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These are the resolutions voted by members at the AGM
held in London in November each year.
Individual members are entitled to one vote, Group A two votes, Group B four
votes and Group C memberships six votes.
Resolutions 2008
Resolutions passed at the Annual General Meeting 2008
NW region
Early Education resolves to lobby for the requirement that anyone
undertaking Early Years Professional Status training should have substantial
experience and a Level 6 qualification both relating to young children.
Wandle branch
Early Education urges the government to act swiftly to improve the totally
inadequate ratio requirement for reception classes in England. Early
Education recommends that the staffing ratio is 1:10, one of whom is an
early years teacher
Wandle branch
Early Education urges the government to improve the ratios in maintained
nursery schools and nursery classes (currently 1:13). Early Education
recommends 1:10.
Edinburgh and Lothian Branch
Early Education will lobby Scottish Government to define the term “access to
a teacher” for all pre-school children and will lobby local authorities to
employ qualified teachers in nursery schools and classes
Officers Elected
Chair Bernadette Duffy
Vice chairs
England Julie Fisher
Wales Ann Roberts
N Ireland Sharon Beattie
Scotland Dorothy Petrie
Treasurer
Pamela Playle-Mitchell
The meeting thanked Jane Whinnett and Sally Ward for their many of years of
committed service as Trustees.
Resolutions 2007
The following resolutions were passed by members, which will inform the work
of the charity for the coming year:
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1. Members of Early Education seek reassurance from the
government that the move to flexible hours and funding will not affect the
quality of provision offered to children and families by the maintained
nursery sector.
2. Early Education will lobby the Northern Ireland Assembly for the
inclusion of the pre-school curriculum within the Foundation Stage.
3. Early Education will lobby governments to ensure that young children in
all sectors have direct input from a full-time qualified early years teacher
and urgently seek clarification from the DCFS on the respective roles,
training and remuneration of early years professionals and qualified
teachers in the EYFS.
4. Early Education resolves to lobby HMCI to ensure that all those who
inspect the Early Years Foundation Stage in any sector are qualified,
knowledgeable and experienced in early years education.
5. Early Education will lobby for the continuation of the Early Years
Foundation Stage to the end of Key Stage 1 and failing that, lobby for
changes to the Early Learning Goals, which evidence from four years of
Foundation Stage profile outcomes show are set developmentally too high
The AGM also approved changes to the wording of the
Memorandum and Articles to bring them up to date and to register as a
Charity in Scotland.
Resolutions 2006
The following resolutions were passed by members, which will inform the work
of the charity for the coming year.
1. Early Education believes that all young children are entitled to high
quality education in their earliest years and that teachers play a key role
in improving outcomes for all children, especially the most disadvantaged.
Early Education will:
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urgently seek clarification from the DfES and CDWC on
the relationship between early years professionals and qualified teachers
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lobby governments to ensure that young children have
access to input from a qualified early years teacher
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lobby governments to urgently improve the quality of
training for the least experienced practitioners so that they are fully
equipped to take on the role of key person.
2. Early Education believes that for young children to become successful
readers they need learning experiences which embrace a broad, language rich
curriculum.
Early Education will:
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monitor the impact of the implementation of the early
reading review
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gather evidence where early years practitioners are
required to implement inappropriate curriculum practices and ensure that
this is reported to relevant bodies such as the Primary Strategy and DfES
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challenge the imposition in England of one method of
teaching phonics.
3. Early Education supports the Government’s aim to
bring together existing frameworks for children from birth to five within
the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS).
Early Education will:
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monitor the implementation of EYFS to ensure that
training and dissemination is effective and reaches all practitioners and
feedback issues that arise to the relevant bodies
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lobby government to urgently improve the quality of
training for the least experienced practitioners so that they are fully
equipped to take on the role of key person
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lobby government to ensure that children in reception
classes receive the appropriate Foundation Stage experiences to which they
are entitled
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lobby for changes to those Early Learning Goals which
evidence from three years of Foundation Stage profile outcomes show are set
developmentally too high.
4. Early Education is extremely alarmed that OfSTED
inspectors in the maintained, private, voluntary and independent sectors are
not always supporting the development of appropriate early years practice in
the Foundation Stage. We believe that OfSTED inspectors who inspect the
Foundation Stage should have appropriate and current knowledge of the Early
Years Foundation Stage and national research outcomes. This knowledge should
be clearly applied when making judgments about early years practice.
Resolutions 2005
1. Early Education will demonstrate its commitment to high quality provision
for young children by promoting the importance of adult/child interactions
in early years settings.
2. Early Education welcomes the proposal to expand Children’s Centres into
every community. Early Education urges the Government to ensure that the
children’s learning and development is promoted through the employment of
full-time teachers with early years training and expertise who operate as
members of the Senior Management Team in every centre.
3. Early Education should lobby the government to improve the clarity of
messages about content of foods through lobbying the DfES to ensure that
learning to cook is a compulsory part of the curriculum for secondary school
pupils the media to raise the profile of cooking and eating nutritious food.
Early Education should promote cooking in the curriculum as a matter of
nutrition rather than just mathematical development and encourage all early
years settings to run cooking groups for parents and carers.
