2025 updates to the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS)
Written by The MagicBooking team | Feb 24, 2025
19 min read
The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) is the statutory framework that sets the standards for learning, development, and care for children from birth to five years old. All Ofsted-registered early years providers in England must follow EYFS requirements to ensure high-quality education and safeguarding.
From September 2025, the EYFS safeguarding requirements will change, strengthening policies around safer recruitment, child absences, first aid, and safeguarding training.
If you run a nursery, preschool, school, wraparound care service, or childcare setting, it’s crucial to understand these updates to remain compliant and best support children and staff.
This blog outlines the key changes, why they are happening, and how to prepare your setting.
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Why are these changes being made?
The Department for Education (DfE) consistently reviews safeguarding regulations to ensure they remain robust, relevant, and effective.
- A consultation in 2024 gathered feedback from 1,470 respondents, including early years professionals and stakeholders.
- There was strong support for all proposed changes, reinforcing the importance of safeguarding improvements.
- Many providers already follow best practices, and these changes will help standardise safeguarding across all early years settings.
The EYFS 2025 updates are based on consultation findings, sector feedback, and insights from government data, including data freedom of information releases and corporate reports.
Ultimately, these reforms aim to strengthen child protection, reduce risks, and provide clearer guidance for early years professionals. All shall better complement the preexisting learning and development requirements.
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Key EYFS safeguarding changes for 2025
1. Safer recruitment & staff suitability
To improve the hiring process of early years educators and staff suitability, early years providers must:
- Obtain and verify professional references before hiring.
- Ensure references are from senior individuals (e.g., current employer, training provider).
- Avoid accepting open references or those written by family members.
- Implement clear procedures in safeguarding policies for checking staff suitability.
Applies to both schools & childminders.
Consultation findings:
Q: “To what extent do you agree with adding a requirement to obtain references to the existing EYFS frameworks?”
| Top answer | Total | Percent |
|---|---|---|
| Strongly agree | 981 | 66.7% |
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2. Strengthened child absence policies
Providers must now:
- Follow up on prolonged or unexplained child absences.
- Hold at least two emergency contact details per child.
- Identify patterns or concerns linked to absences and escalate to safeguarding services if necessary.
Applies to both schools & childminders.
Consultation findings:
Q: “To what extent do you agree with adding this requirement to follow up on absences within the EYFS?”
| Top answer | Total | Percent |
|---|---|---|
| Strongly agree | 1,007 | 68.5% |
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3. Enhanced safeguarding training requirements
To ensure staff are fully prepared to protect young children, the new EYFS requires:
- A Safeguarding Training Criteria Annex outlining essential training topics.
- Safeguarding policies to detail how training is delivered and how staff apply their knowledge.
- Designated Safeguarding Leads (DSLs) to have updated, mandatory training every two years.
Applies to both schools & childminders.
Consultation findings:
Q: “To what extent do you agree with the requirement to add details of safeguarding training and how practitioners are supported to implement this into safeguarding policies?”
| Top answer | Total | Percent |
|---|---|---|
| Strongly agree | 759 | 51.6% |
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4. Mandatory paediatric first aid (PFA) for trainees
Already, practitioners must meet qualification requirements, which include relevant early years certifications and, in many cases, paediatric first aid training.
To improve child safety, the new rules state:
- Early Years trainees must have PFA training to be counted in staff: child ratios.
- Providers must choose a recognised, accredited PFA training provider.
Applies to both schools & childminders.
Consultation findings:
Q: “To what extent do you agree with the requirement for students, volunteers and those working as apprentices to have a valid PFA certificate in order to be included in the staff: child ratios?”
| Top answer | Total | Percent |
|---|---|---|
| Strongly agree | 633 | 43.1% |
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5. Safer eating & allergy management
Meal and snack times must now include:
- A staff member with valid PFA training present during meals.
- Updated policies for managing food allergies, dietary needs, and choking risks.
- Clearer guidance on how food should be prepared to reduce choking hazards.
Applies to both schools & childminders.
Consultation findings:
Q: “To what extent do you agree with adding the new section on safer eating?”
| Top answer | Total | Percent |
|---|---|---|
| Strongly agree | 988 | 67.9% |
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6. Whistleblowing & reporting procedures
Providers must:
- Have a clear whistleblowing policy for staff to report concerns.
- Ensure staff feel safe raising safeguarding issues and know who to report to.
- Provide information on external reporting channels, including NSPCC and Ofsted.
Applies to both schools & childminders.
Consultation findings:
Government response: “Based on consultation responses, we will also proceed with implementing new requirements on whistleblowing. This will align with what is expected in schools and support practitioner confidence with regards to whistleblowing to ensure children are kept as safe as possible.”
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7. Privacy & dignity in nappy changing & toileting
To balance child privacy and safeguarding needs, settings must:
- Consider children’s privacy while maintaining appropriate safeguarding measures.
- Ensure nappy changing and toileting areas are safe, hygienic, and supervised appropriately.
Applies to childminders and early years settings in schools.
Consultation findings:
Q: “To what extent do you agree with adding this requirement regarding toileting, privacy and safeguarding need?”
| Top answer | Total | Percent |
|---|---|---|
| Strongly agree | 821 | 55.9% |
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8. Changes in wording for clarity and improvement
The updated 2025 EYFS framework includes several wording changes to clarify expectations and align with best practices in safeguarding. Key updates include:
- Lead Practitioner renamed Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL) for alignment with schools.
