Children in Scotland

Early Years Conference Hub

This conference was held 6th November 2023 in Glasgow.

This conference explored the current landscape of the Early Years sector in Scotland and shared learning on how we can ensure the diverse needs of children and families are supported.

The theme of the day, ‘building blocks for change’, reflected our aim for this conference to be an active learning experience, and one that equips practitioners, managers and service providers with practical strategies they can apply to their role.

We encourage you to continue your conference learning by accessing the links below provided by our presenters and supporters. Thanks for joining us at the conference and we look forward to seeing you again soon.

Click here to find the conference brochure.

Please find resources from our contributors and partners below.

Visibility Scotland_logo - blue background

New eLearning Module: Visual Impairment in Preschool Children

This course will help you understand what visual impairment is and how to identify a child that may be affected. It will increase your knowledge of multisensory learning techniques enhance your understanding of how to create inclusive and supportive environments.

Check out the new module and our eLearning Hub here: https://childreninscotland.org.uk/learning/elearning/
Click on Explore eLearning to access the modules.

Bookbug / Scottish Book Trust

Scottish Book Trust is a national charity that has been bringing the benefits of reading and writing to everyone in Scotland since 1998. Our early years programme, Bookbug, supports families to read, sing, and play with their little ones from birth to give them the best start in life.

Contact email address: bookbug@scottishbooktrust.com

Child Accident Prevention Trust

The Child Accident Prevention Trust (CAPT) works with support from the Scottish Government to focus on preventing death and serious injury to children from avoidable accidents, in the home, on the roads and in the wider community.

We work with front line practitioners and a range of national and local organisations who can help to make this life-saving difference to children and families in Scotland.

To sign up for our news alerts, safety advice and information, and Child Safety Week resources, visit our website at: https://capt.org.uk/sign-up/

For free downloadable educational resources, visit our Resource Hub at: https://capt.org.uk/resource-centre/

Children's Parliament

Register for a free account at Children’s Parliament eLearning Hub (choose Early Years as your area of interest) to access the Early Years Pathway, where you can learn about the 5-pillars Rights-based Practice in Early Years that help you reflect, consolidate and strengthen your rights-based practice at work.

Contact: Learning@childrensparliament.org.uk

Down's Syndrome Scotland

Down’s Syndrome Scotland provides support to families, carers and professionals who care for people with Down’s syndrome. We support individuals with Down’s syndrome to reach their fullest potential by providing a range of services, influencing public policy and by changing attitudes.

We have a number of publications on a variety of topics for different ages. These are available to download from the links below or if you would like a paper copy please email info@dsscotland.org.uk.

https://www.dsscotland.org.uk/resources/publications/

If you would like to access further support, please call us on 0300 030 2121 or email info@dsscotland.org.uk.

For further information visit: www.dsscotland.org.uk

Early Years Scotland

Early Years Scotland is committed to providing the very best start in life for every child in Scotland. We are the leading National Third Sector Organisation for children pre-birth to five. Early Years Scotland’s work can be explained as four strands:

Delivery of services working with children and families together
Delivery of services for providers of Early Learning and Childcare
Delivery of high quality, relevant professional learning services for the workforce
Delivery of advocacy and advisory services relating to legislation, policy and practice

Contact information:
Tel: 0141 221 4148
email address: info@earlyyearsscotland.org
website: www.earlyyearsscotland.org

Enquire

Enquire is the Scottish Advice Service for Additional Support for Learning and is managed by Children in Scotland. Enquire provides advice and information around additional support for learning directly to parents, carers and professionals as well as young people themselves. They have resources for everyone that cover the legislation and guidance on support , as well as practical tips for working together, solving problems and ensuring the right support is in place.

Their resources relating to additional support for learning, children's rights and the early years include:

For professionals: 7 key things to know about additional support for learning if you work in early years or childcare.
For professionals: Free eModules on recognising and planning additional support for learning
For parents and carer: Early years and starting school
Webinar: ‘Off to a good start – Additional support for learning in the early years’.

Website: https://enquire.org.uk/

To keep up to date with new publications and upcoming events, sign up to their newsletter here.

Hood College - Amy Kilpatrick & Tricia K. Strickland, PhD

Amy Kilpatrick is an assistant professor of education at Hood College in Frederick, Maryland. She is the Director of the Multidisciplinary Studies in Education Master of Science programme.

Tricia K. Strickland, PhD. is a Professor of Education at Hood College in Frederick, Maryland. She teaches courses in special education instructional methods and classroom organisation as part of a teacher preparation program.

Slides from workshop presentation

Home Energy Scotland

Funded by the Scottish Government, Home Energy Scotland offers free and impartial energy efficiency advice to householders, community groups, businesses and the public sector across Scotland. Advisors can direct you to grants and other support that you might be eligible for and can provide advice on being energy efficient.

