Childcare Apprenticeship (level 3) - St Albans

CHILDBASE PARTNERSHIP LIMITED

St. Albans (AL1 4PL)

Closes on Sunday 1 June 2025

Posted on 7 April 2025

Print

Contents

Summary

At Childbase Partnership, our ethos is simple; we all belong, we all matter, and we all contribute so we all benefit. Our core values foster happiness, confidence, and growth, with a ‘careers not jobs’ approach, shaping the future of our extraordinary company together. Own your future and join us as at our Grasshoppers Day Nursery, St Albans.

Wage

£17,130.75 a year

Check minimum wage rates (opens in new tab)

As an apprentice at Childbase Partnership, you will be paid an hourly pay rate of £7.57. This will increase to £10.00 an hour after 6 months in post.

Training course
Early years educator (level 3)
Hours
You will work varied shifts, usually between the hours of 7.15am - 6.30pm, Monday - Friday, so you experience all aspects of the daily routine at nursery.

37 hours 30 minutes a week

Start date

Wednesday 11 June 2025

Duration

1 year 6 months

Positions available

1

Work

Most of your apprenticeship is spent working. You’ll learn on the job by getting hands-on experience.

What you’ll do at work

Your apprenticeship will commence in July 2025 and will teach you how to provide outstanding care and education to young children.  Your main responsibilities will be to:

  • Work as part of a team to create and maintain safe and supportive learning environments across the nursery, plan and implement opportunities to enhance children’s development, and complete observations linked to the early years curriculum
  • Interact positively with all nursery users and work in partnership with colleagues and parents to ensure all children’s individual needs are met at all times whilst they are in your care
  • Adhere to nursery routines and policies and to seek guidance from your leadership team as required
  • Successfully manage your time to ensure you submit your coursework by the deadlines set by your Trainer/Assessor

Where you’ll work

20 York Road
St. Albans
AL1 4PL

Training

Apprenticeships include time away from working for specialist training. You’ll study to gain professional knowledge and skills.

College or training organisation

CHILDBASE PARTNERSHIP LIMITED

Your training course

Early years educator (level 3)

Equal to A level

Course contents
  • Recognise when a child or a colleague is in danger or at risk of abuse and act to protect them in line with safeguarding policy and procedure.
  • Apply legislation, policy and procedure to protect the health, safety and wellbeing of children in the setting (for example, food safety, diets, starting solid food, allergies, COSHH, and accidents, injuries, and emergencies).
  • Apply the principles of risk assessment and risk management within documentation and practice.
  • Teach children to develop skills to manage risk and maintain their own and others safety.
  • Use a range of communication methods, including technology, with other professionals to meet the individual needs of the child.
  • Develop and maintain effective professional, collaborative relationships with others involved in the education and care of the child.
  • Undertake the role and responsibilities of key person.
  • Recognise and apply theories of attachment to develop effective relationships with children.
  • Provide sensitive and respectful personal care for children from birth to 5 years.
  • Advocate for all children’s needs, including children which require SEND or EAL support.
  • Promote and facilitate children’s interpersonal communication to develop their social interactions and relationships.
  • Support children to develop a positive sense of their own identity and culture.
  • Support children to understand and respond to their emotions and make considered choices about their behaviours.
  • Assess the responsiveness of the environment for effective child-centred experiences in line with curriculum requirements.
  • Create inclusive, child-centred, dynamic, innovative, and evolving physical environments both indoors and outdoors.
  • Create inclusive and supportive emotional environment that enables the child to feel safe, secure, respected and experience a sense of wellbeing; maintaining and prioritising the individual child’s voice.
  • Apply strategies that support children’s ability to manage change, transition, and significant events.
  • Analyse observation evidence to assess and plan holistic individual learning based on a comprehensive understanding of the child’s needs and interests.
  • Facilitate and support child-centred opportunities and experiences based on the setting's curriculum and pedagogy.
  • Provide adult led opportunities and experience based on the setting's curriculum and pedagogy.
  • Use reflection to develop themselves both professionally and personally.
  • Recognise when a child or a colleague is in danger or at risk of abuse and act to protect them in line with safeguarding policy and procedure.
  • Apply legislation, policy and procedure to protect the health, safety and wellbeing of children in the setting (for example, food safety, diets, starting solid food, allergies, COSHH, and accidents, injuries, and emergencies).
  • Apply the principles of risk assessment and risk management within documentation and practice.
  • Teach children to develop skills to manage risk and maintain their own and others safety.
  • Use a range of communication methods, including technology, with other professionals to meet the individual needs of the child.
  • Develop and maintain effective professional, collaborative relationships with others involved in the education and care of the child.
  • Undertake the role and responsibilities of key person.
  • Recognise and apply theories of attachment to develop effective relationships with children.
  • Provide sensitive and respectful personal care for children from birth to 5 years.
  • Advocate for all children’s needs, including children which require SEND or EAL support.
  • Promote and facilitate children’s interpersonal communication to develop their social interactions and relationships.
  • Support children to develop a positive sense of their own identity and culture.
  • Support children to understand and respond to their emotions and make considered choices about their behaviours.
  • Assess the responsiveness of the environment for effective child-centred experiences in line with curriculum requirements.
  • Create inclusive, child-centred, dynamic, innovative, and evolving physical environments both indoors and outdoors.
  • Create inclusive and supportive emotional environment that enables the child to feel safe, secure, respected and experience a sense of wellbeing; maintaining and prioritising the individual child’s voice.
  • Apply strategies that support children’s ability to manage change, transition, and significant events.
  • Analyse observation evidence to assess and plan holistic individual learning based on a comprehensive understanding of the child’s needs and interests.
  • Facilitate and support child-centred opportunities and experiences based on the setting's curriculum and pedagogy.
  • Provide adult led opportunities and experience based on the setting's curriculum and pedagogy.
  • Use reflection to develop themselves both professionally and personally.

