The review was launched on Monday 2 August, and all submissions need to be in by 30 September.

Clearly as a professional association we are keen to ensure our position is informed by all of our members and that we use this opportunity to ensure your voice is heard. We are therefore working to put together our own comprehensive submission, and need you to help us get it exactly right.

We know some of you have already been compiling or contributing to responses from your own nurseries, children’s centres, LAs and other network groups. Indeed we would encourage you all to put together your own setting or group submissions.

But please also contribute to ours! So that we can collate and edit it all together, please send us your views by Mon 13th September.

We welcome your views on all the areas covered in the consultation. However please do make sure you specifically think about the areas we particularly focus on (eg the role of EYPs (especially in leading the EYFS), qualifications, workload, role of QTS vs EYPS, ratios, even pay/status). You may also want to revisit any local submission and make sure these issues are covered too!

The consultation can be found here:

http://www.education.gov.uk/consultations/index.cfm?action=consultationDetails&consultationId=1727&external=no&menu=1

Please do spread the word and encourage everyone to submit their views. This is a key chance for you as a professional cadre of leaders to influence the future of the sector. Rest assured that others will make sure their views are heard. Let’s make sure that our voice is there too, and that we have the evidence provided by you to make our voice one that carries weight.

Just to remind you – we need your responses to us by Mon 13th September – and any separate response you put in must be submitted by 30th September. So please get your thinking caps on and help ensure we are hearing you so we in turn are heard loud and clear.

Each year’s Conference has a theme, and this year the thread is the “Gender Agenda”. Yet it was fascinating to hear – in very different ways – each of our keynote speakers on Day 1 remind us to focus above all on “The Unique Child” (presumably not having conferred beforehand!). From the big picture on the EYFS, to illuminating case studies from a particularly creative school in Enfield, to the science behind it all, the key message was to recognise but not to be straitjacketed by gender – with our own expectations being so important in setting the context for children’s sense of success and failure, and their engagement with and openness to learning as they become older.

The Conference was opened by Gail Quinton, Worcestershire Director of Children’s Services, who reminded us, through her own very recent experience of her son, tranformed from his usual teenage silence into an articulate, knowledgeable and passionate other person during each match of the world cup, that we so often see only part of the story whether parent, friend or practitioner.

Revisiting some of the thinking underpinning the EYFS, Sally Jaeckle highlighted the need to go with what fascinates each child to enter their universe and truly engage with their learning. From a very different perspective but with noticeable synergy, Margaret Edgington reminded us that just because some children CAN develop specific skills by a certain age does not mean that they SHOULD – and definitely not that every child should be pushed to do so!

To round off the day we were privileged to hear from Dr Lise Eliot sharing with us her research from the US into the pink and blue brain. Again and again she emphasised that the science shows yes, there are innate differences in some areas (though fewer than you might expect) – but that these differences are statistically small, with huge overlap. The real gender difference we see in adults is learned difference, imprinted by years of gendered expectations and experience.

Yes it’s a very brief summary! But has that whetted your appetite for Day 2?

Well if you want to follow us throughout the day visit our Twitter trail at www.twitter.com/aspecteyps (anyone can view – you don’t have to be on Twitter already!), or if you’re already on Twitter keep an eye on #AspectECEG for updates as they happen!

Inevitably the stresses around budgets, priorities, and local and national policy, all have an impact in our own workplaces too.

So here’s just a brief summary of five things you can do if/when things at work become a bit stressful or difficult

1. start taking notes of meetings and incidents: especially meetings where priorities are agreed, specific issues are recognised, or decisions made
2. get hold of your employer’s policies and read them: you never lose out by knowing where your organisation’s policies are stored or what they say
3. be careful + thoughtful in your own behaviours: your best protection at any time of difficulty or stress, whether related to you personally, to budgets or to wider issues, is to make sure your own behaviour and performance is beyond reproach!
4. if you get worried, alert your union rep just in case: don’t wait until the crisis hits; as soon as things start to look as if they might be difficult mention it to your local representative. If you don’t have a local representative think about becoming one!
5. make sure your job description and/or role profile is up to date: it never does any harm to review the documentation around your role, and the performance management documentation to check it is up-to-date

And finally – when times get challenging you all need to be a member of a union. So if you’re reading this but haven’t joined Aspect yet – do so NOW! To join Aspect simply click here to fill in our online form.

More generally, it is also important to encourage all your colleagues to join a union so you’re all protected. That might well be Aspect for them too, but if they aren’t sure, signpost them here for support to help them find the right union.