- Stronger recruitment guidelines – Open references no longer accepted.
- Clearer absence policies – Providers must track prolonged absences and hold two emergency contacts.
- New safeguarding training annex – Sets minimum requirements and biannual DSL training
Applies to all early years providers.
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How to prepare for the EYFS 2025 changes
- Review your current policies and compare them against the new EYFS framework.
- Update your safeguarding training to align with the new criteria.
- Communicate changes to staff (and parents and/or carers) to ensure full awareness and compliance.
- Download and display official EYFS resources, such as printable posters and guidance sheets.
- Monitor absences more closely and create clear follow-up procedures.
- Ensure all early years trainees complete PFA training before being included in ratios.
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What steps you should be taking now
From 1 September 2025, all registered early years providers must comply with the updated EYFS framework. Regardless of your role or setting, these changes will apply to you.
To prepare, it’s essential to understand the key updates and how they may affect your practices.
The full details of the changes, including the revised EYFS wording, can be found in the official EYFS safeguarding reforms consultation outcome PDF by Gov.uk (Department of Education). Reviewing these updates now will help ensure a smooth transition.
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Need more support? Helpful resources
The full EYFS safeguarding reforms can be found on the official government site:
- Government page on EYFS (including the framework for childminders and school-based providers)
- EYFS safeguarding reforms consultation outcome
If you’d like to communicate the changes, Foundation Years provide a printable poster and information sheet to circulate.
For further guidance, Foundation Years released a vodcast on the EYFS changes, plus Teach Early Years published a helpful blog on effective leadership in Early Years.
Don’t forget to utilise our previous blogs e.g. ‘Top 7 trends in wraparound childcare to watch in 2025’ or ‘How to start or expand wraparound care in 2025: Key benefits & available financial support’.
You should work closely with your local authority to ensure compliance with EYFS 2025 safeguarding requirements and best practices. So, check with your local council. Leicestershire County Council has an excellent page on becoming a childminder, Waltham Forest offers a blog on working in early years and childcare and Southwark council also has a dedicated page for the Early Years Foundation Stage.
Various Early Years Foundation Stage books provide additional guidance on implementing the framework. The Early Years Foundation Stage ‘Development Matters’ is a non-statutory guidance document that helps practitioners support children's learning.
Need ideas and tools for teaching EYFS? Pearson provides a bunch of resources on their page.
How MagicBooking can help
The revised EYFS 2025 safeguarding and welfare requiremets will help create safer, more structured environments for young children and staff. By understanding and implementing these changes now, you can ensure full compliance and improve safeguarding practices in your setting.
At MagicBooking, we support early years providers, wraparound care services, and schools in streamlining bookings, payments, and compliance tasks. If you're looking for a smarter way to manage your childcare operations, get in touch with us today! 92% of clients said their old system didn’t meet their needs - MagicBooking does.
Make sure your setting is prepared for EYFS 2025. With MagicBooking, you can automate registers, track absences, manage safeguarding records, and streamline compliance with ease.
- Reduce admin and focus on what matters—child safety. Our clients say 74% of the workweek was spent on admin before switching to MagicBooking!
- Stay inspection-ready with secure data management.
- Ensure seamless safeguarding with real-time attendance tracking.
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FAQs
What does EFYS mean - What is the Early Years Foundation Stage?
The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) refers to children from birth to 5 years old. While it is a continuous framework, provision for children from 2 years old and over differs in approach from the care given to younger infants.
In the framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage assessment, there are formal progress checks at between 2 and 3 years old as well as in the final term of Reception year (age 5) as part of the statutory assessment which helps identify a child’s development and any areas of learning needing support.
EYFS is a statutory framework that sets the standards for learning, development, and care for children from birth to five years old. All schools and Ofsted-registered early years providers in England—including childminders, nurseries, preschools, and school reception classes—must follow EYFS requirements to ensure high-quality education and safeguarding.
The framework covers seven key areas for young children to learn and develop through play-based activities. See the Early Years Foundation Stage curriculum below:
- Communication and language
- Personal, social, and emotional development
- Physical development
- Literacy
- Mathematics
- Understanding the world
- Expressive arts and design
EYFS ensures a consistent, high standard of early education across all registered providers, helping children build a strong foundation for future learning.
Why is Early Years Foundation Stage important?
The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) sets the legal standards for learning, development, and safeguarding for children from birth to five years old in England. It ensures high-quality education, child safety, and school readiness, providing a strong foundation for future learning.
When was Early Years Foundation Stage introduced?
The EYFS was first introduced in 2008 as a statutory framework in England. It was later revised in 2012, 2014, 2017, and 2021, with further updates set for September 2025.
What is the Early Years Foundation Stage Profile, and when is it completed?
The EYFS Profile is an assessment completed at the end of the Reception year (age 5). It measures a child's progress against early learning goals in seven key areas and helps inform their transition to Key Stage 1.
Early Years Foundation Stage for childminders – How does it differ from schools?
EYFS sets standards that all early years providers must meet. However, while childminders and schools both follow the EYFS framework, there are key differences regarding the following: settings & approach, staffing child ratios, planning & delivery, and assessment & reporting.
Both settings must meet EYFS safeguarding, learning, and development standards, but childminders have greater flexibility in how they deliver early years education.
