Early Years

Foundation Stage
Profile
2024 handbook

October 2023
Contents
Summary 3
Expiry 3
Who is this publication for? 3
Statutory requirements 3
Important dates for 2023/24 4
EYFS Profile: purposes and principles 5
Overview of the Profile 5
Principles of EYFS Profile assessments 6
Building knowledge of the child 7
Completing the EYFS Profile 9
Overview 9
Exceptions and exemptions 9
Assessing children against the early learning goals 10
Completing the Profile for children with an outcome at the ‘emerging’ level 11
Completing the Profile for children with SEND 11
Moderation 13
Reporting the EYFS Profile assessment 14
Reporting to the year 1 teacher 14
Reporting to parents and/or carers 14
EYFS Profile data collection and submission 16
Overview 16
Responsibilities 16
Data collection and submission 17
Children transferring schools 19
Children who remain in EYFS provision beyond the age of 5 20
Children who are home-educated or missing education 21
Types of school 22
How the requirements apply to different types of school 22
Annex A: The early learning goals 24

2
Summary
This publication has been produced by the Department for Education (DfE) to help
teachers to complete the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) Profile assessment in
the 2023/24 academic year.

The EYFS Profile must be completed for each child in the final term of the year in which
they reach age 5. Therefore, it is usually undertaken by reception teachers, but on rare
occasions other early years settings would need to complete the Profile if it is not being
done in reception year at school. For the purposes of this document ‘teacher’ should be
understood to refer to any early years practitioner working with the child and completing
the EYFS Profile assessment.

Expiry
This guidance is relevant until the end of the 2023/24 academic year.

Who is this publication for?

This guidance is for all those in England who are involved in EYFS Profile assessments,
including:

• Reception and key stage 1 teachers and teams, or other early years practitioners
where relevant
• Headteachers and managers
• Local authorities

Statutory requirements
The main purpose of this handbook is to provide guidance for schools when completing
the EYFS Profile assessment for children in the final term of the year in which they turn 5.

For the purposes of this document ‘school’ is inclusive of all EYFS providers that
complete the Profile. If a child has attended a range of settings during the final year of the
EYFS, the EYFS Profile assessment must be completed by the provider where the child
spends the majority of their time between 8am and 6pm. For most children this will be a
reception class in a school.

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The handbook also details the statutory requirements 1 that apply to schools, as set out in
the EYFS statutory framework, and the statutory requirements that apply to local
authorities in relation to assessment and reporting.

This document uses the word “must” where the provision is a legal requirement. The
word “should” is used where regard must be had to the provision, which means that it
must be taken into account and should not be departed from unless there is good reason
for doing so.

Important dates for 2023/24

Date Activity

30 June 2024 Deadline for schools to complete the EYFS Profile for each child
and submit the data to their local authority.

31 July 2024 Deadline for local authorities to return EYFS Profile data to DfE.
Figure 1: Important dates for 2023/24

1
These statutory duties are given power by The Childcare Act 2006.

4
EYFS Profile: purposes and principles
Overview of the Profile

What is the EYFS Profile?

The EYFS Profile is a statutory assessment of children’s development at the end of the
academic year in which children turn 5, usually reception year. Each child’s level of
development is assessed against 17 early learning goals (ELGs) across all 7 areas of
learning in the EYFS. For each ELG, teachers must assess whether a child is meeting
the level of development expected at the end of the EYFS, or if they are not yet reaching
this level and should be assessed as ‘emerging’. The Profile is intended to provide a
reliable and accurate summative assessment of each child’s development at the end of
the EYFS in order to support children’s successful transitions to year 1.

Teachers are expected to use their professional judgement to make EYFS Profile
assessments, using their knowledge and understanding of what a child knows,
understands, and can do.

Day-to-day informal checking of what children have learnt will inform teaching and
learning on an ongoing basis throughout the final year of the EYFS. This will include
identifying areas where children may be at risk of falling behind, so that teachers can
provide effective support where needed.

The EYFS Profile is not intended to be used for ongoing assessment or for entry-level
assessment for early years settings or reception classes. Schools should note that the
ELGs are what is assessed in the final term of the year in which children turn 5 and
should not be used as a curriculum 2. For support with developing or enhancing a
curriculum schools may refer to the non-statutory curriculum guidance Development
Matters.

When should the EYFS Profile take place?

The EYFS framework requires the EYFS Profile assessment to be carried out in the final
term of the year in which a child reaches age 5. The EYFS Profile must be completed for
each child and submitted to the local authority no later than 30 June 2024.