Above all, get your support and protection in place now!

Always a great opportunity to catch up with colleagues, this year’s Conference seems particularly well timed and will no doubt be a chance exploited by delegates sharing all the latest news, views and plans in response to the government’s still emerging plans.

Mind you, with a formal agenda that includes international speakers such as Sue Palmer, Lise Eliot and Gary Wilson, and a highly topical “Gender Agenda” to get to grips with, you’ll be hard pressed to choose between the networking and the “proper” (!) learning.

The Conference is on Friday and Saturday 25th and 26th June 2010, being held in the rather wonderful Hilton Puckrup Hall Hotel, Tewkesbury, Gloucestershire GL20 6EL.

For more details and to reserve your place visit: Aspect’s 2010 ECEG Conference

If you are an EYP remember that your local network will have access to funding for CPD, so get in touch with your local co-ordinator directly, or pal up with a friend and then go for the funding. But don’t take too long … book your place today!

Of course policy-wise much remains unknown. Indeed, one of the phrases of the day, attributed to a colleague from the Skills Funding Agency (SFA) was that we are currently in a “policy vacuum”. Despite this, it was amazing to hear quite how much is going on day to day, driving on with the real job supporting professionals and improving the quality of provision for  children and families.

One particularly inspiring session didn’t sound particularly exciting – the Graduate Leader Fund (GLF) and its impact. But despite being still early days, the session was fantastic. All sorts of quality developments were mentioned, with promising measures and outcomes showing that actually this money really is making a difference.

Here are just a few of the impacts noted by individual Local Authorities:

• More settings with EYPs improved their Ofsted ranking than settings without EYP leaders
• Graduate-led settings were more inspired by, and in turn reaping more benefits from, ECERS/ITERS
• Plaques celebrating EYP status in settings had led to parents asking questions around staff skills and qualifications, and therefore broadened the understanding of quality provision
• Funding support groups and networking for employers with EYPs has been seen to increase buy-in to the EYP programme, and ultimately to deliver quality improvement

So, a great session with a simple story:

EYPs really do matter and really do make a difference, and funding channelled to early years really does have an impact!

So if you’re not on Twitter join now and get to meet a whole load of interesting organisations all in one go!

Basically the idea will be that – along with lots of others – we will be tweeting throughout the day to raise awareness of Family Information Services and what they do, and to have open Q&A sessions to support families, parents, carers, grandparents, friends, and everyone else who might be interested …

Our members who work in Family Information Services work hard to support and back all the people who ask them for help – and today we’re really excited to be able to support them back and spread the word about the great work done by Family Information Services across the country!

The plan for the day is …

• 10am – 10.30am – What is an FIS
• 10.30am – Parenting Hour
• 11.30am – Family Benefits Hour
• 12.30pm – Open Questions Hour
• 1.30pm – Children’s Activities Hour
• 2.30pm – People who help FIS
• 3.30pm – FIS here to help

To find out more about Family Information Services as a concept visit: http://www.familyinformationservices.org.uk/

And then log on to Twitter at www.twitter.com (if you’re not yet a member, join today – you know you want to!) and take part in #FISFest2010!

(If you are new to Twitter, some good people to follow today would be @StokeFIS and @MonCFIS – thanks due to all of these wonderful folk for all their work – and of course find us too, @AspectEYPs).

Sadly, pre-election the debates seemed to reveal a worrying lack of engagement and priority given to the early years agenda, with few moments when our collective issues really seemed to catch the limelight.

However we cannot let our issues lie and we won’t.

The current national political negotiations hold real potential quandaries for all of us. Some of the divides may be obscure but there are also very real differences:

• The Lib Dems and Tories have both demonstrated suspicion or dislike of the EYFS though their remedies remain undetailed
• Labour have driven through the EYPS programme and seem to remain committed, whereas both the other main parties have stayed silent
• Wider questions of qualifications, despite the focus within the sector itself, has been largely ignored
• The Tories have pursued a values-agenda with the proposed marriage tax break which has been rejected by both Labour and the Lib Dems
• The future of Sure Start, the number and role of Children’s Centres in the future, and the interaction of Outreach workers with health visitor numbers did feature in campaigning and in manifestos – yet the figures and likely real impacts of policies remain unclear
• Flexible working policies and extended parental leave are promoted by all parties – although as ever “details” (ie levels of pay and support) remain less clear yet are crucial in determining genuine access and uptake
• The logic that more flexible working and a focus on employment must demand more in terms of the the hours and demands on early years settings and workers seems to be entirely missed
• Basics such as pay and status seem to remain in the shadows

There’s clearly much to play for in the ongoing debates.