Your training plan

The apprentice's training schedule (optional)

By the end of your apprenticeship you will gain: 

  • Level 3 Early Years Educator qualification; there will be an online initial assessment during our screening stage if you don’t already hold maths and English at grade 4 or above, to determine the most suitable level of apprenticeship for you
  • Level 2 functional skills qualifications in maths and English, if you do not already have equivalent qualifications in these subjects at the required level
  • A paediatric first aid qualification
  • A permanent contract, subject to you successfully gaining your qualification, where after completion you will be appointed as a qualified Nursery Practitioner within our partnership

Our early years apprenticeship offers you:

  • 'Off the job' learning time within your working week which will support your studies
  • A Trainer/Assessor from our in-house Training Academy of Excellence, who will visit you at your nursery on a regular basis to guide and direct you
  • Regular group training sessions (usually once every 6-8 weeks) with other apprentices from across our partnership, held at our Head Office and Training Academy in Newport Pagnell (MK16 8NJ)

Requirements

Desirable qualifications

GCSE or equivalent in:

  • English (grade C/4)
  • maths (grade C/4)

Let the company know about other relevant qualifications and industry experience you have. They can adjust the apprenticeship to reflect what you already know.

Skills

  • Communication skills
  • Team working
  • Creative
  • Initiative
  • Non judgemental
  • Patience

Other requirements

For your application to be considered, at the time you apply, you must be able to evidence your NI number and right to work in the UK,ideally have photographic ID (valid passport or driving licence), have access to a computer, been resident in the UK for at least 3 years and be comfortable travelling to the training sessions in Newport Pagnell.

About this company

Employer information At Childbase Partnership we have been delivering childcare excellence since 1989. Our mission is to give children the best possible start in life and instil a lifelong passion for learning. Across all 44-day nurseries, Head Office, and our Training Academy of Excellence, our dedicated colleagues work together to create a lasting, positive impact in our local communities. We are determined to be excellent and constantly strive for the best outcomes, not only for the children in our care but for every colleague too. What makes us special? • We are 100% employee-owned – which means we are all partners, we all have a meaningful voice, and we own our future (this includes sharing profits too, tax-free). • ‘Number 1’ - we have earned the top spot in the prestigious Nursery World league tables for our Ofsted outcomes, all thanks to our extraordinary colleagues. • Record-breaking Green Flag achievements, and climate-positive status - we save more CO2 than we create (take that, climate change!). • Planting in excess of 2,000 trees in the Eden Restoration project - because the planet needs a hug too. • Over £3.5 million raised for charity – we’re basically fundraising superheroes (without the capes).

https://childbasepartnership.com (opens in new tab)

After this apprenticeship

A permanent contract subject to you successfully gaining your qualification, where after completion, you will be appointed as a qualified Nursery Nurse within our partnership. Longer term, as a level 3 qualified practitioner, you will be able to progress into roles such as Team Leader, Deputy Manager and Nursery Manager.

During your apprenticeship with us, you will benefit from:

  • 23 days of annual leave plus bank holidays, with the option to buy and sell days
  • Perkbox access offering various retail discounts and reduced ticket prices on days out
  • Fully paid enhanced DBS check
  • Complimentary breakfast, lunch and refreshments when you are at work
  • Thrive mental health app, employee assistance scheme and occupational health service
  • £1000 ‘recommend a friend’ bonus if you successfully refer someone to come and work for us
  • Cycle to work scheme
  • Annual staff conference and awards event, at which individual and team achievements are recognised

Ask a question

The contact for this apprenticeship is:

CHILDBASE PARTNERSHIP LIMITED

Charlotte Thwaite

recruitment@childbase.com

The reference code for this apprenticeship is VAC1000314193.

Apply now

Closes on Sunday 1 June 2025

When you apply, you’ll be asked to sign in with a GOV.UK One Login. You can create one at the same time as applying for this apprenticeship.

After signing in, you’ll apply for this apprenticeship on the company's website.

Company’s application instructions

Once you've submitted your application, you will be asked to answer some initial eligibility questions by email, after which a screening telephone call will be arranged for you. Upon successful completion of initial screening, there will be an online assessment for you to complete, so we can check what level of apprenticeship is most suitable for you. A visit to the nursery will follow, at which, you will be able to look around, meet some of the team and engage in an interview.