Early Years Apprentice

LANIVET & DISTRICT UNDER FIVES

Bodmin (PL30 5HG)

Closes on Monday 5 January 2026

Posted on 2 December 2025

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Summary

Lanivet and District under fives are offering an exciting opportunity to join their dynamic team as an Early Years Educator Apprentice! Gain the knowledge, skills and behaviours to kickstart your career in this exciting and rewarding industry.

• Wage:

  £13,741 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)

  Pay will be weekly , the same amount throughout the year which allows you to be paid throughout the school holidays.

• Training course: Early years educator (level 3)
• Hours: Monday - Friday 8:30am-3:30pm term time only. This includes one day at college. Evening fundraising bingo is held six times a year. Various other fundraisers are held throughout the year, and an expectation to help when you can.

  35 hours a week

• Start date:

  Monday 2 February 2026

• 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

Daily tasks involved but are not limited to :

• Be a Key Person: Care for a small group of children, supporting their daily needs such as nappy changes, toilet training, and wellbeing. Plan engaging activities, write observations with Tapestry (our online portal), and set next steps in line with the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) to help each child reach their goals.
• Be a Valued Team Member: Work as part of our friendly, supportive team by asking questions, sharing ideas, and learning from others. You’ll be fully supported with regular meetings, supervisions, peer observations, and appraisals while completing your college course.
• Get Involved in Fundraising: As a charity preschool, we love involving our team in community events and fundraising activities. You’ll have opportunities to help with bingo nights, raffles, Christmas fairs, harvest auctions, teddy bear zip wires, and more!
• Stay Up to Date and Safe: Keep current with all relevant training and policies. Including Safeguarding, Ofsted requirements, First Aid, policies and procedures, and risk assessments, ensuring a safe and high-quality environment for every child.
• Be Yourself and Shine: Bring your enthusiasm, creativity, and caring nature to our dedicated team. We value individuality and positivity. Together, we make Lanivet & District Under Fives a truly special place to learn, work, and grow.

Where you'll work

Carters Parc
Rectory Road, Lanivet
Bodmin
PL30 5HG

Training

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

Training provider

CORNWALL COLLEGE

Training course

Early years educator (level 3)

Understanding apprenticeship levels (opens in new tab)

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.

Training schedule

A qualification that proves the minimum of knowledge and skills to work with children from birth to 5 years. To cover a range of topics for example child development, health and safety, safeguarding, and supporting play and education.

An apprenticeship includes regular training with a college or other training organisation. At least 20% of your working hours will be spent training or studying.

More training information

You will attend St.Austell College one day each week. 

Requirements

Essential 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
• IT skills
• Attention to detail
• Organisation skills
• Customer care skills
• Problem solving skills
• Presentation skills
• Administrative skills
• Number skills
• Analytical skills
• Logical
• Team working
• Creative
• Initiative
• Non judgemental
• Patience

About this employer

Lanivet & District Under Fives is a friendly, community-based charity preschool located in the heart of Lanivet village. We provide quality early years education and care for children aged 2 to 4 years, offering a nurturing environment where every child can grow, explore, and thrive. Being a charitable organisation can be both challenging and incredibly rewarding, especially within the early years sector. What truly sets us apart is our strong sense of community connection and family feel. Recently, we welcomed our first volunteer, a local retired resident who has taken on the much-loved “grandma role” within our setting. The children absolutely adore her—she brings warmth, patience, and a sense of generational learning that many children may not experience within their own families. Watching them interact, share stories, and learn from one another has been a wonderful addition to our preschool community. We proudly moved into our purpose-built preschool on the 30th of August. Our grand welcome day marked a new chapter for Lanivet & District Under Fives into our “forever home.”

We are a small, dedicated team of five, all of whom began their journeys as apprentices and have grown into their professional roles within our setting. Now that we have the space to expand, from accommodating 21 children to 29, we’re excited to welcome a new team member to join us.

After this apprenticeship

You would achieve the qualification to move forward and progress to a bigger setting or if available there is potential of a full-time position upon successful completion of the apprenticeship. 

Ask a question

The contact for this apprenticeship is:

CORNWALL COLLEGE

The reference code for this apprenticeship is VAC2000003435.

Apply now

Closes on Monday 5 January 2026

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