This report evaluates the Champions for Children professional development programme, which was delivered to 116 practitioners from all 66 early years settings in the Ipswich Opportunity Area during the 2018/19 academic year.
The project aimed to strengthen professional competency in supporting children under five in the town to develop good early language, social and emotional skills.
The Champions for Children project was developed and delivered by the National Literacy Trust and EasyPeasy, supported by Suffolk County Council and Ipswich Teaching & Research School, and funded by the Ipswich Opportunity Area.
The evaluation found that, after taking part in the project, early years practitioners were:
- More likely to engage and involve parents with supporting their child’s language, communication, social and emotional development
- More likely to engage in behaviours that demonstrate knowledge and skills in supporting children’s communication and language development more often
- More likely to support children's social and emotional development through language and communication more frequently
- More likely to implement actions to create an enabling environment in the setting that stimulates communication and language, and supports social and emotional development
Find out more about Champions for Children.