Early Years News June 2026

Welcome to your Childcare.co.uk newsletter for June 2026.

As we move towards the summer, you might want to take a moment to look back at how much you've overcome and achieved in the first half of 2026.

Only by appreciating your successes can you truly reflect on the journey you are still taking.

There has been so much to tackle already this year - new compliance requirements and new inspection expectations mean that our roles and responsibilities are forever changing.

Let's have a look at some recent updates for the early years sector.

CAPT - Child Safety Week

The Child Accident Prevention Trust is planning Child Safety Week 2026 from Monday 1st to Sunday 7th June. This year's theme is 'Making prevention possible' - and the aim is to build 'practical capacity for safety behaviour in families and the professionals who work with them.'

CAPT offers free downloadable resources including fact sheets, activity sheets, session plans and display materials for all ages of children including early years.

Safeguarding - online gaming

Did you know that Ofcom data shows more than three quarters of teenagers are involved in online gaming, with some children starting on gaming websites and apps as young as age 3 or 4 years? For many children online gaming is seen as an extension of their social world - however, there are significant risks including stranger contact, loot box mechanics (virtual items in video games that players open to receive a randomised selection of digital goods - for example, character skins, weapons, or power-ups) that mirror gambling and content beyond what parents assume their children are accessing.

There is some guidance available from UNICEF to help parents support their children and protect them from exposure to, for example, extremist content which has to be reported on popular primary-age gaming such as Roblox.

Ofsted - inspection outcome delays

Feedback from members suggests that the new Ofsted inspection framework has embedded - but we are still hearing about early years inspection reports taking a very long time to come through and members are asking for support to manage complaints. Childcare.co.uk continues to monitor the situation and to offer support to members who are struggling with delays.

Ofsted - spending EYPP

The Education Endowment Foundation (EEF) has published a new 4-step planning tool to help you make the best spending choices if you receive early years pupil premium (EYPP) for a child or children in your setting. The tool includes information taken from key findings in high-quality research, to help you reduce learning gaps for children from low-income families.

This is in addition to the currently available Ofsted guidance blog, 'How we look at the use of early years pupil premium in our inspections of early years settings.'

Safeguarding - anti-racism in Wales

Welsh nurseries and childminder settings have been given guidance on dealing with racist incidents involving children, including when incidents might need reporting to police. The guidance, produced by Diversity and Anti-Racist Professional Learning (DARPL) and circulated to hundreds of nurseries, is part of the Welsh Government's wider aim of creating an anti-racist Wales by 2030.

Early years staff are advised to assess whether an incident could amount to a hate crime and contact police in serious cases. They must also record details of incidents and use educational or disciplinary approaches with children involved.

The guidance also encourages nurseries to review books, toys and displays to reflect diversity, discuss anti-racist practice in staff meetings and consider issues such as unconscious bias and white privilege.

The news story has attracted criticism from commentators and campaign groups who argue it risks criminalising very young children and wasting police time. Supporters say the intention is early education and safeguarding against discriminatory behaviour, not prosecution of toddlers.

Safeguarding update - domestic abuse

Following the free safeguarding refresher webinar from Childcare.co.uk about domestic abuse, members asked for a policy and more information. It is not a requirement to have a domestic abuse policy - but there is a free option (in pdf) on the Childcare.co.uk safeguarding page if you want one. There is also a copy in Word and a further guidance document for gold members.

Safeguarding - safer sleep update

DfE confirmed to Childcare.co.uk that there will not be any accommodations or adjustments allowed to the safer sleep requirements when it is added to the EYFS from September 2026.

Childcare.co.uk challenged this with DfE because our understanding is that reasonable adjustments are required under the Equality Act 2010 and in some circumstances, children have care plans or similar which state that they need a certain sleep space, which might not allow the provider to comply with the EYFS.

DfE confirmed to Childcare.co.uk that there will not be any changes to wording or to what is allowed. The full reply from DfE to Childcare.co.uk is posted on the safer sleep page.

Safeguarding - safer sleep poster

Childcare.co.uk has produced a safer sleep poster for early years providers to download as a prompt in the setting and useful to share with parents. The free safer sleep poster can also be used as a training tool alongside a training module for assistants or staff in settings and other useful resources.

