Lancashire Quality Award – Physical Development

The Physical Development award is an opportunity to reflect on and improve your practice and provision using our award materials and training with Mentor support.  The self-evaluative reflective tool will support practitioners to fully consider the key skills needed to support effective physical development including how to provide an enabling environment to support and develop sensory, gross and fine motor development, as well as ways in which we can help to provide the foundation for developing healthy bodies, social and emotional wellbeing and self-care.

This award is embedded in an effective learning environment, harnessing routines to promote health and self-care and supporting practitioner knowledge of how to best support physical development through playful learning opportunities.

Consideration is given to a set of module standards and how to further improve and develop practice in these areas:

1. The indoor environment is rich in opportunities for physical development and supports children's sensory development, gross and fine motor skills.
2. The outdoor environment offers a wide range of physical experiences to support children's sensory development and their fine and gross motor skills.
3. Sensory development and early movement experiences take high priority and are promoted through provision and practice.
4. Provision for children's gross and fine motor development enables the development of strength, co-ordination, positional awareness and manipulative skills.
5. Children's social and emotional wellbeing is supported, enabling them to pursue happy, healthy and active lives
6. Self-care and healthy lifestyles are promoted throughout provision and practice, supporting children's physical health and enabling them to make healthy choices.
7. An effective partnership with parents supports families to understand children's learning needs for physical development.
8. Staff understand what to expect for children's physical development including typical progression in physical skills. They value, engage and challenge the children in a range of ways and model the language of physical development.
9. Planning covers the breadth of physical skills needed for all round development. The curriculum caters for progression in physical skills. Practitioners notice what children can do and what they need to learn next for physical development.
10. There is a strong commitment to professional development in relation to physical development and team members are proactive in keeping up to date with new initiatives, both within the setting and nationally.

In order to be considered for the award at least one member of your team must attend each of the following essential training courses to support self-reflection of this module prior to submission:

• Physical development 0-3's or Physical development 3-5's
• Babies, toddlers and the great outdoors or Developing your curriculum outdoors
• Wellbeing for children - Lancashire County Council

Other recommended training:

• Exploring Forest School and Nature Based Learning Through the Seasons

Please see the current Early Years Quality Improvement Team training brochure for reduced costs of these courses as part of this award, as well as dates throughout the year

Cost £240

This includes:

• Your module pack
• Introductory online session to introduce the award at your own staff meeting
• Half price access to all essential training recommended training
• One verification visit
• Verification and awarding process

To begin this award programme please contact lancashirequalityaward@lancashire.gov.uk