Early Years Latest News

The Early Years Service at Buckinghamshire Council is currently reviewing development opportunities and the sustainability of wraparound childcare provision delivered by schools and external providers across Buckinghamshire, both before and after school, as part of the Department for Education's Wraparound Programme.

To support this work, we are asking all schools, academies, childminders, and childcare providers offering wraparound provision to complete the attached Survey and submit it online to the Early Years Service by Friday 20 November 2026. Please complete this audit if you operate a Breakfast and/or After School Provision or relevant services between the hours of 8am – 6pm.

The survey should be completed by the registered person, owner, headteacher, or a member of the organisation's senior leadership/management team.

Please note:

• Where provision operates across multiple sites, but children access the service at a single location (for example, a federation model or a setting supporting both Infant and Junior schools), please complete one survey for the organisation.
• Providers operating multiple separate settings should complete a separate survey for each site.

The purpose of this survey is to help us understand wraparound provision across Buckinghamshire. It will enable us to assess the financial sustainability of existing services, identify gaps in provision, and explore opportunities for growth and development and a programme of support including grant funding may be available.

If your survey responses highlight any challenges within your provision, or if you would welcome additional support, a member of the Early Years Service will be in touch to discuss your situation and any potential funding opportunities that could help.

Please find the link and also the QR Code to the online audit below:

Wraparound Provision Survey- November 2026 - Buckinghamshire Early Years Service Wraparound Provision Survey 2026 – Fill in form

Thank you for your support and cooperation with completing this survey. Should you have any questions regarding the survey or wish to discuss your provision further, please email us at earlyyears@buckinghamshire.gov.uk or call 01296 387111 or contact your Early Years Key Contact.

We would welcome your views on our proposed Education Places Sufficiency Strategy 2027 – 2032, to help us shape the final strategy.

Buckinghamshire’s education system is one of the county’s greatest strengths. Our proposed strategy sets out how we will ensure that education, childcare and SEND (special educational needs and disabilities) provision continues to meet local needs, supports planned growth and provides the right places at the right time over the next five years.

We encourage you to review the draft strategy and complete the consultation by 13 December. We would also be grateful if you could share the consultation with parents and carers and your wider community and encourage them to have their say.

View the Education Places Sufficiency Strategy 2027–2032 consultation

If you have any questions or require the consultation documents in a different format, please email educationconsultation@buckinghamshire.gov.uk.

Thank you for taking the time to share your views and help shape the Education Places Sufficiency Strategy for Buckinghamshire.

Baby Week Buckinghamshire returns from 14 - 20 November 2026, bringing together families, practitioners and communities to celebrate the best start in life for babies and young children.

This year's theme, “Chat, Play, Read with Me: Together We Build the Best Start”, highlights the important role that talking, playing and reading together have in supporting children's development, relationships and lifelong wellbeing.

As we count down to Baby Week, we're excited to highlight some of the opportunities available for early years practitioners and families. With a packed programme of free events, activities and learning opportunities taking place across the county, there are plenty of ways to get involved, whether that's attending professional networking and learning events or helping families access local activities, support and advice.

Free Baby and Child Mini First Aid Courses for Families

Please help us promote our free Baby and Child First Aid courses for Buckinghamshire residents who are expecting a baby, and parents, carers and grandparents of children aged 0-5 years.  These practical in-person two-hour sessions are delivered by experienced trainers and cover key topics including choking, CPR, burns and scalds, bumps and injuries, common childhood emergencies.  The courses are designed to increase confidence and help families know what to do when faced with an emergency involving a baby or young child.  Courses are free and available to attend across the county.  Spaces are limited and must be booked in advance Baby Week Buckinghamshire 2026 | Family Information Service

Partners and Professionals Networking Events at Family Hubs

Please join us and other colleagues from across the early years, health, community and voluntary sectors to hear about local initiatives, share good practice and strengthen connections across Buckinghamshire.  Please let us know you're coming along, find booking links for each event here:

Mapledean Family Hub - Wednesday 4 November, 10:30am - 12:30pm

Best Start Family Hub Elmhurst (Aylesbury) - Monday 9 November, 1:00pm - 3:00pm

Burnham Family Hub - Wednesday 11 November, 10:30am - 12:30pm

CYP MECC Taster Sessions for Professionals

At each of the above Networking Events, you will be able to access a free 15-minute taster session on Making Every Contact Count (MECC) for Children and Young People (CYP).  MECC is an approach that uses everyday conversations to support health and wellbeing. The taster sessions will explore how CYP MECC can help practitioners make the most of conversations with children, young people and families and introduce Buckinghamshire's new free training offer.

Recent participant feedback:

"I appreciated the case studies and interactive relation of theory to practice."

"The training was very insightful and will definitely inform my practice going forward!"

To find out more about CYP MECC, contact MECC@buckinghamshire.gov.uk.

Get Involved

Baby Week is a great opportunity to showcase the services, activities and support available to babies, young children and families across Buckinghamshire. If you would like to get involved, please contact Katie Francis at katie.francis@buckinghamshire.gov.uk.

We are seeking feedback on Buckinghamshire’s new Accessibility Strategy for 2027-32 and would welcome comments from schools and settings, parents and carers, and children and young people before the strategy is finalised.

The strategy supports our shared vision:

“To build a better future for all children and young people in Buckinghamshire so they realise their potential, whatever their starting point is.”

It sets out how we will work together to ensure all children and young people can participate fully in education and school life. It focuses on four key areas:

• Increasing access to the curriculum
• Improving the physical environment of schools
• Improving access to information
• Improving access to enrichment opportunities, extended provision and wider school life

We Want Your Feedback

We are keen to hear your views on the draft strategy, including whether the proposed priorities are the right ones and if there is anything missing that should be considered.

Please review the draft strategy and complete the consultation by 15 November:

https://yourvoicebucks.citizenspace.com/schools/accessibility-strategy-2027-2032

If you have any questions, or require the consultation documents in an alternative format, please email educationconsultation@buckinghamshire.gov.uk or call 01296 383225.

Please also share this opportunity with your parents and carers. We've attached a digital flyer to make this as easy as possible.

Thank you for taking the time to help shape the final Accessibility Strategy for Buckinghamshire.

Friday 27^th November 2026: The Gateway, Aylesbury, HP19 8FF

Be part of our annual Early Years Conference and join colleagues from across the sector for an inspiring day of learning, collaboration and fresh thinking. Drawing on the Best Start in Life Plan, this exciting event will bring together expert speakers, engaging workshop sessions and opportunities to explore effective practice that can make a lasting difference for children and families.

Delegates will hear from keynote speaker Gary Wilson: What if we started by listening to our boys? Drawing on a wealth of experience and the powerful voices of young children themselves, renowned education consultant Gary Wilson explores how understanding boys’ perspectives can transform outcomes from the very beginning of their learning journey.

Participants will also be able to choose 2 Workshops to attend from the following:

• Workshop 1 - An Exploration of the Importance of Outdoor Adventurous Play for all by James Davolls
• Workshop 2 - Let's Talk and Move by Helen Guntrip
• Workshop 3 - Supporting EAL Children in the Early Years by Rachael Turkington and Marzena Fernando
• Workshop 4 - Develop understanding of the role of physical development when supporting children with SEND by Rachel Mitchell

To book your place, please click the title above. To view our poster and guidance document, please click here.