HMRC - mileage increase

The Chancellor's spring statement announced that the mileage rate for self-employed including childminders and nannies has increased from 45p to 55p / mile for the first 10,000 business miles and this will be backdated to April 2026. As an early years provider, you can claim 55p / mile for all work-related outings including shopping for food and resources and driving to training courses as well as taking children on outings and adventures. You need to record date, place and mileage in your expenses and you should keep a copy of fuel receipts.

Practice - guide to social and emotional development

The Princess of Wales's Centre for Early Childhood has released a new Foundation for Life guide to social and emotional development which offers frameworks to support practitioners in their work with babies and pre-school children. The guide is useful for practitioners and might be shared with parents to help support children's home learning.

Ofsted - new blogs

Ofsted has written some new blogs for early years providers including guidance on what holiday providers need to know about their renewed inspection framework and information about registering a childminder assistant.

GDPR - updates for 2026

Did you know that there were changes to how GDPR (the General Data Protection Regulations) must be used recently? To comply with GDPR all early years providers including childminders need to be registered with the Information Commissioners Office (ICO) and pay the annual fee.

Settings also need a Privacy Notice and a Data Audit to state what documents you keep and how long they are stored, including a commitment to data minimisation, secure storage and reporting data breaches within 72 hours. If you have a website, you will need to include information about how cookies are used and stored – that's all minimum compliance.

The changes to GDPR are around how data you collect about children and families is used because there have been updates to early years statutory safeguarding guidance that change how GDPR is applied in practice in nurseries and early years settings in England.

The updated Working Together to Safeguard Children 2026 puts more focus on multi-agency working (health, police, local authority, early years), using data effectively to improve outcomes and demonstrating how information sharing improves practice.

Impact - this changes expectations of how confidently you share data – you must share information proactively and show evidence of appropriate sharing – GDPR is not a barrier to information sharing.

The April 2026 early years funding statutory guidance (linked to the Early Education and Childcare statutory guidance 2026) reinforces stronger accountability for quality and safeguarding evidence.

Impact - this increases the importance of accurate, clear, factual, timely and well-managed data – for example, keeping accurate children's records, assessments (where required) and safeguarding logs.

Impact - you should keep records about what was shared, why it was shared and outcomes for accountability.

There is a continued shift toward data-informed safeguarding decisions - using data to identify risk earlier and an expectation that agencies (including nurseries) contribute to information sharing. For example, you must not delay referrals while waiting for consent – consent is not required if a child is at risk and chronologies need to show patterns, not just incidents.

Impact - this ensures that your records are no longer just internal—they feed into wider systems and must be handed to the next setting when the child leaves. It is not enough to collect data – you must be able to demonstrate how you have used it to keep children safe.

Reflection - do you need to update your privacy notice to state that safeguarding is a priority legal basis for information sharing? Do you need to retrain staff on GDPR and safeguarding – GDPR / data protection legislation does not prevent safeguarding disclosures? There should be clear procedures around sharing with safeguarding partners and evidence of multi-agency communication.

ICO related fines have also been increased (a lot) so it's important you get data protection right.

Practice - literacy resources

The National Literacy Trust has produced a booklet on early reading, designed for parents and carers of young children. The booklet contains suggestions on ways for families to look at books and share stories with babies and children; examples of things to chat about when looking at books and guidance on how to make up stories together; and explanations to support parents to understand the importance of looking at books and sharing stories with their babies and children.

Information sharing - welcome booklet update

The welcome booklet / parent pack on Childcare.co.uk has been updated with some new age-related documents (for gold members) including more information for parents about healthy eating, oral health and screen time use. These are all essential information sharing documents to support members to comply with the new Ofsted context requirements. The guide for parents on the page is also available for free members.

UKHSA - children post-vaccination

The UK Health Security Agency and Dept for Education has released a statement to share that, when children have had their early childhood vaccinations, they should not be excluded from childcare settings.

