In partnership with Nottingham City Council’s Early Years Team, we’re running eight free training sessions for Nottingham City-based childminders and out of school childcare practitioners.

We’ve been commissioned to run the training sessions by Nottingham City Council – to extend practitioners’ knowledge and understanding of play, including natural and outdoor play.

The training sessions will also explore how childcare practitioners can make play more accessible to children from Nottingham’s diverse ethnic and cultural communities and for children with physical and learning disabilities.

All the sessions have been designed around the Department of Education’s Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) framework, a statutory national framework that sets the standards for the learning, development and care of children from birth to five.

The training sessions include:

Play Today, Gone Tomorrow on Saturday 21st April at Friends Meeting House, 25 Clarendon Street, Nottingham, NG1 5JD from 10am to 2.30pm – a look at why children’s play is on the decline and how child practitioners can help to reverse this trend. A fun, hands-on introduction to play.

Leaves, Trees And Dirty Knees on Saturday 5th May at St Ann’s Allotments Community Orchard, Ransom Road, St Ann’s, Nottingham, NG3 3LJ from 10am to 1pm – creative outdoor play ideas to awaken children’s zest for nature. Including simple, innovative ways to use the nature all around us, from a walk in the woods to play in the back garden.

Let’s Get Messy on Saturday 19th May at Mansfield Road Baptist Church Hall, corner of Gregory Boulevard and Sherwood Rise, Nottingham, NG7 6JN from 10am to 2.30pm – creative play ideas to develop children’s curiousity, innovation and imagination including how to use natural materials for arts and crafts. No creative experience necessary.

Nature’s Playground on Saturday 2nd June at St Ann’s Allotments Community Orchard, Ransom Road, St Ann’s, Nottingham, NG3 3LJ from 10am to 1pm – how to make outdoor play fun and stimulating for young children. Includes ideas for using natural resources like sand and soil and natural arts and crafts activities.

Diversity…It’s More Than Festivals on Saturday 16th June at Friends Meeting House, 25 Clarendon Street, Nottingham, NG1 5JD from 10am to 2.30pm – how to use play to broaden diversity, inclusion and cultural awareness and boost children’s sense of themselves and the world around them. Includes an introduction to the wide range of play materials, toys and positive imagery available.

Spinning A Yarn on Saturday 30th June at Bulwell Hall Park Woods, Norwich Gardens, Bulwell, Nottingham, NG6 8LF from 10am to 1pm – fantastic ideas for story time. Step into a woodland adventure and learn how to use the outdoors to breathe new life into those old favourite stories and fables.

Visit The World In A Day on Saturday 14th July at Mansfield Road Baptist Church Hall, Gregory Boulevard/Sherwood Rise, Nottingham, NG7 6JN from 10am to 2.30pm – a whistle stop tour of exciting cultural celebrations, events, art and creativity around the world. Includes simple ideas for creative projects and how to plan a rich programme of activities to help children explore and discover the diverse cultures around them.

Come On Light My Fire on Saturday 21st July at Bulwell Hall Park Woods, Norwich Gardens, Bulwell, Nottingham, NG6 8LF from 10am to 1pm – how to bring a sense of wonder, adventure and managed risk to children’s play. The tendency to wrap children in cotton wool is depriving them of simple childhood pleasures like tree climbing and cooking on an open fire. Find out how you can help reverse this trend!

To find out more about any of the sessions please call Steve Parkinson on 0115 975 3898 or email steve@toy-library.co.uk