The A to Z of Early Years. June O'Sullivan
Praise for the Book
June's book is an incisive look at the impact of policy on practice across a range of subjects within the early years. An accessible book that is lively and engaging but also reflects a deep understanding that comes from her experience and knowledge.
Neil Leitch, CEO, Early Years Alliance
What more could you want from a book than this? With June's personality shining through in every word, it demonstrates her depth of knowledge, understanding and years of experience in the sector brought together in one hugely enjoyable and honest collection of everything Early Years from Apprentices to Zooming to the moon. A hugely valuable resource and the June we love at her best in saying it ‘how it is'.
Juls Davies, Founder and Director EY Matters
Bringing to bear a career's worth of knowledge and experience, June's passion and perspective into all things early years is imprinted on every page. Her unique, valuable and insightful way of looking at every aspect of early years, big or small, is shared with honesty, perceptive analysis and humour. We can all greatly benefit in so many ways from this comprehensive and practical book.
Alice Sharp, Managing Director, Experiential Play
This is June O'Sullivan at her very best. She offers a critical reflection on early years policy and practice which is highly appropriate and useful to anyone interested in the early years sector. The strength of this book is that it brings together, what appear to be, a range of disconnected concepts, however they combine to deliver an exceptionally user-friendly synopsis of early childhood in England.
Helen Perkins, Senior Lecturer, Childhood & Family Studies, University of Wolverhampton
The best possible start in life is crucial to the success of our families, our communities and our country, June's book gives practical insight into many subjects in early years across policy, economics and practice. It asks the difficult questions, often ignored, but that are crucial to be answered and answered well, in order to ensure a strong and stable social and economic infrastructure that enables nurturing and development of all of our children, in their early years.
Jacqueline Lamb, Chief Executive Officer, Indigo Childcare Group
June isn't just one of the very best leaders we've got in the early years. She's one of our very best leaders, full stop. I love June's quirky humour, incisive thinking and wealth of knowledge about early years. She's willing to think the unthought and speak the unspoken. This book is a gift to all of us in the early years, and beyond.
Julian Grenier, Headteacher, Sheringham Nursery School and Children's Centre Co-lead, East London Research School
The A–Z of Early Years
Politics, Pedagogy and Plain Speaking
June O'Sullivan
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© Lee Elliot Major and Stephen Machin 2020
First published 2020
Apart from any fair dealing for the purposes of research or private study, or criticism or review, as permitted under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act, 1988, this publication may be reproduced, stored or transmitted in any form, or by any means, only with the prior permission in writing of the publishers, or in the case of reprographic reproduction, in accordance with the terms of licences issued by the Copyright Licensing Agency. Enquiries concerning reproduction outside those terms should be sent to the publishers.
Library of Congress Control Number: 2020936783
British Library Cataloguing in Publication data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
ISBN 978-1-5297-2407-3
ISBN 978-1-5297-2406-6 (pbk)
Printed in the UK
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This book is for all the early years heroes, who day in day out champion the importance of early years education for children, families and society. Let your voices be heard.
About the author
Leader of the UK's largest childcare charitable social enterprise, June O'Sullivan has created a unique business model and ambitious seven-strand social pedagogy where active teacher-led research continually shapes practice and informs our theory about how we lead children to learn. This has ensured that children from all communities, but especially those from poorer neighbourhoods, can access high-quality nurseries.
As a leading social entrepreneur and disruptor, June continues to demonstrate why and how it matters to integrate sustainable business practices driven by a social purpose. She has pioneered new pedagogical ways of supporting staff to deliver innovative learning and teaching whilst building stronger social and cultural capital to deliver long-term social impact.
An inspiring and outspoken speaker, author and regular media commentator on all things Early Years, Social Business and Child Poverty, June is a tireless campaigner, seeking new ways to influence policy and make society a better place for all children and their families as well as the wider community.
@JuneOSullivan
About the author
For 47 years I have had the privilege through my many fascinating roles, including being the first children's commissioner for England, to have a unique view of childhood today – not just for children's health, but its interface with education, social care, justice and poverty.
While it's true we have amazing children, young people and families, with wonderful, passionate staff; the tough, unpalatable reality is that overall we have some of the worst outcomes for children across health, social care, education, justice and poverty in the developed world. The failure of effective political advocacy for the best interests of children by senior people and key organisations in the