2
The curriculum in a primary school starts when children first join in the early years, be that the nursery or
reception class. Learning in key stage 1 and beyond builds on the curriculum in the early years. Schools
should design the early years curriculum to give children the foundational knowledge and understanding
they will need for key stage 1 and for the rest of their schooling.

5
Purposes and main uses of the Profile
Children are defined as having reached a Good Level of Development (GLD) at the end
of the EYFS if they have achieved the expected level for the ELGs in the prime areas of
learning (which are: communication and language; personal, social and emotional
development; and physical development) and the specific areas of mathematics and
literacy. This helps to understand broadly what a child can do in relation to national
expectations.

The main purpose of the EYFS Profile assessment is to support a successful transition to
year 1 by informing the professional dialogue between EYFS and year 1 teachers. It
should inform year 1 teachers about each child’s stage of development and learning
needs and help them to plan the year 1 curriculum to meet the needs of all children. The
EYFS Profile is also used to inform parents and/or carers 3 about their child’s
development.

In addition, the EYFS Profile provides a national data set of children’s learning and
development at the end of the EYFS. The DfE uses EYFS Profile data to monitor
changes in levels of children’s learning and development both nationally and regionally,
as data is published at local authority level, and to compare the development outcomes
of different groups of children according to characteristics such as gender and eligibility
for free school meals. Other organisations also make use of the data to support good
outcomes for children.

The EYFS Profile is not an accountability measure for schools. The DfE does not
publish school level results for the EYFS Profile. Ofsted will not use the EYFS Profile as
an accountability tool during inspection.

Principles of EYFS Profile assessments

Reliable and accurate assessment at the end of the EYFS is:

Based on the teacher’s knowledge of each child: assessment is based primarily on

the teacher’s professional knowledge of what the child knows, remembers and can do
day-to-day. It is a means of checking whether a child has learnt what has been taught. It
can take place during routine interactions with children and does not need to be planned
or documented. The teacher may simply reflect on the knowledge, skills and
understanding that the child demonstrates in the course of everyday learning to plan
what to teach next. Where something has been well taught, a child’s learning is

3
‘Parents and/or carers’ is defined here as any individual who has parental responsibility for a child; or care
of a child - this does not include a childminder.

6
embedded and secured. The child is likely to demonstrate what they know and can do
consistently in a range of situations.

Summative: assessment is based on a holistic view of what the child can demonstrate
against each ELG at the end of the EYFS. When assessing children against the ELGs,
teachers should look at the whole description for each goal to determine whether this
best-fits their professional knowledge of the child. The ELGs are interconnected,
meaning children can demonstrate development in more than one area of learning when
engaging in a particular activity. Teachers should consider the child’s development
across the areas of learning, and whether the levels of development in relation to each of
the goals make sense when taken together.

Informed by a range of perspectives: assessment is predominantly based on the

teacher’s professional judgement, but should also take account of contributions from a
range of perspectives including the child, their parents and/or carers, and other relevant
adults.

Inclusive: teachers need to be alert to the general diversity of children’s interests, needs
and backgrounds to accurately assess their development and outcomes against the
ELGs. This includes children with a special educational need or disability (SEND), whose
development may be identified by teachers in different ways. Children whose home
language is not English should have opportunities to engage in activities in the security of
their home language. Children will demonstrate their development not only through what
they have been taught but also when activities such as role play, cookery, celebrations,
visits or events are linked to their cultural experience.

Underpinned by a broad curriculum and effective pedagogy: teaching should enable

each child to demonstrate their learning and development fully. Effective assessment
takes place when teachers use their knowledge of the child to identify what they know,
understand and can do in order to shape teaching and learning experiences for the child
reflecting that knowledge. The ELGs represent a narrow measure of what is assessed at
the end of the EYFS and should not restrict the breadth of what is taught in the final year
of the EYFS. It is for schools to determine their curriculum (having regard for the
‘Educational Programmes’ set out in the EYFS framework) and pedagogical approach to
support children’s learning and development.

Building knowledge of the child

Over the course of the reception year, teachers should plan what it is they want children
to learn and build their knowledge of what each child knows, understands and can do.
They should draw on this knowledge and their own expert professional judgement to
make an accurate summative assessment at the end of the year. This is enough
evidence to assess a child’s individual level of development in relation to each of the

7
ELGs. Sources of written or photographic evidence are not needed, and teachers are not
required to record evidence.

Teachers’ judgements will largely be based on whether children are learning what has
been taught and from their observations of development during day-to-day activity in the
classroom. Teachers should quickly identify children who need additional learning
support, so that the appropriate additional teaching can be put in place.

