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Access our high-quality private team workshops and bespoke training face-to-face or virtually 

How do you ensure that individual educators in your team share the knowledge they have gained on training they attend? Do key messages often get lost? 

The Early Years Alliance offers private workshop delivery and bespoke training on key early years topics, delivered to your whole team either in-person or virtually at a time that suits you. 

This in-house training offers: 

• Consistency: ensuring that your whole setting teams hears the same message at the same time 

• Comfort: providing a safe environment for your team to interact and learn together 

• Cohesion: supporting team building through shared learning opportunities 

The sessions also provide opportunities for settings to more clearly identify impact by encouraging a team approach and shared focus, and for managers and leaders to observe their teams and identify both strengths and areas for development. 

Settings who opt for multiple sessions will also get the chance to build a supportive relationship with their trainer, who will use current work examples to enable educators to apply their learning to real-life situations. 

The Alliance offers two types of in-house training for early years settings: private team workshops and bespoke training. 

Private team workshops 

These are Alliance training sessions for early years professionals based on the content of our popular Virtual Classrooms, delivered exclusively to your whole staff team at a date and time of your choosing either online or in-person. 

Topics are listed in full below.

Outdoor learning package

In a world where screens often dominate our time and concrete jungles are replacing our natural green spaces, the call of the outdoors goes increasing urgent for our next generation. It is within natural spaces that young children can find their true selves – where curiosity is sparked, imaginations can run wild, and learning becomes an adventure. 

Through our suite of outdoor learning courses, we will delve into the benefits of outdoor learning; from promoting physical health and wellbeing to nurturing creativity, critical thinking and social skills. The outdoors is the perfect canvas for holistic development. Our courses are designed for the whole early years sector from childminders and nurseries to those delivering baby and toddler groups for families. 

Step outside with us, breathe in the fresh air and get ready to open your hearts and minds to the endless learning opportunities the natural world offers. Let us, as educators of young children, ignite a love for nature and sow the seeds of a future generation connected to the world around them. 

Choose from a selection of courses, each ranging from 1-2 hours, to put together a bespoke package to exclusively meet your individual training requirements. For further information, please complete our Packages are available from half day to full day options (half day - minimum 3 hours, full day - maximum 6 hours).

We are taking enquiries and bookings immediately, for delivery dates to begin from the end of August 2024. 

An introduction to outdoor learning in the early years 

[mandatory session option for all] 

1 hour

As Margaret McMillian once said, 'the best classroom and the richest cupboard are roofed only by the sky.' The outdoors is such a magical place to be and for children to learn, with endless opportunities for awe and wonder of the natural world around them and chances to express themselves freely.

This initial session outlines the wide range of benefits of being outdoors on children’s health, wellbeing and development. We will discuss some of the challenges and barriers that early years providers may face when attempting to enhance children's experiences of the outdoors, and consider ways to overcome them.

Engaging families in outdoor learning - delivering outdoor baby and toddler groups 

1.5 hours

Do you deliver baby and toddler groups and want to engage families with learning outdoors? Do you want to share the importance, benefits, and the magic of the outdoors and what it has to offer with the families that you work with? If so, this session is for you.

This session will explore the many benefits of accessing the outdoors for families with children in the early years, challenge the perceived barriers to providing outdoor learning for families, and plan next steps towards creating quality outdoor learning experiences, whilst considering what ‘nature’ provides us in relation to resources.

Developing and utilising small outdoor spaces 

1.5 hours

It is a statutory requirement of the EYFS (2024) that ‘providers must provide access to an outdoor play area’. But we know that some early years settings are limited by size of the outdoor space that they have available to them, which can make it difficult to be able to create the enriching outdoor environment that they want for their children.

This session aims to support learners to reflect and evaluate on the outdoor spaces that they have, no matter how small, and how they can make best use of them. During practical group activities, learners will have opportunity to plan what they intend children to experience and learn in their outdoor space and discuss how they can implement and achieve this in practice.

Gardening in the early years 

1.5 hours

Gardening is a multi-sensory experience that provides opportunities to be at one with the nature and learn about the world around us. For children in the early years, gardening can support all areas of learning and development, widen their knowledge and understanding of where things come from and build their appreciation of natural environments and the things within them.

This session outlines some of the benefits, as well as the learning opportunities, of gardening for children in the early years. With practical elements throughout the session, learners will be able to get hands on with some gardening activities that they can then share and replicate with the children. The session also aims to offer inspiring, exciting, and realistic ways that gardening can be incorporated within early years provisions and discussions around how to engage families in this.

An introduction to beach school practice

2 hours

We invite you to join us to uncover the wonders of the Beach School approach for young children. This hands-on practical session will inspire practitioners to explore the endless possibilities that a beach environment brings where the ocean serves as a backdrop for exploration and discovery.

The course will include practical activities, understanding the environment, conservation, and safety aspects. You will learn about risk-benefit and building children’s confidence and independence through boundaries designed to keep children safe and aware of aspects such as tides. Conservation is an important aspect of the course as we help children understand why we should care for and protect the environment around us.

