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Early years settings are great places for young children to begin learning about each other’s differences and similarities. After all, each child brings with them different early experiences of family, home and life that makes them unique – and this should be celebrated. Inclusive early years settings promote a sense of belonging for each and every child and listen to children’s voices – whether that be verbal or otherwise. Supporting each unique child to learn and develop well, and ensuring their individual needs are being met is at the heart of inclusive early years practice.

Being inclusive is much more than providing children with equal opportunities. It involves identifying and removing barriers or challenges, having high expectations and aspirations for every child’s learning, responding to and reflecting on the needs of each child, and being proactive at addressing bias or stereotypes. No child or family should experience any discrimination in terms of the protected characteristics outlined within the Equality Act 2010 (age, disability, gender reassignment, race, religion or belief, sex, sexual orientation, marriage and civil partnership).

By doing these things, and much more, inclusive early years practice enables all children to thrive and achieve towards their full potential.

This is why we are pleased to launch our new Inclusion CPD package, which brings together various training resources – from Virtual Classrooms to Insights, Alliance publications to Toolkits – each with a focus around an element of inclusive early years practice.

Whether you are wanting to further develop your knowledge around supporting children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) or would like to feel more confident with challenging bias and stereotypes around race or gender, then we have something for you.

To find out more and to discuss your individual requirements, please fill out our .

Our bespoke CPD offer includes:

Insights

Equality, diversity and inclusion 

1 - 1.5 hours

This introductory course is designed to raise awareness and understanding of equality, diversity and inclusion in the workplace and an early years environment.  Fostering an inclusive culture so that everyone feels a sense of belonging, listened to and valued.  Educators will explore protected characteristics, stereotypes, biases and their own perception as to what influences decisions they make.

Virtual classrooms

An introduction to working with children with SEND 

3 hours

There are fundamental elements to working with children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) in the early years. 
 
This interactive Virtual Classroom covers relevant law and policy together with developing an inclusive ‘can do’ approach. It will provide participants with underpinning knowledge to work with children with SEND in early years settings. 
 
By attending this Virtual Classroom, you will be able to: 

• Explain special educational needs and disabilities 
• Consider the ethical and legal framework for SEND 
• Recognise and apply good practice techniques for working with children with SEN/D 
• Plan effective partnership with parents and external agencies 

Supporting children for whom English is an additional language 

3 hours

Do you want to feel confident in supporting children and families who speak English as an additional language? 
 
By attending this interactive virtual classroom, you will: 

• Review the research around how children can be bilingual and multilingual 
• Identify how settings can help children to learn effectively in a monolingual environment 
• Explore how home visiting is an effective welcoming and settling-in practice, especially where a family has a home language other than English. 

Makaton taster

1.5 hours

The Makaton taster workshop is suitable for both early years practitioners and parents. 
 
It provides a brief introduction to the background of Makaton - what Makaton is, where it originates, why it is used and who it is for. You will learn 34 basic signs and symbols (concepts) from the Makaton Core Vocabulary and 12 additional signs and symbols appropriate for Early Years settings. 
 
All attendees will be provided with a certificate upon completion and information regarding the next level of training they can attend, if they want to continue their Makaton learning Journey. 

Becoming actively anti racist 

4 hours

Racism is everybody’s business and speaking up can be challenging.  

This interactive and dynamic training explores relevant law and legislation, together with promoting a continuous reflective and inclusive approach.  

By attending this virtual classroom, you will:  

• Create a framework that supports colleagues and peers to question mindsets and attitudes that perpetuate racism 
• Understand how to create an anti-racist working environment  
• Discuss the difference between ‘non-racist’ and ‘anti-racist’ 
• Explore what race and racism are  

Nurturing sensory wellbeing in inclusive environments 

2 hours

Do you want to feel confident in your understanding of and support for children and young people’s sensory well-being?  

By attending this interactive virtual classroom, you will find out more about:  

• The ways reflective practice can support educators to enhance inclusive practice going forward  
• The practical strategies that can be implemented when children are dysregulated  
• How planned sensory environments can improve children’s holistic well-being and development  

Understanding behaviour in the early years 

4 hours

Are you confident that you do all you can to support children’s positive behaviour? This course provides useful, practical advice on how best to support children who display more challenging behaviour. 
 
This interactive virtual classroom will enable you to: 

• Understand behaviour and its functions
• Identify key influences on behaviour
• Determine how to support children to learn self-reflection and regulation
• Examine steps to safer intervention.

Supporting wellbeing through a gender inclusive curriculum – challenging stereotyping in the early years 

3 Hours

Do you know why gender bias and stereotypes should be challenged? Join us in this thought-provoking and interactive Virtual Classroom, where we will: 

• Define what gender stereotypes are 
• Identify how educators have an influence on the stereotype’s children hold 
• Discover how the commercial sector perpetuates stereotypes based on gender 
• Explore how to support parents and families to recognise and challenge stereotypes and bias. 

Toolkits

Supporting children with SEND in the early years: Celebrating every child

We know that inclusive practice and appropriate and effective support for children with special educational needs or disabilities (SEND) is an integral part of quality early years provision – and over recent years, getting it right for children with SEND in the early years has been increasingly recognised as key to improving their life outcomes.

At the Alliance, we believe that support from educators should be framed in a positive approach that celebrates every single child as a unique and special individual with their own personal needs and starting points.

Supporting children with SEND in the early years: Celebrating every child has been created to support all early educators to offer differentiated or additional support to enable children with a diagnosed or undiagnosed need or disability to reach their full potential, and have an equal chance of success.

It provides tools and information that you can use to enable individual children’s progress, as well as links to a wide range of helpful articles and resources to support excellence in practice.  This valuable resource will help early educators to support children at all stages of their learning journey, and create an environment that is warm, welcoming and nurturing and facilitates a true sense of belonging for all children. 

Supporting multilingual children and families toolkit

The Supporting Multilingual Children and Families Toolkit is sponsored by Polylino, a multilingual digital picture book service for early years settings.

While engagement with families is a key element of any quality early years provision, this can present a challenge for providers when families and educators do not speak the same language. However, by adopting a proactive approach that recognises and values the differences between families, setting can build long-lasting positive relationships with families who are multilingual or who are speaking and learning English as an additional language.

The Early Years Alliance has developed the Supporting Multilingual Children and Families Toolkit to support this process and ensure all educators feel confident in working with and supporting multilingual families. The Toolkit includes a comprehensive Best Practice Guide, which is underpinned by the principles of the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) Framework and contains information, advice and guidance on a wide range of practical topics, including settling in children who are new to English-speaking settings, the stages of early multilingual learning, and how to prepare your provision to support multilingual families

Alongside the Guide, you will also benefit from a one-hour virtual consultation with one of the Alliance’s early years experts: this is a reflective conversation that will support you to navigate through the guide, focusing on the essential elements of supporting multilingual children and families..

Upon purchasing the Toolkit, you will be contacted by a member of the Alliance team who will work with you to arrange a suitable time for your consultation. They will also give you access to the Best Practice Guide and supporting resources.

To find out more and to discuss your individual requirements, please fill out our .