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Childcare Apprenticeship (level 3)

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Fun is an essential ingredient in all Childbase Partnership nurseries where the care and education opportunities for each and every child are as extraordinary as our colleagues who provide them. This is your opportunity to be part of the fun and to join us as an apprentice at our Field House Day Nursery in Buckingham.
Wage
£17,949.75 a year
Minimum wage rates (opens in new tab)
Apprentice hourly pay rate of £8.00. This will increase to £10.00 an hour after 6 months
Hours
You will work varied shifts, usually between Monday - Friday, 7.15am and 6.30pm, so you experience all aspects of the daily routine at nursery.
37 hours 30 minutes a week
Start date
Tuesday 18 August 2026
Duration
1 year 1 month
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
As a childcare apprentice, 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 assessor/tutor
Where you'll work
Field House Day Nursery
Tingewick Road
Buckingham
MK18 1ST
Training
Apprenticeships include time away from working for specialist training. You’ll study to gain professional knowledge and skills.
Training provider
CHILDBASE PARTNERSHIP LIMITED
Training course
Early years educator (level 3)
What you'll learn
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.
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Training schedule
This apprenticeship will provide you with the opportunity to learn how to provide outstanding early years care and education. By the end of your apprenticeship with us you will gain:


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- Level 3 Early years educator qualification, there will be an on-line assessment during our shortlisting stage to determine the right level of apprenticeship for you
- Appropriate Functional Skills qualifications in maths and English, if you do not already have equivalent qualifications in these subjects when you commence your apprenticeship
- A paediatric first aid qualification
Our early years apprenticeship offers you:
- The opportunity to gain valuable, practical childcare experience, working with children aged 0-5 years in a nursery setting
- 'Off the job' learning time within your working week which will support your studies
- A childcare trainer/assessor from our in-house EduBase Training Academy of Excellence, who will visit you at the nursery on a regular basis to guide and direct you
- Group training sessions, with other apprentices from across our partnership, held at our EduBase Academy in Newport Pagnell; there are 11 sessions as part of the level 3 course
- A permanent contract subject to you gaining your qualification, where after completion you will be appointed as a qualified Nursery Nurse within our partnership
Requirements
Desirable qualifications
GCSE in:
- English (grade 4)
- maths (grade 4)
Share if you have other relevant qualifications and industry experience. The apprenticeship can be adjusted 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 employer
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 EduBase 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).
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