RAISING QUALITY IN THE EARLY YEARS

Training courses and moderation support

The aim of our courses is to train groups of early years practitioners and LA advisers/consultants in the use of the Environment Rating Scales (ECERS-R, ECERS-E, ITERS-R, FCCERS-R and SACERS). Our courses include:

  • A one day introduction to using the scales for self-evaluation. These introductory courses are suitable for all practitioners working with children from birth to five.
  • Three day or five day practical courses covering one or two of the Environment Rating Scales. These courses are an ideal introduction to carrying out observations using the scales, and include small- group guided observations with an experienced trainer. Courses are suitable for both Local Authority and practitioner delegates.
  • A five day ‘Leading and Managing Quality Improvement using the Environment Rating Scales’ course. This option is particularly appropriate for lead practitioners and managers, and has a five-days-over-five-months structure.
  • A two day 'Different Lenses: One Environment' course in collaboration with WEAVE Recycle (www.weaverecycle.co.uk). This course is designed for lead practitioners. It provides an introduction to ECERS/ITERS as tools for evaluating the quality of an early years environment, and explores the use of reusable, recycled and open-ended resources as a cost effective way of developing areas identified by ECERS/ITERS.
  • Tailored Quality Improvement Programmes for individual settings and schools.
  • Moderation to support consistent use of the scales.

The majority of our courses are booked on a 'whole cohort' basis, either by Local Authorities or by clusters of settings/schools, and delivered locally (i.e. we come to you). If you are an individual or would like to book places for a small group of delegates, please do contact us. We often have courses running in different areas and may be able to arrange for you to join an existing cohort.

For further details, prices, or to discuss the level of training best suited to your needs, please contact us.



"A+ is the only group we authorize to provide training on the scales in the UK. We work frequently with the A+ group, and know of no others in the UK who have worked with us enough to provide the high level of
training we would expect."
Debby Cryer, co- author of the ECERS-R, ITERS-R and FCCERS-R



Please note that our courses are designed to train practitioners, and those supporting settings/schools, to use the scales for quality improvement purposes. Our moderation programme provides more in-depth support for settings or Local Authorities planning to carry out consistent observations using the scales (e.g. for audit or to measure change in quality over time). We do also offer support for research teams wishing to use the scales reliably for research purposes. However, we do not currently provide accreditation or 'train to train'.