Teachers should also actively engage children, their parents and/or carers, and other
adults who have significant interaction with the child in the assessment process. This will
provide a rounded picture of the child’s development. A teacher’s relationship with
parents and/or carers is especially crucial when working with children from different
cultural backgrounds as they can help teachers understand the values that explain their
child’s responses to the environment and social situations.

Schools should not include burdensome evidence gathering requirements against any of
the areas of learning in their assessment policies so that teachers can spend as much
time as possible interacting with children and directly supporting their learning and
development. However, teachers may find it helpful to record, in a simple way,
particularly noteworthy achievements, such as what phonemes and numbers a child has
learned, in order to determine what to teach next. This is sufficient to make a judgement.
Sources of written or photographic evidence are not required, and teachers are not
required to record evidence.

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Completing the EYFS Profile
Overview
The EYFS Profile must be completed for all eligible children registered at the school,
including children who have not spent a long time in the school for whatever reason and
children with SEND.

Each child must be assessed against the 17 ELGs and teachers may choose to provide a
commentary on the 3 characteristics of effective learning.

Exceptions and exemptions

The EYFS Profile must be completed for all children registered at the school, unless:

• An exemption has been granted 4,5 for the setting (reserved for independent
schools or schools with established principles in conflict with the EYFS).
• An exemption has been granted for an individual child (reserved only for cases
where a child’s family has religious or philosophical beliefs that contradict the
EYFS).
• The child is continuing in EYFS provision beyond the year in which they turn 5.

Information on how to record an exempt child can be found below in Data collection and
submission.

Information on the process to follow when a child is remaining in EYFS provision beyond
age 5 can be found below in Children who remain in EYFS provision beyond the age of
5.

The EYFS Profile must be completed for all other children registered at the school,
including children with SEND and those who have not spent a long time in the setting (for
example due to illness, arriving from abroad or not starting at the setting until a
substantial part of the year has gone by).

In some cases, teachers may have a more limited knowledge and understanding of what
a child knows, understands, and can do and it may be more difficult for an accurate
EYFS Profile assessment to be made. However, if teachers judge that a child has not
met an ELG, for whatever reason, it is important that they report the child as ‘emerging’

4
See The Early Years Foundation Stage (Exemptions from Learning and Development Requirements)
Regulations 2008 (legislation.gov.uk)
5
EYFS exemptions guidance

9
and then communicate to the year 1 teacher why the assessment has been made. This
will ensure that all children are supported as much as possible in their transition to year
1.

Assessing children against the early learning goals

For each ELG, teachers must judge whether a child is:

• meeting the level of development expected at the end of the EYFS (and should be
assessed as ‘expected’); or
• not yet reaching this level (and should be assessed as ‘emerging’).
The ELGs are based on typical child development at the age of 5, so most children are
likely to meet the ‘expected’ level of development. Teachers should use their professional
knowledge of the child to decide whether each ELG description best-fits the child’s
learning and development. Teachers should only make judgements based on the criteria
that are set out in the ELGs themselves and should not add any additional criteria.

The best-fit model requires teachers to consider the whole of each ELG description when
making these judgements. Best-fit does not mean that the child has equal mastery of all
aspects of the ELG. Each ELG descriptor is written in bullet point form, but this is for
presentational purposes only to aid clarity; teachers should not ‘tick off’ these bullet
points one by one but should use their professional judgement to determine whether
each ELG in its totality best-fits the child’s learning and development. The most accurate
picture of the child’s overall embedded learning will come from a holistic view of the
descriptor.

All children (including those with SEND and/or English as an additional language) can
use their established or preferred mode of communication for all the ELGs except
‘Speaking’. Therefore, spoken words are only required for achieving the Speaking ELG.
Where a child has a SEND, teachers should be alert to identifying the child’s level of
development in a variety of ways, including eye pointing, use of symbols, or signs. In this
case, teachers should give additional detail about the child’s understanding and preferred
means of communication in their EYFS Profile record.

The Profile recognises and values linguistic diversity and is inclusive of children whose
home language is not English. The ELGs for communication and language, and for
literacy, must be assessed in relation to the child’s competency in English. However, the
remaining ELGs may be assessed in the context of any language. In such cases
teachers will need to observe the child over time and seek input from the parents, and/or
bilingual support assistants, to be confident about what the child knows and understands.
Teachers should use their professional judgement to consider whether the accounts
provided are consistent with their professional knowledge of the child. Other teachers as
well as parents and/or carers should be consulted to aid with this.

