In September 2026, we partnered with the Department for Education to accelerate our work to build the evidence in the early years. This includes extending our work to children under two. A key challenge is the lack of robust outcome measures for children under three. To address this, we’re commissioning a research team to develop or adapt a measure that can be used in education trials with this age group.
The measure should assess the three Early Years Foundation Stage ‘prime’ areas of development: Communication and Language, Personal, Social and Emotional Development (PSED), and Physical Development. Because these areas are closely connected in young children’s development, the measure should capture all three and be able to show how a programme’s effects differ across areas. As development in this age range is rapid, uneven and non-linear, we also expect the measure to include age-differentiated content that is sensitive to change within narrow developmental windows.
The need for a new measure is clear. Of the 248 measures in the EEF’s recently updated Early Years Measures Database, only 35 are suitable for children aged under three, and just 17 cover all three EYFS ‘prime’ areas. None fully meets the requirements for use in EEF trials. Most were designed for diagnosis rather than research, making them less effective at detecting the small but meaningful changes typically seen in trials. Many are time-consuming to administer, require specialist qualifications, or have not been widely used or validated in England.
The EEF has identified some indicative considerations for this work, which are outlined in the project overview. We will work with the appointed research team to refine and build on these during the project set-up phase.
The project will begin in December 2026. As baseline testing for our first trial involving children under two is due to begin in September 2028, the final measure and administration guidance must be ready by May or June 2028 at the latest. This deadline is fixed, and earlier completion would be welcome.
What we are looking for
We welcome applications from research teams with expertise in measurement and psychometrics, including developing or adapting, and validating outcome measures in the early years. Teams should also have experience of assessing children in early years settings in England and/or expertise in child development from birth to age three.
Applications may come from teams or from consortia that combine complementary expertise. Consortia should demonstrate how they will work effectively together to ensure the quality and efficiency of the project.
This call for proposals is open to all eligible organisations; applicants do not need to be members of the EEF’s evaluator panel. Please note that we accept applications only from legally constituted organisations, not from individuals.
How to apply
Interested teams should submit their proposals and budget template via the application form by 5pm on 26th November 2026. If you have any questions, please contact Flavy Sharma (flavy.sharma@eefoundation.org.uk).