Getting high quality childcare and early years education for pre-school children can be a real challenge for parents across the West of England.

Now the West of England Mayoral Combined Authority, led by Mayor Dan Norris, is investing £300,000 in new Skills Bootcamps that will get more people into early years roles sooner – helping to meet the demand from parents. 

West of England Mayor Dan Norris said:

“Good, affordable early years education is so important. It gives children the great start they need to go on to succeed at school, and also helps parents to get back to work. But there’s been a shortage of early years staff in the West of England that needs to be tackled, as well as a lack of recognition for this skilled, vital work.

“By investing in a new accelerated apprenticeship pathway, more people will be able to start working in the sector sooner. That’s good for those workers, good for our region’s children, and good for parents who rely on that support as well.”

Skills Bootcamps are free, flexible courses designed to help plug skills gaps in the West of England. There has been a sharp rise in demand for high quality early years education since the increase in free hours entitlement for parents and not enough staff to meet that demand. 

This comes as the government has announced that funding applications for up to 300 new or expanded school-based nurseries are now open, making the need to tackle staff shortages in the early years sector even more urgent.

The Pathway to Accelerated Apprenticeship Skills Bootcamps are free to learners and help provide the necessary skills and understanding for prospective apprentices before they start their course, while accelerating the time taken to complete the apprenticeship. The Bootcamps will be available for a number of start dates running until January 2025.

Once participants complete the early years courses, an interview with a local nursery/employer is guaranteed.

If you’re someone looking to start or progress your career in early years education or an employer with workers who would benefit from this Bootcamp, then find out more by visiting the webpage.