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Details of the ELGs and what children at the expected level of development will be able
to do are contained in Annex A.

Completing the Profile for children with an outcome at the

‘emerging’ level
Where children have an outcome of ‘emerging’ for an ELG, this judgement alone will not
provide a complete picture of their learning and development at the end of the EYFS. For
some children this may be because they are born late in the academic year, or are late
developers, or missed a considerable amount of the final year of the EYFS. For others
this may be related to a potential or identified SEND. The teacher is likely to know the
detail behind this outcome as a result of their knowledge of the child built up over time.

Where a child has an outcome of ‘emerging’ for one or more of the ELGs, additional
information about the barriers to learning that have been identified, and any successful
strategies to help the child overcome these barriers, should be passed onto the year 1
teacher alongside EYFS Profile judgements.

Information on reporting the EYFS Profile to the year 1 teacher can be found below in
Reporting to the year 1 teacher.

Completing the Profile for children with SEND

SEND covers different types of need, including communication and interaction, cognition
and learning, social, emotional, and mental health, and sensory and/or physical needs.
Children in the early years may have a range of needs which cut across some or all of
these broad areas. On-going assessment should help teachers discover in more detail
the factors influencing the child's learning and development.

Children cannot be exempt from the Profile on the basis of SEND. Completion of the
EYFS Profile is a useful opportunity to reflect on each child’s stage of development and
learning needs and to share this information with the year 1 teacher to help them plan the
year 1 curriculum to meet the needs of all children. This will ensure children with SEND
are supported as much as possible in their transition to year 1.

Children will have differing levels of knowledge, skills and abilities across the Profile. It is
important that there is a full assessment of all areas of their development. Some children
with SEND may be at the ‘expected’ level of development for some ELGs, and at an
‘emerging’ level for ELGs where their specific condition has an impact on their learning
and development. Other children with SEND may, with the right support, reach the
expected level in the ELGs, even where their specific condition has an impact.

Where a child has a SEND, teachers should take care to ensure the child is able to
demonstrate their level of development. Children must be assessed on the basis of what

11
they can do when using the adaptations and reasonable adjustments they normally use
to carry out daily activities. Examples of adaptations include: mobility aids, magnification,
and adapted ICT and equipment. Reasonable adjustments can be any of those ordinarily
available in the school’s provision including: prompts, visuals, sensory support and
movement breaks.

Actively involving children, their parents and/or carers, and other professionals such as
the SEN Coordinator (SENCo) or health professionals in the assessment process is
especially crucial when working with children with SEND. This will enable teachers to get
a clear picture of the child’s learning and development, and ensure parents and/or carers
have a clear understanding of their child’s development and any additional support which
will be offered.

When communicating the EYFS Profile data to the year 1 teacher, additional information
should be passed on alongside this for children with SEND. Teachers should also share
any other records from within or outside the setting with year 1 teachers and use these
records to inform transition conversations and processes. Wherever possible, other
professionals working with the child should be invited to contribute to transition
conversations.

Supporting children with SEND

Teachers must have regard to the SEND Code of Practice when supporting children with
SEND. This outlines the four-stage process of ‘assess, plan, do, review’ to identify and
support children with SEND.

Children develop and learn at different rates. A delay in learning and development may or
may not indicate that a child has SEND. With extra support to make progress many
children can catch up with their peers. Therefore, it is important to identify any
developmental delay early so that a targeted plan to support the child’s future learning
and development can be developed and the appropriate support can be put in place.

Teachers should be proactive in drawing on the professional expertise of others early on

if they identify concerns. Teachers in school settings should contact the school SENCo
for advice and guidance in the first instance, if they are concerned that a child has a
SEND. The SENCo should be familiar with local authority guidance on reasonable
adjustments and ordinarily available provision, as well as local arrangements for getting
additional advice and support where necessary, including from speech and language
therapists or educational psychologists. These specialists may be able to offer more
specific guidance and support.

Further resources for teachers working with children with SEND are available on the
SEND gateway. On behalf of the DfE, Nasen has produced a series of short guides on
identifying and supporting children with SEND in the early years, including a guide
focused on reception classes.

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Moderation
Moderation of EYFS Profile assessments should be a collaborative process with
colleagues. This supports the quality assurance of assessment judgements and provides
a valuable opportunity for professional development. Within each school, teachers can
informally agree assessment judgements with others, for example, discussing knowledge
and understanding about a child’s development with other EYFS teachers or a year 1
teacher. This does not require collecting or recording unnecessary evidence. Any internal
or peer-to-peer moderation conversations should, as far as possible, be based on the
teacher’s own knowledge of their children. It is important for teachers to build a shared
understanding of the ELGs and the EYFS framework. Schools may wish to work together
so that teachers can share experiences and develop their assessment skills.