4. In view of the Government’s intention to open educational settings before
and after the school day, Early Education should lobby LEAs and government
to ensure that these are fully funded and that demands upon staff are
reasonable, agreed, workable and without detriment to the health and well
being of members of staff.
5. In view of research showing the value of the role of nursery teachers,
Early Education is concerned at the Scottish Executive's decision and
subsequence advice to local authorities that a teacher is no longer required
in nursery classes and would ask them to reverse this.
Election of officers
Manny Lewis was re-elected Chair
Chris Boustead was re-elected Treasurer
Bernadette Duffy was re-elected Joint Vice Chair
Sally Ward was elected Joint Vice Chair
Jane Whinnett was elected Joint Vice Chair
Resolutions 2004
1. Early Education urges Ofsted to bring together the two early education
inspection frameworks currently in use with an emphasis on the quality of
learning, wellbeing and teaching for children.
2. Early Education resolves to lobby government in particular the DfES and
QCA to:
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clarify contradictory messages received by reception
class teachers from the National Strategies, Ofsted, LEA advisors and the
Foundation Stage Guidance
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provide foundation stage training and professional
development for practitioners working with young children who are not
trained in the phase
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ensure that data collected from the foundation stage
profile is used to enhance children’s learning and progress, rather than
simply to measure and compare their achievements
3. Early Education welcomes the intention of the Welsh
Assembly to adopt the foundation phase for children aged 3-7. It resolves to
lobby Central Government and other relevant parties to consider adopting a
similar policy in England especially in light of the experience of European
and southern hemisphere countries who have later starting ages and lower
levels of illiteracy and social disaffection.
4. Early Education in Scotland proposes an urgent national review of the
pay, conditions and career structure of all nursery nurses.
5. Early Education in England acknowledges the valuable and crucial role of
nursery nurses in the early years childcare and education sector and
proposes an urgent national review of their career structure, pay and
conditions.
6. Early Education propose that all maintained nursery classes are staffed
with an early years-trained teacher and that appropriately trained nursery
nurses/teaching assistants should work together in their complementary
roles.
7. As music and singing are an integral part of young children’s life long
well being and learning, Early Education calls for appropriate and rigorous
music education to be a significant part of the initial and in-service
training of all those who work with children in the early years
8. Early Education welcomes the recently published Green Paper ‘Every Child
Matters’ and will lobby to ensure that the importance of high quality early
educational experiences are reflected in workforce reforms.
9. Early Education welcomes the importance placed on creativity across the
curriculum in ‘Excellence and Enjoyment the Primary Strategy’. We urge QCA
to review the use of the term creativity in the Foundation Stage Guidance to
ensure a similar cross-curricular approach
10. The North West region proposes the further development of partnership
between all agencies working with young children to create ‘joined up
thinking’ and solidarity in the 0-8 field and achieve more effective
communication. Agencies include LEA’s, EYDCPs, Sure Start Initiatives,
Health and Social Services, Ofsted, the training sector, NCMA, Pre School
Learning Alliance, NDNA and Early Education.
11. Early Education believes that all children from birth to eight in early
years settings have the right to daily access to a designated, stimulating
and well-organised adjacent outdoor environment and proposes that:
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the provision of an adjacent outdoor environment is a
requirement of registration under the National Standards for Daycare and
Childminding and that the quality of experience for children outdoors is
reported in all inspections
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all children in the Foundation Stage have direct access
to a designated and stimulating outdoor environment
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adults working with young children must undertake
initial and ongoing professional development to support their awareness and
ability to unlock the potential of the outdoors for children.
Election of officers
Manny Lewis was elected Chair
Bernadette Duffy was elected Joint Vice Chair
Anne McDermott was re-elected Joint Vice Chair
Chris Boustead re-elected Treasurer
Resolutions for 2003
The following resolutions were passed at Early Education’s AGM on 9 November
2002. They will guide and influence the work of Early Education throughout
the coming year. It was agreed that the resolutions from 2001-2002 also
continue to influence the work of Early Education.
1. Early Education proposes that the government abandons Key Stage 1 SATs.
2. Early Education proposes that all 3-5 year olds in schools have direct
access to a designated, stimulating outdoor environment.
3. Early Education proposes an urgent review of the National Standards for
Daycare and Childminding in all UK countries which would make the provision
of an adjacent outdoor environment a requirement of registration.
4. Early Education demands that the government resists the pressure from the
literacy hour and numeracy hour upon the Foundation Stage.
5. Early Education urges the government to appoint a Commissioner for
Children.
6. Early Education proposes that the B.A. Hons in Early Childhood Studies is
recognised as three years of intensive and detailed study relating to
children and childhood and is accepted as a Higher Degree at Level 6,
promoting and developing a workforce of specialists in educare. This
requires the following:
Recognition of the B.A. Hons in Early Childhood Studies
on the qualifications framework at Level 6
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Including an optional practice element in Early
Childhood Studies degrees so that all students have the opportunity to gain
a licence to practise
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Creating a better understanding across all fields of
practice, including maintained and non-maintained sectors of the Early
Childhood Studies degree and qualification
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Developing a clear role for the practitioner who has a
higher degree in early childhood studies.
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Education
