Level 5 Early Years Lead Practitioner Apprenticeship
LITTLE BUNDLES OF JOY LTD
BILSTON (WV14 6AH)
Closes in 21 days (Friday 10 April 2026 at 11:59pm)
Posted on 20 March 2026
Contents
Summary
To deliver high‑quality early education and care in line with the EYFS, ensuring children are supported to learn, develop, and thrive. Alongside core practitioner duties, the postholder will actively work towards their Level 5 qualification, gradually taking on enhanced responsibilities in leadership, pedagogy, and practice development.
- Wage
-
£15,600 to £24,784.50, depending on your age
National Minimum Wage
- Training course
- Early years lead practitioner (level 5)
- Hours
-
Term time or 37.5 hours week. Exact working days and hours TBC.
37 hours 30 minutes a week
- Start date
-
Monday 20 April 2026
- Duration
-
2 years 3 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
Child Development & Learning:
- Plan, deliver, and evaluate stimulating activities aligned with the EYFS
- Observe, assess, and track children’s progress, contributing to planning cycles
- Support children’s individual needs, interests, and next steps
- Promote children’s independence, curiosity, and wellbeing
Key Person Duties:
- Build warm, trusting relationships with children and families
- Maintain accurate learning journeys and developmental records
- Communicate effectively with parents about progress, routines, and concerns
Safeguarding & Welfare:
- Follow safeguarding policies and procedures, reporting concerns promptly
- Maintain a safe, clean, and inclusive environment
- Support daily routines including meals, toileting, sleep, and transitions
- Developmental Responsibilities (Working Towards Level 5)
Pedagogical Leadership:
- Deepen understanding of child development theories and evidence‑based practice
- Contribute to curriculum planning and reflective discussions
- Begin to lead small group activities, interventions, or focus areas
Supporting Colleagues:
- Provide guidance to apprentices, students, or less experienced staff
- Model high‑quality interactions and best practice
- Assist with room organisation, environment audits, and resource planning
Quality Improvement:
- Contribute to self‑evaluation and quality improvement plans
- Support the implementation of new initiatives, policies, or approaches
- Reflect critically on practice and suggest improvements
Professional Collaboration:
- Work with the SENCO, health professionals, and external agencies under supervision
- Strengthen partnerships with families through confident, informed communication
Where you'll work
33-35 WELLINGTON ROAD
BILSTON
WV14 6AH
Training
Apprenticeships include time away from working for specialist training. You’ll study to gain professional knowledge and skills.
Training provider
EDUCATION AND SKILLS TRAINING & DEVELOPMENT LIMITED
Training course
Early years lead practitioner (level 5)
Understanding apprenticeship levels (opens in new tab)
What you'll learn
Course contents
- Advocate for children through their child centred approach, listening to the voice of the child; ensuring children’s rights, views and wishes are heard, respected and acted upon at all times. Offer appropriate support and influence decisions in the best interests of the child.
- Develop, model and implement strategies to support the emotional, social, psychological, physical and cultural needs of all children within the educational setting.
- Support and promote children’s diverse speech, language and communication development and determining and adapting appropriate responses and interventions to support verbal, nonverbal interactions and engagement with written communication.
- Support children to engage in a range of learning contexts such as individual, small groups and larger groups as appropriate for their play and support confidence within social experiences.
- Engage in effective strategies to develop and extend children's learning and thinking, including sustained shared thinking.
- Promote, model and support children and families to develop a healthy approach to making choices relating to personal care including eating, sleeping and physical activity.
- Analyse and articulate how all children’s individual learning can be affected by their current developmental capabilities, characteristics and individual circumstances taking into account all factors contributing to typical and atypical development.
- Ensure plans fully reflect the individual development needs and circumstances of children and actively participate in the provision of consistent care, responding quickly to the needs of the individual child.
- Plan, carry out and guide appropriate personal care routines for individual children.
- Competently action and carry out safeguarding procedures, using their professional curiosity, knowledge, insight and understanding.
- Explore and understand, challenge and question; knowing when to act to safeguard and protect children.
- Encourage all children’s participation, ensuring a sensitive, respectful and effective balance within the adult and child dynamic to facilitate play opportunities.
- Ensure staff are deployed effectively to suit and enhance the learning environment, prioritising the safety and wellbeing of all children.
- Cultivate professional partnerships with parents, carers, colleagues and other professionals, presenting their understanding of the child’s journey within multidisciplinary teams to holistically support the child’s individual needs.
- Demonstrate the importance of the home learning environment, developing an effective and collaborative partnership to enhance opportunities for the child.
- Provide a dynamic, evolving and enabling environment that reflects the current interests, motivations, and play of individual and groups of children.
- Use current and contemporary knowledge, research, theories and approaches to develop, enhance and articulate their own pedagogical approach and practice.
- Observe, assess, plan, facilitate and participate in play opportunities which include current curriculum requirements.
- Make use of formative and summative assessment, tracking children’s progress to plan for future learning possibilities including early interventions based on individual developmental needs.
- Take responsibility for supporting the key person in articulating children's progress and planning future learning possibilities including the safe use of digital technology to communicate effectively in both oral and written English.