13
Reporting the EYFS Profile assessment

Reporting to the year 1 teacher

The primary purpose of the EYFS Profile assessment is to support a successful transition
from the EYFS to year 1. At the end of reception year, teachers must give year 1
teachers a copy of each child’s EYFS Profile, including a record of the child’s outcomes
against the 17 ELGs, stating for each ELG whether the child is:

• meeting ‘expected’ levels or

• not yet reaching expected levels (‘emerging’).
They may also choose to provide a short commentary on how the child demonstrates the
three characteristics of effective learning.

Teachers are not required or expected to produce any written reports for year 1 teachers
beyond these basic requirements. It is, however, crucial that teachers and year 1
teachers are given sufficient time to discuss and expand on all the information presented
in the EYFS Profile, in order to give the year 1 teacher a fully rounded picture of the
development of each child and help them to plan the year 1 curriculum to meet the needs
of all children. Establishing an ongoing dialogue before the summer term will allow
processes to be built on a shared understanding and planned and implemented in good
time.

In cases where children have an outcome at the ‘emerging’ level, teachers should
provide additional information to help the year 1 teacher plan an effective curriculum.
This should include:

• information about the barriers to learning that have been identified

• any successful strategies to help the child overcome these barriers
• details of any specific assessment and provision in place for children with SEND.

Reporting to parents and/or carers

Parents and/or carers should be involved in the assessment process and encouraged to
take part in their child’s learning and development. At the end of the EYFS, teachers
must provide parents and/or carers with a written report summarising their child’s EYFS
Profile results and offer them the opportunity to discuss this with the teacher.

When a child has an outcome of ‘emerging’ for one or more ELGs, teachers should
sensitively explain that this is a description of the child’s level of development and does
not mean the child has ‘failed’. Teachers may choose to describe the activities and
strategies that will support the child’s future learning and development as they transition
into year 1, as well as how parents and/or carers can support their learning and
development at home.
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If parents and/or carers ask to see a copy of their child’s full Profile report, the school
must make this available. Schools must be aware of their responsibilities under the Data
Protection Act 1998 and the General Data Protection Regulation.

15
EYFS Profile data collection and submission

Overview
The EYFS Profile is a statutory data collection. Each child’s records are combined at
local authority and national level to produce a National Statistics publication.

Responsibilities

Headteacher responsibilities
Headteachers have a duty to implement the EYFS. They must ensure their school or
provision complies with the learning and development requirements and are responsible
for the reliability of their EYFS Profile outcomes. They must check to ensure that the data
accurately reflects the outcomes of the current cohort of children.

Headteachers must:

• ensure an EYFS Profile is completed for all eligible children and data is quality
assured;
• ensure provision is made to meet the requirements of all children with SEND;
• take responsibility for the reliability of their EYFS Profile outcomes and ensure that
the data accurately reflects the level of development of the current cohort of
children;
• ensure EYFS Profile data is returned to their local authority in accordance with the
section on data collection and submission;
• provide EYFS Profile assessments to their school’s governing body to enable it to
comply with national data submission requirements and report to parents and/or
carers;
• ensure the statutory requirements for the transfer of records between schools are
fulfilled, including the completion of the common transfer file (CTF); and
• ensure parents and/or carers are provided with a written report of the child’s
development against the ELGs and have the opportunity to discuss the EYFS
Profile.

Local authority responsibilities

In terms of data collection, local authorities must:

• ensure schools have a secure electronic system to submit EYFS Profile data and
understand how the data should be formatted; and
• collect EYFS Profile data, and quality assure and submit it to DfE.

16
Quality assurance of the data means ensuring that a full and complete set of data is
submitted to the department for the schools in each area (for example following up any
missing records either at school or child level or querying any errors or inconsistencies).
It does not mean ensuring accuracy of teachers’ professional judgement.

Data collection and submission

Schools will submit data to local authorities by transferring a CTF 6 export file. Schools do
not submit data directly to DfE. For settings without access to a secure computer, local
authorities can arrange a paper recording system, and then key the data into the
centralised local authority system. Maintained schools should contact their local authority
for support. Non-maintained schools can request an input spreadsheet via DfE’s data
collections service request form 7.

Local authorities should submit the data to DfE using the COLLECT data collection
system. Access to COLLECT is through the department’s DFE sign-in. A range of
validation checks are applied to the data by DfE using COLLECT and the data must pass
these checks in order to be accepted by DfE.

