The early years foundation stage (2021): Challenges and opportunities

The Department for Education’s reforms to the early years foundation stage (EYFS) (DfE, 2020a) and its non-statutory guidance Development Matters (DfE, 2020b) have received a mixed response. They have been driven by the desire for a knowledge-rich curriculum and as a way of bridging the curricular gap between the end of the EYFS and key stage 1 (KS1). Some of the concerns are that the end-point goals are narrow measures of a child’s attainment akin to a ‘best fit’ with KS1 rather than the broader, developmentally appropriate current offer. The EYFS sets the standards for the learning, development and care of children from birth to five, including non-compulsory early childhood education and care (ECEC) provision and compulsory schooling, and the challenge is how to encompass the breadth of age ranges and maintain equality and diversity.