Early Years Digest

16 December 2025

 

 

PRESS & MEDIA 

'School readiness is critical' – New potty training guide launches for parents as 1 in 4 children start school in nappies – Netmums 

Parents given potty guidance to stop teachers wasting hours toilet-training kids – The Mirror

Labour to create up to 60,000 spaces for children with Send in English schools – The Guardian 

Nearly one in four working parents turning to food banks as cost of living crisis shows no signs of easing – The Independent

 Google develops DfE-approved chatbot for teachers – Tes Magazine 

 

FEATURE STORIES

How a 'fertility gap' is fuelling the rise of one-child families – BBC News 

Potty training for Reception: why we need to embrace new guides – Tes Magazine 

Give newborns automatic library cards, authors urge – The Independent 

Half of teachers work in school with homeless kids as devastating impact set out – The Mirror 

 

RESEARCH & POLICY DEVELOPMENT

POLICY: Record £9.5 billion early years investment – Government 

POLICY: Our Children, Our Future: Tackling Child Poverty – Government 

TOOL: PASCAL (Parenting Support Commissioning Assistant for Local Areas) – Nesta 

PROJECT: Supporting Best Start in Life local strategic planning – Nesta 

 

JOBS

Principal Research Fellow & Head of Children and Young People – Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) (London) 

Curriculum Lead – Early Years – Learning with Parents (Bristol, hybrid) 

 

 

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