Data specification
All schools must participate in the assessment arrangements outlined, unless an
exemption has been granted for the setting or an individual child. If an exemption is
granted for an individual child, then this should be recorded as ‘A’ for every ELG which
they have an exemption for. Information on exemptions and exceptions from the Profile
can be found above in Exceptions and exemptions.

Assessment
EYFS judgement
rating

1 Indicates a child who is at the ‘emerging’ level at the end of the EYFS

2 Indicates a child who is at the ‘expected’ level at the end of the EYFS

A Indicates a child who has an exemption

Figure 2: Assessment ratings

6
www.gov.uk/government/collections/common-transfer-file
7
Data collections service request form - DFE Online Forms (education.gov.uk)

17
All schools must report EYFS Profile results to their local authority upon request 8, unless
the Secretary of State for Education has granted the school an exemption from the EYFS
learning and development requirements. Local authorities are under a duty to return the
requested EYFS Profile data to DfE by 31 July 2024. The following table sets out the
requirements for submission of EYFS Profile data and contextual child data to local
authorities and DfE.

Status of child and Is submission of data to Is local authority

provision local authority required? submission to DfE
required?
Child in a maintained school Yes Yes
Child in EYFS provision in Yes Yes
receipt of government funding
in the 2024 summer term

Child in EYFS provision not in Yes, where requested by No

receipt of government funding local authority
in the 2024 summer term

Child in an academy or free Yes Yes

school

Child in an independent Yes Yes

school in receipt of
government funding in the
2024 summer term

Child in an independent Yes, where requested by No

school not in receipt of local authority
government funding in the
2024 summer term

Child with a registered Yes, where requested by No, unless the

childminder (for the majority local authority, or if the childminder is in receipt of
of the time they spend within childminder is in receipt of government funding in the
EYFS provision between 8am government funding in the 2024 summer term
and 6pm) 2024 summer term

8
See The Childcare (Provision of Information About Young Children) (England) Regulations 2009
(legislation.gov.uk)

18
 Child in an EYFS provision On a voluntary basis only No
where the school has an
exemption from the learning
and development
requirements of the EYFS

Child being educated at No, unless the child is on No, unless the child is on
home the register of a maintained the register of a
or independent school, or maintained or
in receipt of government independent school, or in
funding receipt of government
funding

Children transferring schools

The EYFS Profile should be completed for all eligible children registered at the school.
For dual registered children attending more than one school during their final year in the
EYFS, the Profile must be completed by the school where the child spends most time
during the year. The school that does not complete the Profile for the child does not need
to submit any data to the local authority.

If a child moves to a new school during the academic year, the original school must send
their assessment of the child’s development against the ELGs to the new school if the
Profile has been completed. If a child starts at a new school on the first day of the second
half of the summer term (or any time after that), then the previous school should submit
the data. If a child moves school any time before the half term, then the new school
should submit the data. Where half term dates differ between local authority areas, it is
the school where a child attends (or will attend) for the longest period of time that submits
the data. Where the previous school is not in England and therefore does not follow the
EYFS, the new school should submit the data.

The governing body or academy trust must arrange to have the child’s educational record
and the defined items of data that comprise the CTF sent to the child’s new school. This
task is often delegated to headteachers by governing bodies or academy trusts. The
information must be sent within 15 school days of the child ceasing to be registered at
their previous school unless the new school is not known. In this case it should be sent
within 15 school days of receiving a request from the child’s new school. If the new
school is unknown, DfE recommends that the school should still complete the CTF and

19
load it onto the school to school 9 (S2S) secure transfer system. If schools do not receive
a CTF for a new child, they can ask their local authority to search for the file on S2S.

Where both the old and new schools have the necessary facilities, the CTF must be sent
to the new school either through S2S, or over a secure network that can only be
accessed by the local authority, the governing body, multi-academy trust or a teacher at
any school within that local authority.

The basic requirement is that the old school will send the educational records and CTF to
the new school by one of these methods. If either school does not have the facilities to
send or receive information in this format, the local authority may provide the file where
there are agreed and secure local arrangements to that effect.

Children who remain in EYFS provision beyond the age of 5

The expectation is that children will move with their peers so they will be assessed
against the EYFS Profile once. In exceptional circumstances, after discussion and only in
agreement with parents and/or carers, a child might remain in EYFS provision beyond
the end of the academic year in which they reach age 5. Schools should take care to
make sure this decision does not prejudice the child’s personal, social, and emotional
development.

