Qualifications in childcare, early years & play

For people beginning a career in childcare, the Council for Awards in Children's Care and Education (Cache) offers the Foundation Award in Caring for Children, and a Level 1 Award in Getting Started in a Pre-School Setting. These awards offer an introduction to working with children.
Cache also recommends its Level 2 awards for entrants to the early years workforce, as they allow people to work under supervision within numerous children’s services settings. These include certificates in Childcare and Education; Children’s Care, Learning and Development; Pre-School Practice; and Early Years Care and Education. Cache also offers a National Vocational Qualification (NVQ) Level 2 in Children’s Care, Learning and Development, a work-based qualification.
City & Guilds also provides entry-level qualifications, such as its Level 3 Certificate in Preparing for Work in the Care Sector. This is primarily aimed at social care professionals, but includes pathways for those who want to work with children under the age of eight. In addition, City & Guilds offers a National Vocational Qualification/Scottish Vocational Qualification (SVQ) at Levels 2, 3 and 4 in Children’s Care, Learning and Development as well as Levels 2 and 3 Technical Certificates in Children’s Care, Learning and Development. The NVQs/SVQs are aimed at anyone in a supporting role up to management level, and the technical certificates are for anyone new to the field.
Alternatively, the Level 2 Certificate in Developing Skills for Working with Children and Young People, offered by the awarding body NCFE, is suitable for a wide range of learners. This provides an opportunity to gain work experience without committing to a specific niche. The NCFE Level 2 Certificate in Developing Skills for Early Years Practice, on the other hand, prepares people to work (under supervision) specifically in a crèche or playgroup environment. This qualification is particularly suitable for assistants and voluntary workers.

Supervisory staff

The BTEC National Certificate and Diploma in Early Years provide a route for nursery and childcare workers into full-time employment in a supervisory role; to enter higher education, including initial teacher training; or to study for a first degree. They are available full or part-time.
From September 2007, the National Certificate and Diploma in Children’s Care, Learning and Development  replaced the National Certificate and Diploma in Early Years. It Is based on new occupational standards and linked to the Early Years Foundation Stage.
Nursery nurses and childminders can take Edexcel’s Children’s Care, Learning and Development NVQs at Levels 2, 3 and 4. Edexcel has also developed a Level 2 BTEC Award in Paediatric First Aid.
Cache offers many Level 3 awards for people working unsupervised or in a supervisory role. These include diplomas in Childcare and Education, Pre-School Practice, and Early Years Care and Education, as well as a Level 3 Certificate and an NVQ Level 3 in Children’s Care, Learning and Development.
Earlier this year, the National Childminding Association and Cache launched the Level 3 Diploma in Home-Based Childcare, which replaces the Level 3 Certificate in Childminding Practice and is aimed at people working with children in a home-based setting.
The Diploma in Childcare and Education, formerly the National Nursery Examination Board (NNEB) qualification for nursery nurses, is for staff working unsupervised, or who are supervising other workers. The diploma, which can be taken full-time over two years or part-time, carries a maximum of 360 Ucas (Universities and Colleges Admissions Service) points and can be used for entry to university to continue study in a number of areas, including child development, nursing, midwifery, teaching and social care.
Finally, in addition to technical certificates, NVQs and SVQs in Children’s Care, Learning and Development, City & Guilds offers a Level 3 Certificate in Safeguarding Children and Young People, a Level 4 NVQ for Managers in Residential Childcare and youth work NVQs and technical certificates.

Managerial staff

Those interested in advancing to higher education or more senior employment can take the Edexcel Level 4 BTEC -Higher Nationals in Advanced Practice in Work with Children and Families. This qualifies staff as advanced practitioners and allows them to “step on” to an early years-related degree with previously gained credits.
Staff with management responsibilities or who wish to progress can take the Level 3 Certificate of Professional Development in Work with Children and Young People; Level 4 Certificate in Managing Quality Standards in Children’s Services; NVQ Level 4 in Children’s Care, Learning and Development; or the Advanced Diploma in Child Care and Education.
The two-year, early years sector-endorsed foundation degree is also a Level 5 qualification and leads to senior practitioner status. Students learn while working, attend college one day a week, and undertake work-based assessment and private study, as well as distance learning.
Applicants for the foundation degree should have a Level 3 qualification in early years, childcare or playwork, plus experience of working in the sector.
The foundation degree is equivalent to having completed the second year of an honours degree, and graduates can go on to the final year of a full honours degree in early childhood studies.
A qualification for senior children’s centre staff is available from the National College for School Leadership. To take the National Professional Qualification in Integrated Centre Leadership, applicants must be a leader or deputy leader of a Department for Children, Schools and Families designated or approved children’s centre, because they will be assessed in the centre for which they have responsibility.
Early Years Professional Status (EYPS) is a new role and is intended for graduates. The Government aims to have an early years professional leading the Early Years Foundation Stage in every children’s centre by 2010 and in every full daycare setting, such as day nurseries, by 2015.
EYPS is equivalent to that of qualified teacher status. It is awarded to early years practitioners who demonstrate that they are leading and delivering excellent practice in line with a set of national standards.
This status has been developed by the Children’s Workforce Development Council, and a list of training providers can be found at www.cwdcouncil.org.uk

