Early Years Apprentice

CEDAR PARK DAY NURSERY LIMITED

Hoddesdon (EN11 8SX)

Closes in 8 days (Friday 22 August 2025 at 11:59pm)

Posted on 13 May 2025

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Contents

Summary

As a Nursery Practitioner, you play a vital role in providing a safe, nurturing, and engaging environment for children aged 0-5 years. Responsible for supporting their learning and development, ensuring their well-being, and adhering to all policies, procedures, and legal requirements.

Wage

£15,704 for your first year, then could increase depending on your age

National Minimum Wage rate for apprentices

Check minimum wage rates (opens in new tab)

Salary is dependant on experience.

Training course
Early years practitioner (level 2)
Hours
Monday - Thursday, 8.00am - 6.00pm

40 hours a week

Start date

Monday 8 September 2025

Duration

1 year

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

  • Deliver High-Quality Learning & Development
  • Observations & Assessments
  • Identify and support children with additional needs (SEN) in collaboration with the SENCO
  • Support Individual needs. Adapt activities to individual learning styles and developmental needs
  • Create an Enabling Environment
  • Actively engage with children throughout the day, ensuring they feel secure
  • Use positive reinforcement to encourage good behaviour and development
  • Maintain a warm, welcoming environment where children feel valued
  • Child Safety & Supervision
  • Personal Care & Hygiene (nappy changes, toileting)
  • Monitor children at mealtimes, preventing choking and allergic reactions
  • Maintain high standards of infection control, hand hygiene, and food safety
  • Support children in developing independent self-care skills (e.g., handwashing, dressing)
  • Outdoor & Trip Supervision
  • Build & Maintain Relationships with parents, offering daily feedback
  • Set up the room and prepare activities for the day
  • Tidy & clean the room, following cleaning schedules
  • Record Keeping & Compliance
  • Adhering to Policies & Procedures
  • Participate in CPD (e.g., NoodleNow training) and attend all required staff meetings
  • Support and train new staff and apprentices, sharing best practices
  • Work effectively as part of a team, ensuring smooth daily operations
  • Communicate professionally and positively with colleagues, managers, and external visitors
  • Take part in staff meetings, planning sessions, and nursery events

Where you'll work

The Grange
15 High Street
Hoddesdon
EN11 8SX

Training

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

Training provider

HERTFORD REGIONAL COLLEGE

Training course

Early years practitioner (level 2)

Understanding apprenticeship levels (opens in new tab)

