well as being an integrated children's centre offering families a multi-agency co-located service Pen Green also has as Research and Training Centre located alongside the Children's Centre. Pen Green promotes a strong community development ethos, at least 50% of the workforce are local parents who they have supported to become fully qualified Early Years Practitioners. | Midlothian Council and Midlothian Sure Start ADES Early Years' Network |
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