Scotland

Early education and childcare workers have to register with the Scottish Social Services Council. A wide range of qualifications are accepted and these can be viewed at www.sssc.uk.com. For example, support-worker staff can have a work-based S/NVQ Level 2 in Early Years Care and Education. A student usually works in a local authority or private nursery, and attends college one or two days a week.
Practitioners who supervise may have an HNC in Childcare and Education or the S/NVQ Level 3 Early Years Care and Education, or Childcare and Education qualification. Managers or lead practitioners can have an S/NVQ Level 4 in Early Years Care and Education with a management strand, a Diploma in Social Work or an equivalent social work qualification.

Northern Ireland

Early years staff must have the minimum qualification of an NVQ Level 3 in Early Years Care and Education. However, a growing number of centre leaders are now graduates. Specialist courses have been developed at Stranmillis University College in Northern Ireland and University College Worcester in England. Both of these courses offer a four-year, part-time course leading to a BEd in Early Years. The Worcester course is provided through distance learning and in partnership with Nippa – The Early Years Organisation.
Nippa also runs short courses in Northern Ireland for early years staff and parents, including managing challenging behaviour in children, pre-school children with autism and working with children who have special needs.

Wales

National minimum standards for under-eights day care and childminding were introduced in April 2002. These require that, from 1 April 2008, the person in charge of the setting should have two years’ experience and at least a Level 3 qualification within the National Qualifications Framework for Early Years Education, Childcare and Playwork.
Furthermore, at least half of all childcare staff in playgroups/out-of-school clubs or 80 per cent of staff in full day care nurseries must hold a Level 2 qualification from the Welsh authority’s early years framework. Apart from these requirements, there are no minimum qualifications required for nursery workers, but GCSEs at grades A*-C are recommended.

Playwork

SkillsActive leads the development of playwork education and training for those working with children and young people in out-of-school settings throughout the UK. In 2006 it developed the first UK-wide strategy to improve training provision for playworkers. It was also instrumental in developing nine regional Centres for Playwork Education and Training across England. SkillsActive’s orientation programme, Making Choices, can help playworkers decide which career to pursue. Its Introducing Playwork training consists of a 15-hour course plus a placement. This is accepted by Ofsted as adequate training for holiday playscheme staff for one year and it can be used as a step towards a Level 2 qualification.
In addition, SkillsActive’s sector-endorsed foundation degree in playwork is now available at Leeds Metropolitan University, the University of Hertfordshire and the University of Brighton. There are playwork NVQs (SVQs in Scotland) and a number of vocationally related qualifications at Levels 2 and 3. Edexcel, for instance, offers NVQs in playwork at Levels 2, 3 and 4.
Both Edexcel and City & Guilds are running the transitional awards that will, in the future, allow workers to transfer between the early years and playwork sectors.
Playworkers can also take the NVQ Level 2 in Playwork, the Cache Level 2 Certificate in Playwork or the NVQ Level 2 in Playwork from City &Guilds. As with all Level 2 qualifications, staff will then be qualified to work under supervision.
Experienced practitioners can complete Cache’s Level 3 Diploma in Playwork or its NVQ Level 3 in Playwork.
Once a Level 3 qualification is held, practitioners can also take the Cache Level 3 Certificate of Professional Development in Work with Children and Young People, while those wishing to go further can take the Cache Level 4 Certificate in Managing Quality Standards in Children’s Services.
For more experienced practitioners, Cache and City & Guilds offer a Level 3 Certificate in Work with Children – Early Years or Playwork.
Leeds Metropolitan University offers a Masters by Research in Playwork (MRes). There are no fixed entry requirements. This is a postgraduate Masters level -degree, which involves the student undertaking a programme of research, largely by independent study.