When we talk about gender inclusion in early years, we’re not only talking about how children play or which books sit on the shelf. We’re talking about the culture of an entire setting – who gets hired, who feels they belong, how staff speak to families, and whether every child grows up believing that all possibilities are open to them.

Research from the Fatherhood Institute shows that gendered expectations in early childhood don’t just limit children – they also shape the workforce, contributing to the UK having just 3% male early years educators. The same stereotypes that tell boys not to cry are the ones that tell men they don’t belong in nurseries.

That’s why gender inclusion has to be intentional – and why CPD is one of the strongest tools we have to make it real.

 

What We Mean by Gender Inclusion in Early Years

When we talk about gender inclusion in early years, we’re talking about creating a setting where no child or adult is limited, excluded, or stereotyped because of their gender – spoken or unspoken. It’s not just about whether boys are allowed to play in the home corner or whether girls are encouraged to climb. It’s about the language we use, the stories we tell, the staff we recruit, the roles we model, and the assumptions we challenge.

Gender inclusion is just as much about the adult experience as the child’s. If our workforce is 97% female – as it currently is in the UK – then we’re not only limiting representation for children, we’re also sending a message about who belongs in care and education.

That’s why gender inclusion isn’t a project. It’s a culture – and CPD is how we build it together.

 

The Role of Educators and Why CPD on Gender Inclusion Is Necessary

As early years educators, we play a powerful role in shaping how children understand the world – not just through what we teach, but through what we model. Even with the best intentions, most of us bring years of social conditioning into our work. That’s not a criticism, it’s just reality. We grew up in the same gendered world our children are now navigating.

That’s why CPD on gender inclusion isn’t about “fixing” staff. It’s about giving us the tools, language, and confidence to reflect on our own assumptions and move beyond them. Without structured training, gender-inclusive practice becomes inconsistent – depending on who’s in the room, what day it is, or how comfortable someone feels addressing a stereotype.

CPD gives us:

• Shared understanding across the whole team
• Confidence to challenge bias (our own and others’)
• Strategies for communicating with families
• A safer, more welcoming environment for male staff
• A stronger, more diverse pipeline of future educators

 

When we learn, the whole culture shifts – and children benefit most.

 

Benefits of Gender-Inclusive CPD for Children

When we invest in gender-inclusive CPD, the most meaningful impact is felt by the children in our care. Research from organisations like Gender Action and the Fatherhood Institute shows that when children grow up in environments free from gendered expectations, they’re more likely to develop higher self-esteem, stronger emotional literacy, and a broader sense of what’s possible for their future.

In early years, that might look like:

• Boys feeling safe to express emotions without being told to “be strong”
• Girls having equal encouragement to take physical risks outdoors
• Children choosing activities based on interest, not stereotypes
• All children seeing men and women in caring, playful, leadership roles
• Greater empathy and peer respect because difference feels normal, not “other”

 

There’s also a long-term academic link. A OECD report found that early exposure to gender-balanced environments widens children’s learning dispositions and increases later career aspiration flexibility – for both boys and girls.

So when we train our staff, we’re not just improving practice. We’re actively expanding the life choices of every child who walks through the door.

 

Benefits for Staff & Workplace Culture

Gender-inclusive CPD doesn’t just support children – it reshapes the experience of the adults who work in the setting. When we train our teams to recognise and challenge gender assumptions, we create a workplace where everyone feels they belong, including the men who are so often missing from the early years workforce.

For many male educators, the biggest challenge isn’t the job itself – it’s navigating suspicion, isolation, or being treated as “the odd one out”. When a whole team has had CPD on gender inclusion, that pressure isn’t placed on the individual man to justify his presence. The culture does the work for him.

With the right training, settings benefit from:

• Stronger retention of male staff
• More confidence around appropriate touch and safeguarding boundaries
• Staff who know how to address biased comments from parents or colleagues
• A safer, more open environment where men can take on caring roles without stigma
• A wider recruitment pool – because word spreads when a setting is genuinely inclusive

 

When men feel welcome and supported, they don’t just stay – they thrive, and the children benefit from it.

 

Barriers Settings Face (and How CPD Helps Solve Them)

If gender inclusion is so valuable, why isn’t every setting already doing it? In reality, most barriers aren’t about unwillingness – they’re about uncertainty, confidence and fear of “getting it wrong”. We hear the same hesitations repeatedly:

• “We treat everyone the same – do we really need training?”
• “We don’t have any male staff, so is this even relevant?”
• “Parents might not understand or agree.”
• “We don’t feel confident talking about gender without saying the wrong thing.”
• “We’re already stretched – this feels like ‘extra’ work.”

 

This is exactly where CPD on gender inclusion makes the difference. It replaces confusion with clarity, assumptions with understanding, and silence with shared language. When teams are trained together, nobody has to guess what’s “allowed” or worry about stepping on eggshells. CPD turns gender inclusion from a sensitive topic into a normal part of practice – backed by policy, research, and confidence.

The barrier is rarely lack of care – it’s lack of guidance. CPD fills that gap.

 

What Good Gender-Inclusive CPD Looks Like

Not all CPD is created equal. A single PowerPoint on “equality” isn’t going to shift culture or improve practice – especially when it comes to something as deeply rooted as gender. Effective gender-inclusive CPD is practical, reflective, and rooted in the reality of early years work, not theory alone.

Strong CPD on gender inclusion tends to include:

• Real case studies from UK settings (what worked, what didn’t)
• Space for staff to reflect on their own experiences and assumptions
• Clear examples of inclusive language and everyday practice
• Guidance on handling parental questions or concerns
• Safeguarding clarity around touch, toileting and professional conduct
• Recruitment and interview strategies to attract more male practitioners
• Policy templates or checklists to embed change beyond the training itself
• Opportunities for follow-up (mentoring, discussion spaces, webinars)

 

Crucially, good CPD doesn’t blame staff for having unconscious bias – it equips them to understand it, name it, and do something about it. When people feel safe to learn, they change faster, stay engaged longer, and become ambassadors for inclusion rather than silent bystanders.

It’s not about ticking a training box. It’s about shifting a mindset, together.

 

How to Embed Learning Beyond One-Off Training

A single training session can spark awareness, but it won’t change culture on its own. The real impact of CPD comes from what happens after the webinar, inset day, or staff meeting. To keep momentum going, we need to treat gender inclusion as an ongoing commitment, not a one-off event.

That might look like:

• Adding gender-inclusion goals into staff inductions, supervisions and appraisals
• Reviewing policies and room environments with a gender lens
• Creating space for team reflection during staff meetings
• Linking practice to the EYFS, Ofsted framework, and curriculum planning
• Involving male educators in decision-making, not just “showcasing” them
• Sharing successes and challenges openly, so learning becomes collective

 

When the learning is revisited, questioned, and lived – that’s when it becomes part of who we are, not just something we did once.

 

Call to Action and Next Steps for Settings

If we want to move beyond talking about inclusion and actually live it, we need to treat gender inclusion the same way we treat safeguarding, SEND or child development – as essential professional learning, not a personal opinion or optional extra. The first step is simply committing to upskilling the whole team.

If you’re ready to take this forward in your setting, we offer CPD-accredited e-learning, webinars, and practical resources designed specifically for early years teams. You can train at your own pace, involve your whole staff group, and start making change immediately.

Every setting says they’re inclusive. The ones who invest in CPD are the ones who prove it.