Across the sector we do not always agree ourselves on the way forward. However, there are some basics which few of us dispute. And maybe there is something here about focusing our attention, and our collective weight and strength, on the underlying issues that we all know must be tackled. They might be hard, and they may not lend themselves to eye-catching policies … but here are some of our suggestions for the real issues we should all be ganging together to fight:

Let’s demand higher status for the early years sector and stand up proudly for what we do.

Let’s demand the funding, support and structures that quality provision cannot do without.

Let’s demand proper pay, conditions, recognition and career structures for everyone working in early years at every level.

Let’s demand real recognition that every child has the right to the best start in life, and that this means every child having access to the very highest quality education and care.

Whoever forms the next government we are going to need to stand firmer and stronger than ever to ensure every single child has the best possible access and opportunities, every single parent and carer feels truly confident in the care and education their child receives, and every single early years worker has the respect, support and recognition of society.

So over the next few hours, days, weeks and months let’s stand together and demand that all our politicians, on this vital subject, put party politics aside and stand up for our children and our future.

For all of us for whom the future of early years, early years workers, and the education, care and nurturing of our youngest children is a key priority … please take a look:

>> Early Years Policy Commitments

Sadly, none of the parties mention EYPs. However, as our earlier article explained, we have written to each of the main parties to clarify their position on this crucial component of the early years world.

You may also be interested in a more general round-up of policies relating to education that can be found on SchoolDuggery’s blog. A helpful and succinct summary!

Similarly, there’s also a summary on the Guardian website.

Commentary on the policies of each of the parties can also be found in these two Nursery World articles:

• Labour and Tories make manifesto pledges for families
• Lib Dems plan to slim down the EYFS

So what do you think? Who has your vote? How important are these matters to you in determining how you will vote? The politicians seem to have been very quiet on these matters: let’s get the debate going as loudly as possible so they have to take part and listen our views.

All over the world workers and their representatives conduct events, demonstrations, vigils and a whole host of other activities to mark the day.

In the UK Workers’ Memorial Day is now officially recognised by the government. So your local council and public bodies may well wish to fly official flags at half-mast, local religious centres are including commemoration in their worship, and purple “forget-me-not” ribbons are being distributed up and down the country.

Wreath-laying events have been taking place all day across the country – from Edinburgh and Clydebank in Scotland, to Jersey and Guersney. A commemoration in Wolverhampton was held at 12.30pm at the Cenotaph in front of the Civic Centre and St Peters’ church, along with a balloon release. Chelmsford is hosting a rally Central Park, along with a Health & Safety Exhibition in Chelmsford Library’s Public Square. These are just some of a huge range of events being held across the UK. For more details of events near you visit the TUC listings here.

Up and down the country workplaces are holding a one minute’s silence. If nothing has been organised at your workplace this year – then maybe have your own brief moment of thought instead. And maybe spend a few minutes thinking about health & safety in your workplace. What works? What doesn’t? And how can changes be made?

For today, as the cry goes, we: “remember the dead, but fight like hell for the living”.

Today’s meeting was at the TUC in London, attended by the usual officers to support our EYP lay leadership.

In the next couple of weeks full notes will be circulated to all Aspect EYP members, along with further information on how to get involved with the National Committee more directly in the future: yes, we are looking to expand and broaden our membership so all of you who are members keep your eyes open (and if you’re not, get signed up so you can get involved directly too). Indeed one of the key items today was working towards a final version of our EYP Section Standing Orders, of which again, more soon.

More generally, today’s meeting included a full discussion around the policies of the main parties as expressed in their manifestos (more on that to follow shortly), along with planning to take us through the next period when uncertainty is bound to be the watchword. We also reviewed recent activity, including the very successful sessions last month at Pen Green, our work with training providers and local authorities, and our recent letter to each of the three main political parties (of which more details can be found here).

Updates from Aspect centrally included the latest from the Children’s Workforce Development Council (CWDC) and the Children’s Services Professionals Network (CSPN), as well as some practical news: online joining should be up and running shortly – imminently for student members, and later this year for all; which will be great!

However if you aren’t already a member – or you have a friend who you think should join – there’s no need to wait. Just follow this link, download the application form, fill it in, and put it in the post! (Of course, Aspect membership is open to professionals across children’s services – so whatever your role do get involved – but don’t forget to tell us if you are an EYP or a student EYP so we can make sure you get all the information specially designed for you as well as everything everyone else gets!)