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Home-Start Essex
Home-Start is a family support service. About Home-Start Essex Home-Start Essex aims to give children the best possible start in life by supporting parents and caregivers to feel less isolated, to build their confidence in themselves and their parenting and to find ways to manage the challenges they face. We build trusting, helpful relationships with…
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Essex ActivAte Holiday Programme
Fun filled holidays! Funded by Department for Education and Essex County Council, Essex ActivAte is the name for the Holiday Activity and Food programme (HAF) run by Active Essex across Essex and Thurrock. The programme offers engaging holiday clubs and free activities run by local club providers, and free spaces are offered to children and…
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Childcare Funding
Childcare funding and support available in Essex Funded Early Education Entitlement (FEEE) FEEE is for eligible working families from the term after a child turns 9-months-old until statutory school age. The number of FEEE hours that working families are eligible for depends on the age of their child and their circumstances. Currently, eligible working parents/carers…
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Art in the Outside Environment
Out and about art! Nature has the very best materials for creating art! There are so many benefits to getting out in the fresh air with your child and searching for things to make an outdoor picture with. Your masterpiece can be big or small, an individual creation or a group activity. You can find all…
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Puzzle Play
Piece by piece! There’s lots of ways you can use this classic toy – in particular an inset puzzle – to build your child’ speech, language and communication skills! Puzzles also help to develop: Top tips:
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Loose Parts Play
Building with bits and bobs! The idea of ‘loose parts’ has influenced child play experts and has allowed us to explore different ways children learn. Loose parts are materials that can be moved, carried, lined up, taken apart and put back together in multiple ways! Loose parts in the environment will empower the creativity and…
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Water Play
The wonders of water! Water is fascinating to children and is appropriate to all ages. Many children like playing with water whether it’s jumping in puddles, splashing in the sink when washing their hands, playing at bath time or having fun in a paddling pool! Water play can be a sociable occasion and exciting, or…
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Homemade Playdough
Dough it yourself! Playdough can be made very easily using ‘ingredients’ that you have at home, and this simple activity has many benefits. Before your child can hold a pen and learn to write, they need to strengthen and learn to control the muscles in their hands. Playdough is the perfect activity to exercise little…
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Homemade Fluffy and Cloud Dough
Dough it yourself! The real wonder of playdough is how everyone wants to play with it! Just make the dough and watch how adults and older children are also attracted to this ‘in the moment’ sensory activity. Kneading, squashing, squeezing and rolling brings calm and enjoyment to all ages! Fluffy playdough recipe What you need:…
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Essex Child and Family Wellbeing Service
The focus of this service is making sure that everyone in Essex has the best possible start in life through meeting the identified needs of children, young people and families. The Healthy Family Team offer routine contacts to ALL families living in Essex within the first 3 years. These are as follows: These visits will…
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Talk, Listen, Cuddle ‘Out and About’ Cards
A whole new world! When you are out and about with your child there is lots to uncover and explore – new sounds, new smells and new things to see that are different than at home. Talking about these new experiences with your children helps them recognise them and make connections with the things they…
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50 Things to Do Before You’re 5
The ultimate checklist with ‘low cost no cost’ ideas! Playing together is one of the most important things you can do with your child to help their learning. The time you spend playing together will help them learn all sorts of things – from counting and writing, to exploring and making new friends! Here are…
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Stages of Play
Playful minds! Play is a way that that your child can make sense of the world, themselves and others. As they grow and develop, they will gradually move through the different stages of play. It is important that you play with your child at every stage of play when they are ready, as this will…
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Imaginative Play
Imagination station! Imaginative play, or ‘symbolic’ play, is important because it suggests that your child understands that one object or picture can symbolise another, just as a word represents an object. During imaginative play, your child is beginning to understand the idea of symbols, which eventually leads to being able to think in abstract ways…
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Read With Me Under a Tree
A celebration of rhymes, books and the great outdoors! In Summer 2023, we teamed up with Essex Libraries and Essex Country Parks to bring you ‘Read With Me Under a Tree’ borrow bags. The bags included story books, a themed activity sheet and den building kit to help you get outside and have fun! To…