Talking Time is a universal intervention targeting the oral language skills of children aged 3 to 5. It supports early years practitioners in delivering a programme of engaging, structured small-group activities to children. Children take part in two 15-minute activities per week during regular provision, for a period of 20 weeks. The programme is based on three evidence-based activities: shared storytelling and conversation using illustrations in storybooks as prompts (‘Story Conversations’), games and guided role play designed to develop vocabulary (‘Word Play’), and narrative discussion and retelling based on photos of real situations likely to be familiar to children (‘Hexagons’).

Although manualised, the programme is designed to be flexible and adaptable to suit individual children, settings and contexts. Talking Time provides three twilight training sessions for all staff in the early years setting, as well as four in-class mentoring sessions and three video mentoring sessions for ​‘Talking Time leads’ (the practitioners leading on delivery). Practitioners also engage in a weekly individual professional reflection. Underpinning the professional development is a framework of eight evidence-based language-supporting strategies, designed to support staff to apply language-supporting strategies flexibly and intentionally to meet children’s needs.

Practitioners are provided with a manual that includes flexible plans and conversation prompts, five picture books and a pack of ​‘hexagon’ photos to support the implementation of the first 16 weeks of activities. In the final weeks of the programme, staff are supported to plan activities based on books and materials of their own choice.

Who can take part?

We are looking for state-maintained and private, voluntary and independent early years settings with ten or more 3 – 4‑year-old children attending for at least fifteen hours per week to take part in an evaluation of the Talking Time programme. Settings from the following local authority areas will be eligible to take part:

• North West: Knowsley, parts of Lancashire (Rossendale and Burnley), Liverpool, Sefton
• Yorkshire and the Humber: Calderdale, Kirklees, Wakefield
• West Midlands: Shropshire, Stoke-on-Trent, Telford and Wrekin, Walsall
• London: Barking and Dagenham, Barnet, Brent, Camden, Enfield, Haringey, Harrow, Havering, Islington, Redbridge, Tower Hamlets, Waltham Forest, Westminster, City of London
• East of England: Bedford, Central Bedfordshire, parts of Essex, Hertfordshire, Luton, Thurrock

Settings are not eligible if they are participating in:

• another SPH funded programme delivered in the 2024 – 2025 academic year including allocation to the control group for one of the other SPH trials (Early Talk Boost, One Programme, Early Years Conversation Project, Concept Cat, Communication Friendly Settings).

To find out more and register your interest go to: Talking Time© – Department of Education (ox.ac.uk)

As part of the Department for Education’s Early Years Recovery Programme, the Education Endowment Foundation (EEF) is working with Stronger Practice Hubs across England to fund Early Years settings’ access to evidence-informed programmes and study the programme’s influence on practice and children’s outcomes. This initiative aims to support education recovery following the pandemic, whilst also developing our understanding of effective professional development in the early years.

The EEF is working with the Liverpool City Region and Beyond Early Years Stronger Practice Hub (North West), A Brighter Start Early Years Stronger Practice Hub (London), Thrive Together Early Years Stronger Practice Hub (West Midlands) and REACHout Early Years Stronger Practice Hub (East of England) to fund settings’ access to Talking Time and evaluate the programme. There is existing evidence that approaches similar to those used in the Talking Time programme can support children’s language development and a previous trial of Talking Time funded by the Nuffield Foundation suggested that the programme may have positive impacts on staff practice and on some elements of children’s language development, although this trial was disrupted by Covid-19. By commissioning a rigorous independent evaluation of Talking Time in a large number of settings, we aim to produce robust evidence of the impact of Talking Time and further the evidence-base on how children’s language development can be supported.

This project will be evaluated by the National Institute for Economic and Social Research through a randomised controlled trial, randomised at the setting level. This means that schools that sign up are randomly assigned to one of two groups: the ​‘delivery’ group, who implement the programme being tested; or the control group, where practice continues as normal. This is the best way to find out the impact of the programme being tested. This efficacy trial will assess the impact of Talking Time on children’s language outcomes.

An implementation and process evaluation will also be conducted to find out through interviews, how the programme is delivered in settings and understand the experiences of those delivering the Talking Time programme to children.