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06/03/07

Thank you for your email of 13 February in response to my previous reply about Birth to Three Matters (BT3M) and the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS).

The Government recognises that parents are the most important people for children's early learning. Close working between practitioners and parents is vital to support a child's learning. All early education providers should work closely with parents, keeping them informed of children's progress and take into account the learning and development of children when they are with their parents. This is a requirement under the EYFS.

You may be interested to know that the Department is providing a number of projects to help parents engage in their children's learning. These will be specifically aimed at providing parents with information on helping their child get the best start in life and how they can best support their children's learning at home. A leaflet and DVD for parents are about to begin a pilot phase and will be rolled out from autumn 2007. These will introduce the EYFS to parents, helping them to understand what they can expect from September 2008, as well as contain advice about supporting their children's learning and creating a positive home learning environment.

The Department will be working closely with parents over the pilot phase of the development of the above materials and I will ask my colleague, who is leading on developing the EYFS parental materials to contact you shortly to discuss this further.

Yours sincerely

Public Communications Unit

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