Agencies collaborate in new registration process for early childhood care and education centres

Coordinated by the Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) Unit of the Ministry of Education, a range of Government agencies are collaborating to implement the registration and re-registration of early childhood centres under the new Education Council Guidelines for Early Childhood Care and Education Centres (2013).

These new processes and criteria are part of the Education Council Guidelines for Early Childhood Care and Education Centres (2013), ratified by Education Council in August 2013. The Guidelines require a multi-agency approach, to ensure that the standards for the safety and well-being of the children in early childhood centres are upheld.

To date, these agencies comprise:

• Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) Unit
• Department of Environmental Health (DEH)
• Fire Services
• Department of Children and Family Services(DCFS)
• Planning Department
• Department of Education Services (DES)
• Trade and Business Licence

According to Ministry officials, the Guidelines build on previous regulatory work by early childhood professionals, inclusive of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Regional Guidelines and international best practice, as well as the pioneering work of Mrs. Marjorie Beckles. Prior to these Guidelines being developed, ECCE centres were governed under guidelines which were published in 2002.

At this time, the first group of early childhood centres have been presented to the Education Council for re-registration under the Education Council Guidelines for Early Childhood Care and Education Centres (2013):

• Sir John A Cumber Primary
• Savannah Primary
• Edna Moyle Primary School
• Creek Primary School
• West End Primary
• St George’s Pre-School

This group included some of the Government Reception programmes. Though not required by law, the Government programmes are among the first to be reviewed under the Guidelines. “We felt it was important to test the new registration process in this way,” explained Ms. Carol Bennett, Senior Policy Advisor and Manager for Early Childhood Care and Education. “We also see it as an important quality assurance measure. By having Reception classes participate in the review process, we can ensure consistency and compliance with the standards being applied to private centres”.

The various agencies all have their roles in the registration and re-registration process and their findings are collated by the ECCE Unit within the Ministry of Education, which then presents the information to the Education Council for their decision regarding the eligibility for each centre’s registration or re-registration. The Education Council Guidelines for Early Childhood Care and Education Centres (2013) include relevant legal requirements from the various agencies such as Planning, DEH and Fire Services.

According to Ms Carol Bennett, all early childhood care and education centres have been put on a schedule for re-registration according to the expiration date of their Trade and Business Licence.

“There is also a period prior to the inspections where the early childhood centre can receive additional support to identify and rectify any issues that may hinder re-registration,” Ms. Tunisia Barnes, Seconded Early Childhood Care and Education Officer, stated.

The centres are evaluated according to the criteria set out in the Education Council Guidelines for registration (for a new centre) and re-registration (for an existing centre), under the following areas:

• Care and Education Provision
• Premises and Facilities
• Health and Safety
• Leadership and Management

The ECCE Unit will continue with the re-registration schedule throughout the next three quarters with the goal of presenting all early childhood centres to the Education Council before the end of the 2014-2015 fiscal year. Ongoing support will continue in all ECCE centres in the endeavour to improve standards and provision.

Education Council Member and President of the Early Childhood Association, Ms Reina Jefferson, says that she welcomes the new guidelines and registration process. “I am a long-standing and passionate advocate for quality early childhood care and education, so I was delighted to participate in the review and approval of the new Guidelines. I am encouraged to see them being applied to ensure centres meet certain basic standards, not just for registration but across the Board, and to enable Education Council to mandate action where serious concerns arise. This is a huge step in the right direction,” Ms Jefferson said.

Ms Bennett explained that the Guidelines also play an important role in supporting early childhood care and education (ECCE) centre/school owners and operators. The Guidelines support them to be knowledgeable of and responsible for improving their centres to meet the needs of the children in their care. “We know the range in quality of our centres is too wide. The information from the various agencies involved in the registration and re-registration processes is compiled in the Guidelines so that all stakeholders can be aware of standards and expectations for the centres. Owners and managers of the ECCE centres may use the sample forms and policies in the document as templates for developing the requirements for their centres. This document is a valuable tool for existing centre owners and prospective owners”.