DfE and UKHSA state that an exclusion policy is unnecessary and might have 'serious unintended consequences for children' - for example, parents not giving their children vaccinations because they will miss their childcare sessions. The statement reads as follows:

Dr Mary Ramsay, Director of Public Health Programmes at the UK Health Security Agency, said:

'Vaccinations are vital for protecting children against serious and potentially life-threatening diseases. With measles outbreaks occurring in areas of the UK and cases of whooping cough being reported, it's more important than ever that children receive their routine immunisations on schedule.

While some children may experience mild side effects after vaccination, there is absolutely no medical reason to exclude a vaccinated child from a setting if they are feeling well. This practice could potentially discourage parents from getting their children vaccinated and therefore increase the risk of having outbreaks in nurseries and schools.

All medicines can cause side effects, but global health authorities agree that immunisation is the safest way to protect children's health. If a parent or carer feels their child is well enough to attend nursery or school after vaccination, they should be welcomed as normal. There is no reason to exclude children who have been recently vaccinated as vaccine viruses cannot spread to others.

By supporting childhood vaccination and maintaining inclusive and evidence-led policies, early years and education settings play a crucial role in protecting not just individual children, but entire communities from preventable diseases.

DfE and UKHSA encourage you to help protect the health of children, members of staff and your wider community by checking that your attendance policy does not unnecessarily exclude children who have recently been vaccinated.'

DfE - exemptions to the safer sleep requirements

Childcare.co.uk asked DfE whether there were any exemptions to the safer sleep requirements that will be added to the EYFS from September 2026. This is in relation to member questions about, for example, outside sleeping, children with specific sleep needs and practitioners with children who are struggling to transition from a pram or pushchair to a less secure space.

DfE said no - their reply is that, as stated in the EYFS guidance on exemptions, the Childcare Act 2006 does not allow for any exemptions from the safeguarding and welfare requirements of the EYFS. This means that all early years providers must meet the safeguarding and welfare requirements of the EYFS, including when a provider has been granted an exemption from any learning and development requirements. Therefore, neither the wishes of a parent/carer, nor a signed waiver, does not exempt a setting from meeting the safeguarding and welfare requirements of the EYFS, of which safe sleep is a part.

Practice - finding new books

BookTrust has published a new evidence-based blog, highlighting the importance of informal talk, social connections and opportunities for physical responses in supporting and engaging young readers.

Research suggests that when children are encouraged to informally lead the 'talk' about texts, including using gestures, noises and movements to communicate, they can explore aspects of texts on their own terms and generate meaningful social connections.

The BookTrust Book Finder is available to help parents and practitioners choose books for young children.

DfE - reception transition guidance

DfE has produced some new reception transition guidance. Schools, trusts and early years settings are encouraged to use this resource now to review and strengthen their transition arrangements, ensuring more children have a strong start in reception.

DfE state, 'With September reception cohorts now confirmed, this is a key time for schools and early years educators to plan and deliver effective reception transition activities. The guidance sets out practical approaches to working in partnership with families, nurseries, childminders and schools. It supports early identification of children's needs and promotes high quality transition activities which will help children feel confident and ready to learn from the start of reception.'

The new reception transition guidance from DfE complements existing early years support and strengthens practice across the system including information on the Best start for Life website.

DfE - funded SENCO training

DfE has announced 9,500 fully funded Early Years level 3 SENCO training places from April 2026. As part of the Govt Best Start in Life strategy, to break down barriers to opportunity and improve early identification and support for children with SEND, DfE has selected Best Practice Network (BPN) to provide an additional 9,500 early years SENCO training places from April 2026 until March 2028. Training is available across England and is open to early years educators currently working as, or due to start working as, a Special Educational Needs Coordinator in their setting.

Health and safety - asbestos in products

The Office for Product Safety and Standards (OPSS) have published a page on gov.uk containing guidance for consumers and businesses on consumer products containing asbestos. The page provides disposal guidance for both businesses and consumers, including early years settings, along with health information. Settings should review the linked list of contaminated products that are subject to recalls and where products are identified in the setting follow the guidance to ensure their safe disposal.

Health and safety - Benedict's Law and early years

Benedict's Law was introduced following the tragic death of five-year-old Benedict Blythe, who died from anaphylaxis at school in 2021 after being mistakenly given cow's milk. The law strengthens requirements around allergy safety in schools and the family have called for it to be extended to early years settings.

