Astrea Academy Trust Brain-SET project

Early years is a key priority for Astrea Academy Trust, who strive to give each child the best start in life, focusing on developmental needs of the children and not just their academic achievement. Which is why Astrea Academy Trust embarked on the Brain-SET project looking at classroom design through the lens of children's brain development.

This year-long project addressed classroom design in terms of lighting, noise, the use of colour, furniture layout and more. The aim was to really bring calm into children's lives, which is particularly important for areas of disadvantage which Astrea Academy Trust schools work within.

In this first episode Asma Maqsood-Shah (Primary Regional Director for Astrea Academy Trust and Strategic Lead for EY) and Nicky Turner (National Lead for EY for Astrea Academy Trust) share the background to the project and talk us through the impact on children, families, educators and leaders so far.

To find out more about the project and listen to more episodes visit: https://thevoiceofearlychildhood.com/projects/astrea-academy-trust-project

Episode break down:

00:00 - Introduction to Astrea Academy Trust and the Brain-SET project
05:47 - Where did this project begin and why?
11:16 - Bringing calm into children's lives
14:07 - Supporting holistic development, wellbeing and life skills
16:58 - The different stages of the project
17:45 - The impact of ambient lighting on emotional states
20:55 - A common understanding between leaders and educators
23:40 - Getting all leaders and educators on board with the project
25:40 - Mentoring for practitioners and EY leads
28:00 - Understanding the science behind classroom environments
29:10 - A whole Trust strategy
33:40- Educators feeling proud of their learning environments
36:25 - The future of the project

For more episodes visit The Voice of Early Childhood website: https://www.thevoiceofearlychildhood.com