- Promote equality of opportunity and anti-discriminatory practice.
- Be a leaderful practitioner to support, mentor, coach, train and guide colleagues in a range of educational settings, providing inspiration and motivation to engage others to develop their practice, supporting teams and guiding change.
- Identify, action and competently challenge issues and undertake difficult conversations where appropriate.
- Use reflection to develop themselves both professionally and personally to enhance their practice.
- Ensure the security and confidentiality of data, records and information in line with current legislation.
- Identify and act upon own responsibilities in relation to health and safety, prevention and control of infection, carrying out risk assessments and risk management processes in line with policies and procedures.
- Apply the principles of sustainability and segregate used resources for reuse, recycling, and safe disposal .
- Advocate for children through their child centred approach, listening to the voice of the child; ensuring children’s rights, views and wishes are heard, respected and acted upon at all times. Offer appropriate support and influence decisions in the best interests of the child.
- Develop, model and implement strategies to support the emotional, social, psychological, physical and cultural needs of all children within the educational setting.
- Support and promote children’s diverse speech, language and communication development and determining and adapting appropriate responses and interventions to support verbal, nonverbal interactions and engagement with written communication.
- Support children to engage in a range of learning contexts such as individual, small groups and larger groups as appropriate for their play and support confidence within social experiences.
- Engage in effective strategies to develop and extend children's learning and thinking, including sustained shared thinking.
- Promote, model and support children and families to develop a healthy approach to making choices relating to personal care including eating, sleeping and physical activity.
- Analyse and articulate how all children’s individual learning can be affected by their current developmental capabilities, characteristics and individual circumstances taking into account all factors contributing to typical and atypical development.
- Ensure plans fully reflect the individual development needs and circumstances of children and actively participate in the provision of consistent care, responding quickly to the needs of the individual child.
- Plan, carry out and guide appropriate personal care routines for individual children.
- Competently action and carry out safeguarding procedures, using their professional curiosity, knowledge, insight and understanding.
- Explore and understand, challenge and question; knowing when to act to safeguard and protect children.
- Encourage all children’s participation, ensuring a sensitive, respectful and effective balance within the adult and child dynamic to facilitate play opportunities.
- Ensure staff are deployed effectively to suit and enhance the learning environment, prioritising the safety and wellbeing of all children.
- Cultivate professional partnerships with parents, carers, colleagues and other professionals, presenting their understanding of the child’s journey within multidisciplinary teams to holistically support the child’s individual needs.
- Demonstrate the importance of the home learning environment, developing an effective and collaborative partnership to enhance opportunities for the child.
- Provide a dynamic, evolving and enabling environment that reflects the current interests, motivations, and play of individual and groups of children.
- Use current and contemporary knowledge, research, theories and approaches to develop, enhance and articulate their own pedagogical approach and practice.
- Observe, assess, plan, facilitate and participate in play opportunities which include current curriculum requirements.
- Make use of formative and summative assessment, tracking children’s progress to plan for future learning possibilities including early interventions based on individual developmental needs.
- Take responsibility for supporting the key person in articulating children's progress and planning future learning possibilities including the safe use of digital technology to communicate effectively in both oral and written English.
- Promote equality of opportunity and anti-discriminatory practice.
- Be a leaderful practitioner to support, mentor, coach, train and guide colleagues in a range of educational settings, providing inspiration and motivation to engage others to develop their practice, supporting teams and guiding change.
- Identify, action and competently challenge issues and undertake difficult conversations where appropriate.
- Use reflection to develop themselves both professionally and personally to enhance their practice.
- Ensure the security and confidentiality of data, records and information in line with current legislation.
- Identify and act upon own responsibilities in relation to health and safety, prevention and control of infection, carrying out risk assessments and risk management processes in line with policies and procedures.
- Apply the principles of sustainability and segregate used resources for reuse, recycling, and safe disposal .
Training schedule
Early Years Lead Practitioner Level 5.
All learning is delivered at the place of work remotely via teams' meetings and scheduled reviews will take place with your tutor every 4 to 6 weeks.
Requirements
Essential qualifications
GCSE in:
English (grade C/4 or Above)
Other in:
Level 3 Early Years Educator (grade Pass)
Share if you have other relevant qualifications and industry experience. The apprenticeship can be adjusted to reflect what you already know.
Skills
- Communication skills
- Attention to detail
- Organisation skills
- Administrative skills
- Team working
- Initiative
- Patience
About this employer
A purpose built nursery in Bilston, West Midlands, offering 32 places. The nursery has been established since 2018 providing passionate and dedicated high quality care and education to our children and families.
After this apprenticeship
- Leadership and mentoring skills
- Advanced pedagogical knowledge
- Responsibility for areas of provision
- Greater involvement in planning, assessment, and quality improvement
Ask a question
The contact for this apprenticeship is:
EDUCATION AND SKILLS TRAINING & DEVELOPMENT LIMITED
Hamad Kashif
hamad.kashif@estd.uk
07802 451220
The reference code for this apprenticeship is VAC2000022303.
Apply now
Closes in 21 days (Friday 10 April 2026 at 11:59pm)