Email: hes_partnerships@est.org.uk
Website: https://www.homeenergyscotland.org/

Kibble

Kibble is a leading, specialist child and youth care charity and social enterprise that supports at-risk children and young people (age 5+) across the UK. Many of the young people Kibble cares for

have experienced trauma, therefore using a therapeutic, trauma‐informed approach we provide a range of services spanning care, education and support to open opportunities and create positive futures. We also run a number of services in the community for young people and families.

Slides from workshop presentation

Contact: communications@kibble.org or call 0141 889 0044

Laura Henry-Allain, MBE

Laura Henry-Allain MBE is an award-winning international educationalist, storyteller, producer and consultant. She is the creator of the characters of CBeebies’ well-loved JoJo & Gran Gran, the first animated series to centre on a Black British family, and is the
series’ associate producer.

Her bestselling children’s book, My Skin, Your Skin, illustrated by Onyinye Iwu, explores race and racism, and empowers children to be the best versions of themselves

Play Scotland

Play Scotland works strategically and with partners to promote the importance of play for children’s development. We work to support play at home, in early learning and childcare, in school, and in the community.

Play Scotland is the national

expert in play for parents, providers, the play workforce and policy makers
custodian and voice for children and the play sector
leader and campaigner for the importance of quality, accessible free play
expert in developing and delivering strategic planning for play and play sufficiency assessments

Webiste: www.playscotland.org
Email: info@playscotland.org

Road Safety Scotland

Road Safety Scotland (RSS) has a significant input into trying to change road user behaviour through both road safety learning and publicity. Its approach sees road safety learning as a lifelong-learning process and, to that end, RSS develop and maintain a suite of road safety learning resources for 3-18 year-olds, with a view to nurturing, from a very young age, safer road user behaviour across all modes, including pedestrians, cyclists, passengers and drivers. These resources dovetail Scotland’s Curriculum for Excellence, allowing them to be used in the classroom and at home. They can be accessed online at www.roadsafety.scot

Contact: enquiries@roadsafety.scot

Find Road Safety's resources here: www.roadsafety.scot/children-and-educators

Resolve: ASL Mediation Service

Established in 2004, Resolve is currently the largest independent mediation provider to the education community in Scotland. We have a strong reputation built on many years of experience and success helping resolve conflict in education. Our core service has an emphasis on building trust and understanding to promote and support effective relationships and good communication.

Working with a bank of skilled sessional mediators, the service is managed and delivered by Mediation Manager Sandra Mitchell, a qualified mediator and Alison Payne, Resolve’s Mediation Officer. The team has a wide range of knowledge on additional support for learning legislation and the Scottish education landscape.

Resolve Mediation Leaflet

Website: https://resolvemediation.org.uk/

Sight Scotland

We have been a Scottish sight loss charity for 230 years. We first opened the Royal Blind School in 1876 and provide specialist care and education to this day and we enable children and young people to thrive in their local authority through our outreach service – offering the right support when and where they need us. Our accessible holiday club is open to children with and without disabilities. For more information, visit www.sightscotland.org.uk/learning.

Email: supportline@sightscotland.org.uk
Tel: 0800 024 8973

Further Resources:

Visibility Scotland

Visibility Scotland and Sight Scotland will be delighted to present a talk on visual impairment in preschool children . The talk will inform delegates about how children learn to see and will offer tips and strategies on how to support visually impaired preschool children at home and in nursery. Lead by experts in vision, nutrition and habilitation a workshop will allow delegates to experience sight impairment and how it impacts on everyday tasks. By stepping into the world of visual impairment you will be able to explore toys and simple tasks as experienced by a sight impaired child. Simulations will show you how small adjustments can make life more engaging and easier for sight impaired children, whether that be pouring some juice into a cup, finding your cup, putting food in your mouth or finding your way to the toilet.

Slides from workshop presentation

Tel: 0141 332 4632
Email info@visibilityscotland.org.uk

Wee Seeds

With Kids

With Kids presented a workshop on early childhood development after lockdown, as well as a play station on strategies to help children to regulate through group and sensory play.

With Kids is a community-based children’s mental health charity operating in Glasgow, Edinburgh and West Lothian for the last 15 years. With Kids specialise in delivering play therapy and therapeutic interventions, as well as training play therapists, in partnership with Queen Margaret University.

Common reasons for the referral of a child to With Kids include: difficulty regulating emotions, anxiety and maintaining relationships.

Website: https://withkids.org.uk

Further resources:

Zero Tolerance

Children should be able to learn and play free from gender stereotypes. Zero Tolerance works with policy and decision makers to make this happen. It's part of our wider work to end men’s violence against women and girls by tackling the root cause: gender inequality.

email: info@zerotolerance.org.uk