Of course, the threat of Covid-19 has hung over us all and left many early years providers feeling vulnerable and isolated. I have watched with great sadness as hundreds of childminders close their doors during 2021, with many citing lack of work or uncertainty about the future and I see many nurseries and pre-schools struggling for staff.
On the plus side, I note that some of the changes I have made in my own business model during Covid-19 will help me to sustain my childminding setting in the future – for example, doorstep handovers are the way to go for me and a mini, child-sized sink installed in the playroom was a small thing, but it has made a huge difference to the smooth running of our daily routines.
I also spent time reflecting on the Ofsted and Dept for Education changes to documentation expectations for early years providers, stated in recent myth busting blogs and presentations and clearly set out in the Ofsted early years inspection handbook. I have now cut out all extraneous record keeping which serves no useful purpose beyond cluttering up my evenings and weekends. It has been a truly joyful experience and I look forward to continuing with the exercise next year.
Aware that stress might impact on my personal and professional life, I have done a lot of work on my wellbeing this year. I have watched presentations and researched everything from mindfulness (works for me) to journaling (too time intensive). I have started and stopped yoga (ouch) and introduced a calm time to our daily routines when we all listen to music and rest our minds (very successful). I want to continue this into next year because I feel it is so important to listen to my body, which was telling me it was tired and a little run-down.
My private consultancy work and my writing and training delivery for Childcare.co.uk has been strong throughout 2021 and I have been busy updating my e-books in my spare time. To support colleagues, I have completed hundreds of hours of professional development opportunities and I have continued to deliver quality free training for colleagues every week through Childcare.co.uk. I have also written thousands of posts on social media and replied to hundreds of personal messages, to support colleagues. This is something I feel very passionate about – everyone needs access to free information that is well researched and shared freely. There is too much nonsense on social media and I want to continue challenging it in 2022.
On the subject of ‘challenging the nonsense’, I have continued to be part of the Ofsted Big Conversation North West steering group and feel proud of the work I am doing within this very professional and supportive group. I note that there is a lot of ‘them and us’ unrest in the sector at the moment about Ofsted, especially in inspection feedback and look forward to maintaining a professional dialogue with Ofsted in the future.
I believe that 2022 will be challenging for many of us. The threat of infection and business disruption from Covid-19 isn’t going away and the Government’s mixed messaging and apparent lack of understanding about what we are going through in the early years sector will most likely continue. However, I am looking to next year with positivity. I feel my business is strong and my wellbeing is as high as it can be given the challenges that face us all.
I would like to take this opportunity to wish you all a very happy Christmas and thank those colleagues who have reached out with personal wishes. I think that now, more than ever, we need to come together and support each other in the year ahead.
Sarah.