In these exceptional cases, assessment should continue throughout the child’s time
within EYFS provision and the Profile should be completed once only, at the end of the
year before the child moves into year 1. If the child is only continuing in EYFS provision
for part of the following year, the Profile should be completed at the end of the child’s
time in the EYFS before they move into year 1. The data should then be submitted at the
end of that academic year with the rest of the cohort.

We recommend the decision for the child to remain in the EYFS is made before starting
the Profile for the cohort. However, if the decision is made after the Profile has already
been completed, then a new assessment will need to be made and submitted the
following year. The original assessment should not be submitted so that the Profile is
only submitted once for the child.

The school should discuss their intention to defer the child’s statutory assessment with
their local authority. This will ensure the child’s data is not considered missing when the
school submits Profile outcomes for the current cohort. Care should be taken when
entering the child’s Profile assessment into any electronic recording system. The child’s

9
www.gov.uk/government/publications/school-to-school-guides-for-schools-and-local-
authorities
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date of birth may now be outside the expected range for the cohort, local authorities
should give schools instructions in such cases. DfE will consider the child to be part of
this new cohort and will accept data submitted in this way if the local authority has
provided the information to DfE. DfE may check the accuracy of the dates of birth of
individual children with the relevant local authority.

Children who are home-educated or missing education

The assessment and reporting arrangements do not apply to children who are not on the
register of the school for whatever reason, including being home-educated or missing
education. Children missing education are children of compulsory school age who are not
registered at a school and are not being educated otherwise.

If the child is registered at the school and has only been homeschooled for part of the
year because they were either previously attending the school and then moved to be
home-educated or were previously home-educated and then joined the school at any
time during the academic year, then the school must complete the Profile for the child.

Where the child was previously registered at the school but is taken off school roll
because they have become a child missing education for whatever reason, including for
example moving abroad, then the Profile does not need to be completed for the child and
the school should contact the local authority to ensure the child is removed from their
data collection roll.

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Types of school

How the requirements apply to different types of school

Academies and free schools in England

Academies must implement the requirements of the EYFS (by virtue of Section 40 of the
Childcare Act 2006 10). All references to academies in the guidance include free schools
as, in law, they are academies.

Ministry of Defence (MoD) schools

MoD schools are required to participate in the assessment and reporting arrangements
for the EYFS Profile in line with the administration in England.

Overseas schools
Overseas schools, which are not MoD schools, cannot participate in the EYFS Profile
assessment and reporting arrangements.

Hospital schools
Children attending a hospital school are not subject to any of the EYFS requirements
including the EYFS Profile assessment and reporting arrangements.

Home-educated children
The EYFS requirements including the EYFS Profile assessment and reporting
arrangements do not apply to children who are being educated at home unless they are
on the register of a maintained school or independent school.

Independent schools and EYFS providers registered with Ofsted

All independent schools and registered EYFS providers must comply with the
assessment and reporting arrangements unless they have an exemption from the EYFS
learning and development requirements for children 3 and over.

10
www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2006/21/section/40

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Providers with children not in receipt of government funding
Under regulations made under Section 99 of the Childcare Act 2006, local authorities are
allowed to collect specified data for children not in receipt of government funding in the
summer term. EYFS providers are required to comply with local authorities’ requests for
this data. Local authorities are not required to submit data to DfE. The local authority can
request data including:

• the judgement of ‘expected’ or ‘emerging’ for each ELG

• the child’s date of birth
• the home address where the child normally resides
• the child’s ethnic group
• the child’s gender
• whether the child has a SEND
• if the child has English as an additional language

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Annex A: The early learning goals

Communication and Language

Listening, Attention and Understanding ELG

Children at the expected level of development will:

• Listen attentively and respond to what they hear with relevant questions,
comments and actions when being read to and during whole class discussions
and small group interactions;
• Make comments about what they have heard and ask questions to clarify their
understanding;
• Hold conversation when engaged in back-and-forth exchanges with their teacher
and peers.

Speaking ELG
Children at the expected level of development will:

• Participate in small group, class and one-to-one discussions, offering their own
ideas, using recently introduced vocabulary;
• Offer explanations for why things might happen, making use of recently introduced
vocabulary from stories, non-fiction, rhymes and poems when appropriate;
• Express their ideas and feelings about their experiences using full sentences,
including use of past, present, and future tenses and making use of conjunctions,
with modelling and support from their teacher.

