Education

National Minimum wage

(14/12/06) As part of the Government's targeted minimum wage enabling and enforcement program, the childcare sector was the sector chosen for year .

Children’s Services (England) Update

03/11/06) This bulletin provides an update on the latest developments in Children's Services.

Information sharing Index: Consultation on draft regulations

(03/11/2006) A consultation on the draft regulations for setting statutory early years targets for Local Authorities is currently taking place. Comments are invited by 1 December to Jon Richards at Education@unison.co.uk

Common Assessment Framework: Briefing Note Number 5

(07/09/06) The Common Assessment Framework (CAF) is a simple assessment checklist to help practitioners identify children and young people who would benefit from common assessment. It is a process for undertaking an assessment to help practitioners gather and understand information about the needs of a child based on discussions with the child, their family and other practitioners as appropriate.

The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS)

(14/08/2006) UNISON response to the The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) – Consultation on a single quality framework for services for children from birth to five.

Local Safeguarding Children’s Boards

(13/07/06) From April 2006 every Local Authority should have created a Local Safeguarding Children Board (LSCB), these are designed to be the key mechanism for ensuring relevant organisations will co-operate in ensuring children’s welfare. LSCB’s are part of the wider context of children’s trust arrangements.

UNISON response to the Children’s Workforce Strategy

(12/07/2006) UNISON is the biggest trade union in the UK representing people who work with children – in schools, childcare, child protection, children’s’ centres, children’s’ homes and a host of other settings. The Government has made a strong commitment to improving children’s services and a whole host of initiatives re currently being carried out. UNISON is campaigning to ensure that the funding, training and staffing are all in place to ensure a highly skilled and motivated workforce can deliver for children.

Information Sharing

(12/07/2006)As part of the Government’s Every Child Matters (ECM) strategy guidance has been produced called ‘Information Sharing: Practitioners guide’. This is aimed at all those who work with children and young people, paid or unpaid and across all sectors. The document is a guide for staff in making difficult decisions as to whether to share information about a child who they believe may be at risk.

These briefings that can easily be photocopied and are particularly aimed at those staff groups who do not access professional journals and trade magazines where new changes are being announced.

New Children’s Services Briefings – Every child Matters

(15/05/06) In response to rapid changes in Children’s services delivery in England under the Government’s ‘Every Child Matters‘ strategy we will be producing a series of briefings on different aspects of related programmes and strategies. These briefings that can easily be photocopied and are particularly aimed at those staff groups who do not access professional journals and trade magazines where new changes are being announced. Download the briefing Children’s Services(England)Briefing Number 1 May 2006

Lead Professional

(15/05/2006) Since the publication of the Green Paper ‘Every Child Matters’ a number of policies and initiatives have been developed that cover the children’s workforce, the role of Lead Professional is one of these initiatives.