{"id":58593,"date":"2015-06-30T23:15:00","date_gmt":"2015-06-30T23:15:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/?guid=7488f88e0cff7e8c0dd59773a2b2124a"},"modified":"2015-06-30T23:15:00","modified_gmt":"2015-06-30T23:15:00","slug":"press-release-help-to-up-skill-childcare-staff-before-they-reach-the-frontline","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/?p=58593","title":{"rendered":"Press release: Help to up-skill childcare staff before they reach the frontline"},"content":{"rendered":"
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People looking to work in childcare will be given more help to reach the high levels needed to give children the best start in life, Childcare Minister Sam Gyimah announced today (1 July 2015).<\/p>\n

Childcare apprentices will have to show they have a good level of English and maths by the end of their training through the creation of an \u2018exit standard\u2019 of a grade C or above in GCSE<\/abbr> English and maths.<\/p>\n

Today\u2019s announcement builds on last week\u2019s Ofsted early years statistics that showed settings offering the government\u2019s free hours of childcare per week have never been rated better and the quality of staff has never been higher. As a result, 100,000 more pupils are on track to be reading more confidently compared to 2012.<\/p>\n

Childcare Minister Sam Gyimah said:<\/p>\n

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All the evidence shows that the higher the quality of childcare, the higher the quality of a child\u2019s learning and development. That\u2019s why it\u2019s imperative that childcare workers have crucial literacy and numeracy skills needed to give every child the best possible start in life.<\/p>\n

We\u2019re totally committed to raising the bar and improving the care children receive in the early years so parents can have the strongest confidence in the people who are teaching our youngest children.<\/p>\n

However, unnecessary barriers shouldn\u2019t stop skilled people joining the workforce, and it makes much more sense to have an exit standard rather than a barrier to entry. That\u2019s why I\u2019m pleased to say that we will offer people the chance to study their maths and English GCSEs<\/abbr> alongside their childcare apprenticeship training.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

The news has been warmly welcomed by the childcare sector, who say that the move will encourage more apprentices to join the early years workforce.<\/p>\n

Sue Robb, Head of Early Years at 4Children, said:<\/p>\n

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We welcome the government\u2019s decision that apprentices can work for their childcare qualifications at the same time as studying for their GCSEs<\/abbr> in maths and English.<\/p>\n

This will encourage more apprentices into childcare and early years.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Neil King, from the London Early Years Foundation, said:<\/p>\n

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It is essential that we have accessible routes for those apprentices who are on their way to achieving their grade C in maths and English; whilst ensuring we continue to raise the quality of provision for children across the sector through the early years educator (EYE<\/abbr>) qualification.<\/p>\n

This decision further supports government policy which is predicated on a high quality early years workforce that is fit for the future.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Staff with level 3 EYE<\/abbr> qualifications can lead and manage settings delivering this care, so it is essential that they are suitably qualified and have an appropriate level of numeracy and literacy. <\/p>\n

A number of government-funded projects are available to help staff to improve core skills while they are training or employment.<\/p>\n

The apprenticeship trailblazer group made up of childcare employers has submitted a new apprenticeship standard to government for consideration including a GCSE<\/abbr> on an exit requirement. If approved by the Department for Business Innovation and Skills, the new standard would come into effect on 1 August 2015.<\/p>\n

In order to raise the quality of early years learning, the Department for Education has improved early years\u2019 qualifications by setting more robust criteria for them and encouraging more high-quality entrants to the profession, including graduates through early years initial teacher training routes. <\/p>\n

As a result, 87% of the workforce now have level 3 qualifications and 13% have degrees. <\/p>\n

Notes to editors<\/h2>\n
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  1. 85% of children receiving the government\u2019s offer of free childcare receive it in \u2018good\u2019 or \u2018outstanding\u2019 settings<\/li>\n
  2. The apprenticeship trailblazer group<\/a> is made up of childcare employers and has a remit to develop employer led apprenticeship standards on behalf of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills.<\/li>\n
  3. The exit requirement for GCSE<\/abbr> English and maths grade \u2018C\u2019 or above means the new standard is more closely aligned with the requirements of other apprenticeship programmes. The standard will not however accept functional skills as an alternative to GCSE<\/abbr>.<\/li>\n
  4. In addition to apprenticeship routes, there are also standalone childcare courses that provide a level 3 training route for those individuals that already hold GCSE<\/abbr> English and maths.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
    \n
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    DfE enquiries<\/h3>\n
    \n
    \n

    \n Central newsdesk<\/span>
    \n 020 7783 8300\n <\/p>\n

    \n General enquiries<\/span>
    \n 0370 000 2288\n <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Exit requirements for English and maths will ensure high quality childcare for all.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[13],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58593"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/8"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=58593"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58593\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":58632,"href":"https:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58593\/revisions\/58632"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=58593"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=58593"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=58593"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}