Explore what empathy is, supporting children to empathise with others and the role of the word ‘sorry’. What is empathy? Empathy is the ability to recognise, understand and share the feelings of someone else. It is about being able to stand in another person’s shoes and truly feel how they do, in a given situation. … Continue reading Empathy in early years: supporting children to empathise
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Early years activity: Shape hunt
A shape hunt helps children develop mathematical concepts, language and motor skills through playful exploration. As they find and name shapes, they build confidence, problem-solving abilities and curiosity in a fun, hands-on way. Shape hunt learning aims Resources you will need for this activity Shape hunt activity guide How to extend this activity Disclaimer: Activities… Continue reading Early years activity: Shape hunt
Top tips: Managing local outings
Local outings enrich learning by helping children explore their community, develop social skills, and build confidence. They encourage physical activity, language growth and real-world understanding while making learning fun and memorable. Here are some tips for managing local outings. NDNA products to support you with this tip Disclaimer: Activities with children must always be risk… Continue reading Top tips: Managing local outings
Safe recruitment in nurseries: your responsibilities
Find out about your key responsibilities to ensure safe recruitment in nurseries. Ensuring a safe environment for children in nurseries The safety and well-being of children is fundamental in nursery settings. Employing the right people to care for and educate children is a essential element of keeping them safe. Read on to find out about… Continue reading Safe recruitment in nurseries: your responsibilities
Government statistics on funded early education and childcare show ‘concerning’ trend
The Department for Education has published official statistics on ‘Funded early education and childcare’. These are the annual statistics on children under five registered for government funded entitlements in England. This is the first time this publication of statistics include registrations for the new entitlements for children of eligible working parents aged nine months to two… Continue reading Government statistics on funded early education and childcare show ‘concerning’ trend
Flexible working in early years settings: how to make it a success for your organisation
Flexible working isn’t a ‘nice-to-have’ anymore – it’s an expectation. And for early years settings where recruitment and retention are major challenges, building flexible working into your culture can give you a crucial edge in attracting and keeping great people. But how do you make it work in a busy early years environment? The experts… Continue reading Flexible working in early years settings: how to make it a success for your organisation
The prestigious NDNA nursery awards are back for 2026 to celebrate the early years sector!
NDNA is delighted to announce the launch of the NDNA awards 2026, which are now open for entries to nurseries and NDNA networks across the UK. Our awards celebration will return to the Titanic Hotel in Liverpool on Friday 5 June 2026. The showpiece awards event, proudly sponsored by Hope, will spotlight and celebrate leading… Continue reading The prestigious NDNA nursery awards are back for 2026 to celebrate the early years sector!
Family voices, stronger nurseries: Tips for parent surveys
Parent feedback is a vital tool in improving practice, strengthening partnerships and ensuring our children’s needs are fully met. Whether you are reviewing your curriculum, planning an event, or simply want to get to know your families better, an effective survey helps give a voice to those that matter. These top tips for parent surveys… Continue reading Family voices, stronger nurseries: Tips for parent surveys
Summer sensory exploration: What’s in the box?
Using available resources and guided questioning, this interactive summer sensory exploration activity encourages curiosity, descriptive language and a focus on sensory awareness. Have fun with the sights, sounds, textures and aromas of summer. What’s in the box learning aims Resources you will need for this activity What’s in the box activity outline How to extend… Continue reading Summer sensory exploration: What’s in the box?
Huge Government boost will fund many more Maths Champions
The Government has acknowledged the benefits of investing in early intervention programmes and is fully funding more than 1800 additional places on the Maths Champions programme. Maths Champions delivered by National Day Nurseries Association (NDNA) supports early years practitioners with their confidence and ability to teach maths to children in early years settings. Thanks to… Continue reading Huge Government boost will fund many more Maths Champions
Top tips: Hot weather safety in nursery
While hot weather can impact everyone, young children are especially at risk as they are less able to regulate their body temperature than adults. In warm conditions, it’s crucial for nursery settings to take extra precautions to keep children safe, cool and comfortable. Use these tips to help keep children happy, healthy and protected during… Continue reading Top tips: Hot weather safety in nursery
Early years activity: Ice rescue mission
In this fun and engaging activity, children work together to rescue small toys frozen in blocks of ice. It’s a fantastic way to experiment, explore cause and effect and stay cool in warm weather. The activity encourages teamwork, communication and problem-solving, supporting personal, social and emotional development. Children are naturally fascinated by ice and will… Continue reading Early years activity: Ice rescue mission
Healthy Ice-cream
As the third Sunday in July is National Ice Cream Day, why not make your own healthy ice-cream for children to enjoy as a summer treat. You can choose your own ingredients to make a range of flavours to suit children’s taste buds. Learning aims Resources you will need Ingredients for ice cream mixture Healthy… Continue reading Healthy Ice-cream
10 tips for supporting early years children with allergies
Allergies affect millions of people in the UK, with some allergies causing severe reactions. Ensuring all of your staff are aware of your allergy policy and procedures is essential to keep children safe. Use our top tips for reviewing your practice. NDNA products to support
Early years training for school nurseries and preschools
All NDNA early years and childcare training is up-to-date, reflecting the very latest childcare best practice, making it ideal for nurseries, preschools and school nurseries. It is written by NDNA’s early years experts. All NDNA training is certificated. Explore our different options below, or in our training brochure, to find the perfect early years training… Continue reading Early years training for school nurseries and preschools
Purposeful planning in early years
Find out all about purposeful planning, so you can plan effectively for children’s learning and development in your nursery. Why plan for children’s learning? Planning for children’s learning allows settings to ensure they are offering a broad, varied and rich curriculum of experiences to help children achieve their full potential. Whilst it is important to engage… Continue reading Purposeful planning in early years
Maths in early years: Making maths matter
Maths in early years is an important area of learning for all children and embedding a good foundation in maths is essential for developing life skills. As well as developing number awareness, maths also impacts skills such as spatial awareness, problem solving, shape knowledge and creating and describing patterns. Maths is everywhere! Engaging children in… Continue reading Maths in early years: Making maths matter
Two hundred new school-based nurseries will create 4,000 places
The Government has announced that almost 200 new school-based nurseries will open in September delivering more than 4,000 early education and care places. This will exceed the Government’s initial predictions on places. The next phase of school-based nursery funding will launch in autumn. NDNA has told the press that these new nurseries have to be… Continue reading Two hundred new school-based nurseries will create 4,000 places
Managing your nursery operations
In this series of blogs, National Day Nurseries Association (NDNA) provides top tips on developing effective nursery leadership and management skills. The articles address each important aspect of leadership and management in a nursery. We also provide links to where you can find further training and information. Why are nursery leadership and management skills important? … Continue reading Managing your nursery operations
Ofsted announces plan to strengthen inspections through new team structures
Following feedback from last year’s Big Listen and the recent consultation on inspection reform, Ofsted has announced a new structure for inspection teams in schools and further education, focused on improving consistency. The changes mean that following the introduction of the renewed education inspection framework in November 2025: On early years Ofsted said that due… Continue reading Ofsted announces plan to strengthen inspections through new team structures