Under the law, there are clearer expectations around staff training, emergency medication, allergy policies and support for pupils with medical conditions in schools. Most of this is already in place for early years settings and childminders and included in the EYFS from September 2025, when allergy management was strengthened in the safeguarding and welfare requirements.

The gaps between what is already in place and what is included in Benedict's Law are around medication legislation - for example, schools are allowed to purchase and hold spare adrenaline auto-injectors for emergency use, while early years providers are not. There are also more requirements around staff training and documentation.

Data protection - reporting the loss of a mobile phone

A stolen mobile phone means the loss of identifiable information relating to children and families, quite likely including phone numbers and photos. This could mean a data breach under UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018. Immediate actions include:

• Try to secure the phone remotely and change passwords for email accounts, cloud storage, social media, WhatsApp, banking, Childcare.co.uk app and Google accounts. Can you remotely wipe your device and block the SIM / blacklist the handset? You might need help from a phone shop.
• Report the theft - notify the police and ask for a crime reference number.
• Report to ICO - you are data controller for children's and parents' personal data and the phone will contain contact numbers and photos and must notify ICO within 72 hours of becoming aware of it.
• Inform parents - without delay if the breach could expose them or their children to misuse of images, privacy risks, frauds or scams, unwanted contact, safeguarding concerns etc. Let them know what happened and what information has been lost. Share what you have done, reporting the theft to the police and ICO and provide them with a new phone number when you have a new phone.
• Notify Ofsted - as the theft involves informing the police and ICO, it is also likely that you will need to inform Ofsted because the incident might affect children or family's welfare. You should use the serious incident notification form. Ofsted will make a note of the loss and they might follow up with a phone call.
• Record the loss - in your files and consider how to secure any future phones you buy against data loss with encryption, strong passcodes and remote wiping software. All breaches should be documented under UK GDPR accountability requirements.

Compliance - new screen time guidance

Childcare.co.uk has introduced some new screen time guidance. The guidance is free for all members. It includes advice on making 'suggested swaps', a plan for change (if you are currently using screens in the setting), a technology audit and information sharing for parents.

Note the screen time guidance will be linked as 'should' in the EYFS from September which means you will need a good reason not to be following it in the setting.

Monthly group planning for June 2026

This year, Childcare.co.uk monthly group planning is focusing on special days through the month, to build a planning library which can be archived and used in the years ahead.

Always bear in mind that planning should start with the child and what they already know and can do. In most early years settings, a 'book as a hook' is used to spark curiosity and discussions, with lots of open-ended questions, promote critical thinking. Planning can then be delivered at the appropriate age and stage level for the children in the setting at the time.

The themes for June 2026 in the Childcare.co.uk group planning guide cover:

• Underpinning theme - minibeasts.
• Week 1 - Dinosaur Day (1st).
• Week 2 - World Oceans Day (8th).
• Week 3 - Fathers Day (21st) | Summer solstice.
• Week 4 - Den building - theme.
• Week 5 - Wimbledon (29th).

Webinars for June 2026

Childcare.co.uk deliver free weekly webinars for all early years providers. The webinars are then recorded for Childcare.co.uk gold members to watch again at their own convenience.

Webinars planned for June 2026 cover:

• 2nd - Ofsted inspection confidence - see inspection as a celebration of everything you do.
• 9th - Reviewing daily routines - especially in relation to the new safer sleep and screen time guidance.
• 16th - Maths in everyday routines - a follow-up webinar to put maths at the heart of the curriculum.
• 23rd - Leadership and the child - putting the child at the centre of leadership and governance.
• 30th - Safer sleep update - a detailed review of the new requirements which will be legislation in England from September 2026.

Register for our free webinars

More information and resources

Childminder Guides

Childminder Paperwork

Childminder Policies

Childminder Organiser

Childminder Diary

Childminder e-books

Childminder Budget Planner

Safeguarding Quick References Cards

COEL Quick Reference Cards

Health & Safety Toolkit

Information Sheets for Parents

Early Years Safety Blog

Activities Ideas & Resources

Childminder Insurance
 

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