What you'll learn

Course contents
  • Support babies and young children through a range of transitions and significant events. e.g moving onto school, moving house or the birth of a sibling.
  • Recognise when a child is in danger, at risk of serious harm or abuse and explain the procedures to be followed to protect them. Types of abuse including: domestic, neglect , physical, emotional, and sexual abuse.
  • Identify risks and hazards in the provision and during off site visits relating to both children and staff and visitors and follow reporting procedures.
  • Use prevention and control of infection techniques for hand washing and food preparation and hygiene, deal with spillages safely, safe disposal of waste, using correct personal protective equipment.
  • Use equipment, furniture and materials safely and securely, following the manufacturers’ instructions and provision’s requirements.
  • Encourage children to be aware of personal safety and the safety of others and develop personal hygiene practices (including oral hygiene).
  • Promote health and wellbeing in the provision by encouraging babies and young children to consume healthy, balanced and nutritious meals, snacks and drinks appropriate for their age and be physically active through planned and spontaneous activity throughout the day, both indoors and outdoors.
  • Carry out respectful care routines appropriate to the development, stage, dignity and needs of the child, including eating (feeding and weaning or complementary feeding), nappy changing procedures, potty or toilet training, care of skin, teeth and hair and rest and sleep provision.
  • Communicate with all children, including those for whom English is an additional language and those with additional needs, in ways that will be understood. This includes verbal and non-verbal communication.
  • Extend children’s development and learning through verbal and non-verbal communication.
  • Encourage babies and young children to use a range of communication methods.
  • Use a range of appropriate communication methods to share information with children, parents or carers and other professionals.
  • Work with colleagues to identify and plan educational programmes to support children’s holistic development through a range of play, creativity, social development and learning.
  • Implement and review activities to support children’s play, creativity, social development and learning and clear up after activities.
  • Observe children, assess, plan and record the outcomes, share results accurately and confidentially in line with expected statutory and the provision’s requirements.
  • Use learning activities to support early language development.
  • Support children’s early interest and development in mark making, writing, reading and being read to.
  • Support children’s interest and development in mathematical learning including numbers, number patterns, counting, sorting and matching.
  • Support the graduated approach for the assessment, planning, implementation and reviewing of each baby’s and young child's individual plan for their care and participation.
  • Work in ways that value and respect the developmental needs and stages of babies and children.
  • Use feedback and mentoring or supervision to identify and support areas for development, goals and career opportunities.
  • Work co-operatively with colleagues, other professionals and agencies to meet the needs of babies and young children and enable them to progress.
  • Work alongside parents or carers and recognise their role in the baby or child’s health, well-being, learning and development.
  • Encourage parents or carers to take an active role in the baby's or child’s care, play, learning and development.
  • Demonstrate how to share information with parents or carers about the importance of healthy, balanced and nutritious diets for their child, looking after teeth and being physically active.
  • Support babies and young children through a range of transitions and significant events. e.g moving onto school, moving house or the birth of a sibling.
  • Recognise when a child is in danger, at risk of serious harm or abuse and explain the procedures to be followed to protect them. Types of abuse including: domestic, neglect , physical, emotional, and sexual abuse.
  • Identify risks and hazards in the provision and during off site visits relating to both children and staff and visitors and follow reporting procedures.
  • Use prevention and control of infection techniques for hand washing and food preparation and hygiene, deal with spillages safely, safe disposal of waste, using correct personal protective equipment.
  • Use equipment, furniture and materials safely and securely, following the manufacturers’ instructions and provision’s requirements.
  • Encourage children to be aware of personal safety and the safety of others and develop personal hygiene practices (including oral hygiene).
  • Promote health and wellbeing in the provision by encouraging babies and young children to consume healthy, balanced and nutritious meals, snacks and drinks appropriate for their age and be physically active through planned and spontaneous activity throughout the day, both indoors and outdoors.
  • Carry out respectful care routines appropriate to the development, stage, dignity and needs of the child, including eating (feeding and weaning or complementary feeding), nappy changing procedures, potty or toilet training, care of skin, teeth and hair and rest and sleep provision.
  • Communicate with all children, including those for whom English is an additional language and those with additional needs, in ways that will be understood. This includes verbal and non-verbal communication.
  • Extend children’s development and learning through verbal and non-verbal communication.
  • Encourage babies and young children to use a range of communication methods.
  • Use a range of appropriate communication methods to share information with children, parents or carers and other professionals.
  • Work with colleagues to identify and plan educational programmes to support children’s holistic development through a range of play, creativity, social development and learning.
  • Implement and review activities to support children’s play, creativity, social development and learning and clear up after activities.
  • Observe children, assess, plan and record the outcomes, share results accurately and confidentially in line with expected statutory and the provision’s requirements.
  • Use learning activities to support early language development.
  • Support children’s early interest and development in mark making, writing, reading and being read to.
  • Support children’s interest and development in mathematical learning including numbers, number patterns, counting, sorting and matching.
  • Support the graduated approach for the assessment, planning, implementation and reviewing of each baby’s and young child's individual plan for their care and participation.
  • Work in ways that value and respect the developmental needs and stages of babies and children.
  • Use feedback and mentoring or supervision to identify and support areas for development, goals and career opportunities.
  • Work co-operatively with colleagues, other professionals and agencies to meet the needs of babies and young children and enable them to progress.
  • Work alongside parents or carers and recognise their role in the baby or child’s health, well-being, learning and development.
  • Encourage parents or carers to take an active role in the baby's or child’s care, play, learning and development.
  • Demonstrate how to share information with parents or carers about the importance of healthy, balanced and nutritious diets for their child, looking after teeth and being physically active.

Training schedule

  • Working towards completing Level 2 Early Years Practitioner Apprenticeship Standard
  • Work based learning with regular teaching session with the Assessor 

Requirements

Essential qualifications

GCSE in:

  • English (grade 1-9)
  • Maths (grade 1-9)

Share if you have other relevant qualifications and industry experience. The apprenticeship can be adjusted to reflect what you already know.

Skills

  • Communication skills
  • Organisation skills
  • Customer care skills
  • Team working
  • Creative
  • Initiative
  • Patience
  • Enthusiastic
  • Reliable

Other requirements

Shift patterns may differ in accordance to business needs.

About this employer

A family run nursery in a charming Nursery building that feels like home. Because of the continuity of our staff and the thoughtful stimulation they provide, our children are active, curious and confident in forming relationships, which sets them up for a lifetime of learning.

https://www.cedarparknursery.co.uk/ (opens in new tab)

After this apprenticeship

  • There will be opportunities for progression and a permanent position subject to performance

Ask a question

The contact for this apprenticeship is:

HERTFORD REGIONAL COLLEGE

The Apprenticeship Team

apprenticeship@hrc.ac.uk

01992411572

The reference code for this apprenticeship is VAC1000320275.

Apply now

Closes in 8 days (Friday 22 August 2025 at 11:59pm)

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