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Related content

• Early Years and Childcare: Local Authority Developing Practice - Pathfinders Implementation Toolkit Step 1: Project Planning
• Early Years and Childcare: Local Authority Developing Practice - Pathfinders Implementation Toolkit Step 2: Assessing Demand
• Early Years and Childcare: Local Authority Developing Practice - Pathfinders Implementation Toolkit Step 3: Engaging with Schools
• Early Years and Childcare: Local Authority Developing Practice - Pathfinders Implementation Toolkit Step 4: Delivery, Communication and Funding
• Learning and support resources
• Local Authority developing practice
• Offer for two-year-olds: Free Early Years education and childcare places
• The extension to the free early education entitlement offer for 25 per cent of 3- and 4-year-olds: Interim guidance for LAs July 2008
• Toolkit for Local Authorities: the Extension to the Free Early Education Entitlement Offer for 25 per cent of 3- and 4-Year-Olds

Implementing the flexible free entitlement

All 3- and 4-year-olds are currently entitled to a free part-time early education place for up to two years before reaching compulsory school age.

From 2010 the current free entitlement will increase from 12½ to 15 hours per week for 38 weeks of the year, and parents will be able to use it more flexibly than at present; over at least three days a week. As a step towards this, from September 2009, all LAs will be required to make the offer available to 25 per cent of their most disadvantaged 3- and 4-year-olds. Interim guidance and a toolkit are now available as part of an online support package to help LAs deliver this.

Learning and support resources
This is an updated section providing LAs with a package of web-based resources to help them implement both the flexible extension to the free entitlement to Early Years provision and the Single Funding Formula. It builds on support already available and captures learning from the pathfinder and pilot authorities and includes interim guidance and toolkits.

It is a work in progress. Further documents, case studies and learning will be added as they become available.

Pathfinders

The extension to the free entitlement has been rolled out gradually, with pathfinders testing a variety of approaches. The first wave of 20 pathfinders came on board in April 2007.

The 20 authorities are: Gloucestershire, Greenwich, Leeds, Blackburn with Darwen, Rochdale, Telford and Wrekin, Somerset, Hertfordshire, Peterborough, Haringey, Newham, Worcestershire, Sheffield, Slough, Leicestershire, Blackpool, York, Hampshire, Derbyshire, and Sunderland.

A second wave of 14 authorities joined the pathfinders and started delivering the offer from September 2008. These authorities are: Brent, Cornwall, Durham, Hackney, Kirklees, Lambeth, Liverpool, Luton, Middlesborough, North East Lincolnshire, Nottingham, Salford, Southampton and Wolverhampton.

Pathfinders implementation toolkit

This four-step toolkit was developed to support the 34 pathfinder authorities in delivering the extended flexible free entitlement. This toolkit has now been updated for all LAs; see ‘Learning and support resources’.

The steps can be accessed in order, moving between each step using the links in each or selecting a step according to need:

• Toolkit step 1: Project planning
• Toolkit step 2: Assessing demand
• Toolkit step 3: Engaging with schools
• Toolkit step 4: Delivery, communication and funding.

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Last updated on 09/06/2009