The Friendship Quilt: Sewn with Stories, Kindness and Belonging
The year 2023 marked our 120th anniversary, celebrating a long and fascinating history that began in 1903 when a group of doctors and almoners came together to tackle poverty in…
LEYF News and CEO Blog
Read the latest news and updates from our CEO and the wider LEYF team.
Rights, Relationships and Respect: A Timely Book for EY Professionals
There are some books that arrive at exactly the right moment, and Babies’ and Toddlers’ Rights in Practice by Mary Moloney,…
Encouraging Women to the top
Are you a feminist from the 1970s? Did you look forward to reading the monthly Spare Rib? Was your diary the Spare Rib diary?…
May the Force Be With You : The Rallying Cry in Dublin at the 26th EECERA Conference
The EECERA Conference is an annual event and I always try and attend accompanied by LEYF staff where possible. It’s much better fun when we go as…
Parents, your childcare could be in jeopardy
Dear Parents Do you know that your childcare could be in jeopardy? Why? Because a decision made in 2014 by the then Minister for Childcare is having a detrimental…
Ofsted has discovered Child Poverty
“If we get the early years right, we pave the way for a lifetime of achievement. If we get them wrong, we miss a unique opportunity to shape a child’s…
Dear Justine Greening MP
Congratulations on your appointment as Secretary of State for Education. It is quite a Brief so l hope that those of us who have been grappling with it for a…
Men in Childcare, why are we still debating this?
Just when you think that you are beginning to open people’s eyes and ears as to the benefits of having men working in childcare settings, along comes the ill- informed and…
I’m Alright, Jack
Last Thursday was a day of momentous historical significance. It may be linked but the weather also decided to create havoc on that day. Determined not to be beaten, I…
What’s Brand Got to Do with the Early Years?
I seem to be visiting the homes of great Early Years pioneers at the moment. Last month to Keilhau home of Froebel and last week a short holiday…
Cleaning my teeth with Laura Henry & other surprises from a Trip to Froebel’s Birthplace
Recently, I wrote about the importance of visiting other nurseries so I was delighted when I was given a “golden ticket” by Community Playthings to visit…
Visiting Each Others Nurseries Brings Many Benefits – From Social Enterprises to Fairy Gardens
Recently, I was lucky enough to enjoy the company and conversation of a number of Early Years colleagues; I met colleagues from OMEP Ireland and…
Balancing Good Intentions with Reality? Another Challenge for Childcare.
The Government wants to upgrade the calibre of staff entering the Early Years profession. So indeed does the sector, so what’s the problem?…
Why we need to learn from the past and become Black Box Thinkers
It’s been a while since I went to a sector event so I decided to attend an event hosted by PACEY last week to hear if our Minster had anything…