Come along and unlock the potential of the beach as a dynamic and rich learning environment.

Please note access to a beach is required for this course. It is the provider’s responsibility to arrange this. Delegates will need to wear clothing suitable for the weather.

An introduction to forest school practice

2 hours

This captivating course will take you on a journey into the outdoors where you can immerse yourself in the wonders of the forest school approach for young children. Explore a classroom without walls, where the ceiling is the sky and the floor is the earth beneath your feet. The Forest School approach take us into the vibrant world of nature.

In this course, you will learn about the principles and practices of the Forest School approach making it ideal for practitioners who are interested in the Forest School approach and wish to gain more knowledge. We will delve into practical nature-based activities, consider risk benefits of the outdoor environment, promoting holistic development and reflecting on current our practice.

Let us ignite a passion for nature amongst our youngest children and embrace the magic of the forest!

Please note access to an outdoor area is required for this course. It is the provider’s responsibility to arrange this. Delegates will need to wear clothing suitable for the weather.

Outdoor play - is it really a risk?

1 hour

In a world, that often seek to shield our children from every conceivable danger, we dare you to challenge the norm!

The outdoors can often be seen as a dangerous place, with many risks for children, however is it really a risk? We believe that within the realm of controlled risk lies a treasure trove of learning opportunities for young children. And as educators, it is our duty to not only nurture children’s physical safety, but also their emotional, social and cognitive wellbeing.

Join us to explore risk taking and the science behind it and discover how it sparks creativity, fosters problem solving skills and cultivates self-confidence and builds resilience. Uncover the magic that unfold when children are given the freedom to explore and, sometimes, even fail. By embracing risk in outdoor play, we empower children to navigate the world around them with courage and curiosity.

This session will investigate our own feelings about risk, explore the basis of our perceptions and consider practical examples and evidence to support us to make choices that support children to fulfil their potential. You will have the opportunity to consider the importance of language and how we can use language to build promote wellbeing.

Outdoor learning opportunities for children birth to two years

2 hours

We often think about the outdoors being a place for children to run around and be physically active, but where does this leave our youngest children that are not yet as mobile? The outdoors has so much to offer children of all ages and we shouldn’t forget about the babies and toddlers.  

This session will outline the many benefits of being outdoors for children birth to two years, and consider ways to overcome challenges and barriers that early years providers, and families, face in ensuring that our youngest children are given the same opportunities to explore the outdoors. We will consider how to create an enabling outdoor environment for our youngest children, and how to utilise what nature has to offer us when planning for the prime areas of learning.  

To find out more and to discuss your individual requirements, please

Bespoke training 

Our bespoke training packages are designed to meet the specific needs of your setting team. Simply let us know your requirements and we'll design a bespoke CPD package or team inset day to suit your setting. 

Our in-house bespoke offer is tailored to your individual setting and requirements and can be delivered in-person or virtually to your whole staff team at a date and time of your choosing. 

Below is the full list of Virtual Classroom sessions that can be delivered directly to your team when you choose:

EYFS, аÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê¹ÙÍø¿ª½± and professional practice

• An introduction to gender bias – gender stereotyping in early childhood (3 hours) Children’s progress matters (3 hours)
• An introduction to working with children with SEND (3 hours)
• Exploration of the curriculum and articulation of teaching (3 hours)
• Getting to grips with the EYFS – an overview of the changes (2 hours)
• Getting to grips with the EYFS supporting documents – an overview of the non-statutory guidance (2 hours)
• Getting to grips with the EYFS – supporting prime areas of learning (2 hours)
• Getting to grips with the EYFS – supporting specific areas of learning and development (2 hours)
• Let’s talk the learning walk (3 hours)
• Looking towards your аÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê¹ÙÍø¿ª½± inspection – Childminders (2 hours)
• Looking towards your аÄÃÅÁùºÏ²Ê¹ÙÍø¿ª½± inspection – Groups (2 hours)
• Observation, assessment and planning - a child centred approach (3 hours)
• Promoting effective family engagement (3 hours)
• Quality teaching and learning in the early years (3 hours)
• Safeguarding in the early years - includes the role of the designated person (4 hours and 1.5-2 hours of self-directed learning)
• Supporting children’s emotional wellbeing (3 hours)
• Supporting children for whom English is an additional language (3 hours)
• Supporting speech - books, stories, songs and rhymes (3 hours)

Health and wellbeing

• Developing emotional intelligence through outdoor play (3 hours)
• Inspiring outdoor learning environments for two-year-olds (3 hours)
• Supporting children’s emotional wellbeing in the early years (3 hours)
• Supporting staff wellbeing (3 hours)

Learning and development

• Inspirational baby room practice – getting it right from the start (4 hours)
• Promoting communication and language in early years (3 hours)
• Supporting speech – books, stories songs and rhymes (3 hours)
• Understanding behaviour in the early years (4 hours)
• Understanding the needs of two-year-olds (3 hours)
• Voice of the child (3 hours)

 

Business, leadership and sustainability

• Inspirational leadership and management (3 hours)
• Safer recruitment in the early years (3 hours)

To find out more and to discuss your individual requirements, please