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By Rachel Lawler

 

The Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education has approved the new .

 

The approval comes after years of delays, after the first trailblazer group was dismissed and the second left last year.

 

The new apprenticeships are expected to last 18 months and will be given a maximum of £6,000 in funding.

 

Apprentices will need to complete a Level 3 Early Years Educator qualification as part of their training and will need to have completed a Level 2 qualification in English and maths before their final assessment. They will also require a Level 3 Award in Paediatric First Aid or a Level 3 Award in Emergency Paediatric First Aid.

 

Michael Freeston, director of quality improvement at the Alliance, commented: “It’s great to hear that the Level 3 Apprenticeship Standard has finally been approved. This will be a major pathway to the qualifications available to those considering a career in the early years.

 

“And it can’t come soon enough; getting these new qualifications online quickly is vital if we are to start seriously addressing the declining numbers of Level 3 qualified practitioners in our workforce.

 

"It’s no secret that this has been a drawn-out process and it’s thanks to the employers, training and sector experts who have volunteered their time over the last five years to ensure we’ve reached this positive conclusion.

 

“The next step now must be to make sure a Level 2 Apprenticeship standard is developed to create a pipeline which supports unqualified childcare staff to progress their careers and enables settings to offer high quality provision at every level to the young children in their care.�

 

The new standards are available to read .