Personal, Social and Emotional Development

Self-Regulation ELG
Children at the expected level of development will:

• Show an understanding of their own feelings and those of others, and begin to
regulate their behaviour accordingly;
• Set and work towards simple goals, being able to wait for what they want and
control their immediate impulses when appropriate;
• Give focused attention to what the teacher says, responding appropriately even
when engaged in activity, and show an ability to follow instructions involving
several ideas or actions.

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Managing Self ELG
Children at the expected level of development will:

• Be confident to try new activities and show independence, resilience and

perseverance in the face of challenge;
• Explain the reasons for rules, know right from wrong and try to behave
accordingly;
• Manage their own basic hygiene and personal needs, including dressing, going to
the toilet, and understanding the importance of healthy food choices.

Building Relationships ELG

Children at the expected level of development will:

• Work and play cooperatively and take turns with others;

• Form positive attachments to adults and friendships with peers;
• Show sensitivity to their own and to others’ needs.

Physical Development

Gross Motor Skills ELG

Children at the expected level of development will:

• Negotiate space and obstacles safely, with consideration for themselves and
others;
• Demonstrate strength, balance and coordination when playing;
• Move energetically, such as running, jumping, dancing, hopping, skipping and
climbing.

Fine Motor Skills ELG

Children at the expected level of development will:

• Hold a pencil effectively in preparation for fluent writing – using the tripod grip in
almost all cases;
• Use a range of small tools, including scissors, paint brushes and cutlery;
• Begin to show accuracy and care when drawing.

Literacy

Comprehension ELG
Children at the expected level of development will:

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 • Demonstrate understanding of what has been read to them by retelling stories and
narratives using their own words and recently introduced vocabulary;
• Anticipate – where appropriate – key events in stories;
• Use and understand recently introduced vocabulary during discussions about
stories, non-fiction, rhymes and poems and during role-play.

Word Reading ELG

Children at the expected level of development will:

• Say a sound for each letter in the alphabet and at least 10 digraphs;
• Read words consistent with their phonic knowledge by sound-blending;
• Read aloud simple sentences and books that are consistent with their phonic
knowledge, including some common exception words.

Writing ELG
Children at the expected level of development will:

• Write recognisable letters, most of which are correctly formed;

• Spell words by identifying sounds in them and representing the sounds with a
letter or letters;
• Write simple phrases and sentences that can be read by others.

Mathematics

Number ELG
Children at the expected level of development will:
• Have a deep understanding of number to 10, including the composition of each
number;
• Subitise (recognise quantities without counting) up to 5;
• Automatically recall (without reference to rhymes, counting or other aids) number
bonds up to 5 (including subtraction facts) and some number bonds to 10,
including double facts.

Numerical Patterns ELG

Children at the expected level of development will:

• Verbally count beyond 20, recognising the pattern of the counting system;
• Compare quantities up to 10 in different contexts, recognising when one quantity
is greater than, less than or the same as the other quantity;

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 • Explore and represent patterns within numbers up to 10, including evens and
odds, double facts and how quantities can be distributed equally.

Understanding the World

Past and Present ELG

Children at the expected level of development will:

• Talk about the lives of the people around them and their roles in society;
• Know some similarities and differences between things in the past and now,
drawing on their experiences and what has been read in class;
• Understand the past through settings, characters and events encountered in
books read in class and storytelling;

People Culture and Communities ELG

Children at the expected level of development will:

• Describe their immediate environment using knowledge from observation,

discussion, stories, non-fiction texts, and maps;
• Know some similarities and differences between different religious and cultural
communities in this country, drawing on their experiences and what has been read
in class;
• Explain some similarities and differences between life in this country and life in
other countries, drawing on knowledge from stories, non-fiction texts and – when
appropriate – maps.

The Natural World ELG

Children at the expected level of development will:

• Explore the natural world around them, making observations and drawing pictures
of animals and plants;
• Know some similarities and differences between the natural world around them
and contrasting environments, drawing on their experiences and what has been
read in class;
• Understand some important processes and changes in the natural world around
them, including the seasons and changing states of matter.

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Expressive Arts and Design

Creating with Materials ELG

Children at the expected level of development will:

• Safely use and explore a variety of materials, tools and techniques, experimenting
with colour, design, texture, form, and function;
• Share their creations, explaining the process they have used;
• Make use of props and materials when role playing characters in narratives and
stories.

Being Imaginative and Expressive ELG

Children at the expected level of development will:

• Invent, adapt and recount narratives and stories with peers and their teacher;
• Sing a range of well-known nursery rhymes and songs;
• Perform songs, rhymes, poems and stories with others, and – when appropriate
try to move in time with music.

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