Education Development Trust has worked with the early years sector for several years, reaching many young children across the UK through our programmes. We know that ensuring children are given the right development support from an early age can make a real difference.
Development gaps and ‘word gaps’ can emerge early in a child’s life, and their effects can be felt throughout their school lives – and even into adulthood. For instance, an average of 40% of the development gap between disadvantaged 16-year-olds and their peers had already emerged by the time they were five years old [1].
By the age of just three, disadvantaged children are, on average, almost a year and a half behind their peers in their language development. Children who are behind in language development at the age of five, are six times less likely to reach expected standards in English by the age of eleven, and are eleven times less likely to reach these standards in mathematics [2].
Early Years education is a key area for us, not least because Early Years interventions for less advantaged children are hugely important to promoting their success later in their education, ultimately leading to a better life in a number of ways.
We provide support for Early Years practitioners in our work with expert professional development to help them to build and refine their skills.
Following the completion of phase two of the EYPDP - Building on Success, we commissioned an evaluation report of the programme to measure it's impact on receipients. The findings highlighted that following the training programme, 99% of practitioners agreed that they were able to apply the new learning to improve their everyday practice and that
- 98% of practitioners said they felt more confident in supporting children’s development in Speech, Language and Communication
- 94% of practitioners felt more confident in supporting children’s development in Maths
- 95% of practitioners felt more confident in supporting children’s development in Personal, Social and Emotional Development (PSED)