The Guidelines may be accessed on the Ministry of Education’s website www.education.gov.ky by following the “Education” link, and on to the “Early Childhood” page.

Related story:

Raising standards in early childhood care and education centres

In 2013, the Education Quality Assurance Unit (EQAU) completed inspection visits to early childhood care and education centres. This was the first time that a full inspection of this nature has been conducted. The outcome of the inspections verified that there are varying levels of service provision available to parents and their children. Although some settings were deemed “unsatisfactory” by EQAU standards, there were centres which met criteria for the top of the scale as being “very good”. “While we have some centres that provide the very best in quality learning experiences, inspections and the work of the Ministry’s Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) Unit tell us that, from an initial baseline review in 2013, roughly half of the centres have aspects where improvements are needed and/or where there are significant weaknesses. At the same time, we have some centres where standards are good in most or nearly all respects and exemplary in others,” stated Senior Policy Advisor and ECCE Manager, Mrs Carol Bennett. Reducing such inequities is a challenge that is being tackled under the leadership of the ECCE Unit, in partnership with the ECCE centres.

The Cayman Islands Strategic Plan for Education 2012-2017 highlights early childhood education as a critical priority area. The aim is to “build a world-class early childhood care and education system”; providing “access to high quality early childhood care and education to all children, regardless of income, background, special or additional education need” is the goal. There are a number of strategic objectives which will help to achieve this goal. Some of these aim to support “early childhood care and education (ECCE) centre/school owners and operators to be knowledgeable of and responsible for the needs of the children in their care”, “provide opportunities for early years teachers and practitioners to be confident and qualified in their roles” and “standardize quality provision across ECCE centres and schools for children and their families”.

Following the inspections, a number of initiatives have been completed in an effort to meet the goals set out in the Strategic Plan and raise standards. This work has included the establishment of clear and agreed standards and guidance for centres to improve their practice. These developments were highlighted as key milestones for the advancement of ECCE by Education Minister, the Hon. Tara Rivers, in her contribution to the 14/15 budget debate:

• The development of New Education Council Guidelines for Early Childhood Care and Education Programmes (2013, for the registration and operation of early childhood centres.
• The finalisation of the CI Early Years Curriculum Framework, which is being printed.

Through the recently ratified Education Council Guidelines for Early Childhood Care and Education Centres (2013) ECCE Centres are provided with information regarding the registration and re-registration processes for centres and the policies and practices required in the operation of centres. The Guidelines may be accessed on the Ministry of Education’s website by following the “Education” link, and on to the “Early Childhood” page.

Another valuable tool to help “early years teachers and practitioners to be confident… in their roles” and to help ensure quality provision is standardized is the Cayman Islands Early Years Curriculum Framework (CIEYCF). This Framework details best practices, suggested activities and resources for early years practitioners to utilize when planning for various age groups and different developmental stages. After drafting the CIECYF, a piloting and consultation process was completed; followed by final edits and presentation of the Framework to the Education Council for approval and printing before the end of June 2014. The CIEYCF will then be distributed to every early childhood practitioner within our Islands. It will also be available online for parents and other persons wishing to access it. Implementation of the CIEYCF is another way to ensure that quality provision is standardized across all centres.

“Standards require strategies to help centres achieve the kind of results our children deserve,” stated Chief Officer, Mrs Mary Rodrigues. Therefore, the ECCE unit has been engaging with centres, both collectively and individually, to provide training and support to help them move forward from whatever level they are at.

According to ECCE Officer, Mrs Renee Barnes, Centre Owners and practitioners have responded very positively to the work of the Unit, “Throughout the islands they have openly embraced the support given by our Unit. We are working hard to fill the void for training and sharing best practice. Our training sessions have been very well attended and early childhood staff have responded positively to information provided in these sessions,” she said.

Inspection reports and progress reports prepared by the early childhood centres in 2013 have been published on the Ministry of Education’s website (www.education.gov.ky). Early Childhood Care and Education centres have been given the opportunity to provide progress reports on the changes they have implemented in their early childhood centres since the inspections. These will be posted by June 30, 2014 on the Ministry’s website.