During the 2025 autumn term, the Department for Education (DfE) delivered a series of 6 regional improvement for standards and excellence (RISE) webinars on reception quality led by sector experts, including the Education Endowment Foundation (EEF), Ofsted and English Hubs.
The aim of these free webinars is to support schools, trusts and local authority leaders to increase the number of children who achieve a good level of development (GLD) at the end of their first year in school.
Session 1 The importance of reception and the data available to support leaders
In this session from September 2025 we hear from DfE experts
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Susie Owen, Director of Early Years, Childcare and Families, who outlines the government’s plans to strengthen family services and improve quality in early years, as set out in Giving every child the best start in life
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Amy Finch, Head of Reception Policy, who introduces the new good level of development tool, now available on the View your education data (VYED) platform, demonstrating how it supports schools and responsible bodies to analyse reception outcomes and identify priorities for improvement
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Narinder Gill, Director of Leadership and Transformation (Inspiring Generations) and DfE RISE advisor, an experienced school and trust leader who shares how leaders can use the GLD tool to drive meaningful conversations, celebrate strengths and target support effectively
In this webinar, schools were guided to use their GLD data to
- reflect on what is working well
- identify priorities for development
- collaborate in order to learn
The importance of reception and the data available to support leaders
Session 2 Strategic leadership of the early years in school EEF shares the evidence
In this session from September 2025 we hear from Julian Grenier from the Education Endowment Foundation who explains
- why a child’s early years are crucial for long-term success
- how school leaders can turn evidence into action
- why strategic leadership is key to driving quality and improving outcomes
Strategic leadership of the early years in school EEF shares the evidence
Session 3 Key messages from Ofsted’s research on strong foundations
In this session from October 2025, Kirsty Godfrey, a Senior His Majesty’s Inspector at Ofsted, shares findings from Ofsted’s Strong foundations in the first years of school research.
The session explores how schools can
- build firm foundations in early reading, writing and language
- support children’s executive function
- adapt teaching for those who need the most help
This session references the Padlet board Strategic leadership of the Early Years in Schools RISE Summer 2025.
Key messages from Ofsted’s research on Strong Foundations
Session 4 Embedding a language-rich environment and supporting early writing
Adam Harris, Head of Great Heights English Hub, and Joshua Callaghan, Hub Lead at the Arch English Hub, share how strong communication and language foundations drive later attainment, relationships and wellbeing.
The session from October 2025
- introduces practical approaches for creating language-rich classrooms through high-quality adult and child interactions
- discusses explicit vocabulary teaching and dialogic reading
- shows how these approaches lay the groundwork for confident early writers through oral composition, transcription and executive function
The English Hubs Early Language Audit is referenced throughout this webinar.
Embedding a language rich environment and supporting early writing
In this session from October 2025, Molly Devlin, Director of Early Years at Ark Start, and Swabra Lloyd, Executive Headteacher at Forest Academy, share how strong attendance habits start in reception through clear routines, strong relationships and a shared culture of belonging.
Drawing on Ark’s six pillars, the session highlights practical strategies and shows how strong leadership, clear expectations and early engagement build strong foundations for good attendance.
Establishing strong attendance routines in reception
Session 6 The importance of early maths
Debbie Morgan, Primary Director at National Centre for Excellence in the Teaching of Mathematics, and Debbie Sullivan, Assistant Headteacher at St Thomas More Primary, draw on national evidence and classroom practice, highlighting how high-quality early maths teaching focused on number, pattern and spatial reasoning can close disadvantage gaps and support all children to secure strong foundations.
The importance of early maths.
