Are observations still important in the early years?

Yes, and for a more useful reason than "Ofsted might ask". Since the 2021 reforms the EYFS has been clear that you do not have to write observations down, and the framework in force from September 2026 says it again. Some settings heard that as "stop observing". That is the wrong lesson. Observation is how you know a child, and a small amount of recording is how that knowledge survives a sick day, a room move, or thirty children. This guide covers what observations are still for, how few you need, and the one thing most settings never do with them.

What changed, and what did not

The statutory position is simple. You must observe children, in the sense of noticing what they can do and acting on it. You do not have to keep written records of ongoing assessment, link notes to Development Matters statements, or gather evidence for every child. If you want the exact paragraphs, our guide to whether you have to write EYFS observations quotes them.

What the reforms removed was the paperwork, not the practice. The Department for Education's own guidance on reducing paperwork tells practitioners to gather useful information rather than tracking data. "Useful" is the word that matters. The question is not whether to record, but what a record is for.

The four jobs an observation does

Strip away the folder-filling and an observation earns its place for four reasons.

• It tells you who the child is. A two-line note that Isla spent twenty minutes posting shells into a tube tells you more about her than any checklist. The interests, the worries, the things she goes back to. That is what you plan from.
• It stops knowledge living in one head. If the key person is off, or a child moves up a room in September, a handful of real moments means the next adult does not start from nothing. Transitions are where children get lost, and a few observations are the cheapest insurance you can buy.
• It is the best conversation you will have with a parent. A photo and two sentences about what it shows does more for trust than a termly summary ever will. Parents also tell you things in return, and the framework expects you to act on what they share.
• It is the raw material for judgement. When you sit down to write the progress check at age two, or to decide whether a child needs extra support, you want to draw on six real moments from the last few months rather than a general impression. A judgement made from nothing is a guess.

Notice what is not on that list. Proving yourself to an inspector is not a job an observation does. Inspectors ask what children could do when they arrived, what they are working on now and where they are heading, and they do not expect that in any particular format. Our guide to what Ofsted asks about observations covers the actual questions.

How few do you need?

Fewer than you think. A handful of genuinely significant moments per child per month covers all four jobs above. A significant moment is one where a child did something for the first time, did something that surprised you, or did something that worried you. The ordinary good day does not need writing down. Our guide to how often you should do observations puts numbers on this for childminders, nurseries and reception.

If you are writing more than that, ask what each extra one is for. If the answer is "the system wants one" or "so the folder looks full", stop. Thirty seconds spent writing a note nobody will read is thirty seconds not spent with the child.

The thing most settings never do

Here is where a lot of good practice falls short. Settings take observations, share them with parents, and file them. Nobody looks across them. The observations for one child sit in that child's journal and the pattern across the room stays invisible.

That pattern is where the useful questions live. Which children in the two-year-olds' room have nothing recorded against communication and language this half term? Is the pre-school group as a whole weaker on physical development than it was last year? Which child has plenty of lovely photos but no evidence of anything in the specific areas? You cannot answer those from a journal, one child at a time, and most settings never try.

This is the gap we built Taylormade Care to close. When a practitioner writes an observation, they can tick the Development Matters statements the moment shows, filtered to the child's age band so it takes seconds. That tick is evidence, not a judgement. The judgement, whether a child is emerging, expected or exceeding, stays a separate decision the practitioner makes. Then the progress view pulls the evidence together across a room, a key person or an age band, shows attainment by area, and says plainly where nothing has been assessed yet. The same observations that went to the parent that afternoon are the ones a manager uses to spot a child who needs support early. One note, used twice.

A reasonable position

Observe constantly. Record a little. Share it with parents the same day. And once a half term, look across the room rather than at one child, and let what you see change what you plan. That is the whole job, and it fits comfortably inside a framework that asks for no paperwork at all.

Common questions

If observations are not required, will Ofsted think we are lazy for having few?

No. Inspectors evaluate what children know and can do and how well you build on it. They find that out by watching practice and talking to you about individual children. A practitioner who can describe a child in detail with no folder is in a far stronger position than one with a full folder and vague answers.

Should we still use a learning journal?

If parents value it, yes. A journal is a way of sharing, and sharing with parents is both a statutory expectation and the best thing you can do for engagement. Just do not confuse a journal with assessment. The journal is for the family. The judgement is yours.

Does every observation need to be linked to a framework statement?

No. Linking is useful when a moment clearly shows something, and pointless when it does not. A photo of a child enjoying a puddle is worth sharing and does not need a statement attached. Link the ones that are evidence and leave the rest as moments.

Can an observation be just a photo?

Yes, if the photo tells the story on its own. Usually one sentence saying what the child was doing, and one saying why it mattered, is worth adding. Our guide on how to write an EYFS observation shows the two-sentence pattern.