HE/FE NEWS
University of Hertfordshire launches Early Years Teacher Degree Apprenticeship
The new apprenticeship forms part of the Government’s Best Start in Life ambitions, which set out a commitment to ensuring every nursery setting has access to a qualified Early Years Teacher. The DfE is heavily investing in the route, with non-levy paying settings eligible for 95% government funding towards training costs. The DfE is also providing financial incentives for early years teachers who work in areas of deprivation.
Building on the University’s strong track record in Early Childhood and Initial Teacher Training - including recent recognition as Best ITT Provision by the Daily Mail Good University Guide in 2025 - the new apprenticeship offers a high-quality, debt-free pathway into the profession for both new entrants and those already working in early years settings.
The University of Hertfordshire has announced the launch of one of the UK’s first Early Years Teacher Degree Apprenticeships, opening for its first cohort in September 2026. It is the first course of its kind in the East of England since the Department for Education (DfE) introduced the new route for the forthcoming academic year.
The new programme arrives at a critical moment for the early years sector, which continues to face severe recruitment and retention pressures nationwide.
A key feature of the programme is the University’s newly developed specialist early years simulation room, designed to replicate a high-quality nursery environment. Introduced in January this year, this dedicated teaching space enables apprentices to engage in hands-on, practice-based learning, from developing confidence with intimate care routines to designing enabling environments using flexible, child- and adult-height furniture. The space ensures that theory is meaningfully connected to real-world practice, supporting the development of confident, reflective and highly skilled Early Years Teachers. Lesley Boyle, Senior Lecturer and Early Years Lead at the University of Hertfordshire, said: “The early years workforce is vital to children’s development, yet the sector has faced significant challenges for more than a decade. This new apprenticeship provides a high-quality, accessible and fully-funded route into the profession, supporting both employers and aspiring practitioners. We are proud to be among the first universities in the country to offer it.”
North East FE colleges and secondary schools invited to join award-winning careers programme
A free-of-charge structured careers programme – Building My Skills – is returning for the 2026-27 academic year. There are 100 places available for schools and further education establishments across the North East and Tees Valley.
Delivered by the North East Chamber of Commerce, BUSINESSiQ and Esh Group, the award-winning employability initiative connects businesses and schools as part of the timetable.
Through structured workshops, business role models help students understand the world of work, build employability skills, explore local opportunities, and make informed career choices. Businesses lift the lid on their sector, raise aspirations, and introduce students to lesser-known career paths that are available to them locally.
The programme – first launched in 2009 by Esh Group, Arup and Ryder Architecture – has engaged with more than 60,000 students over the years.
Esh Group’s Corporate Affairs and Social Value Director, Darush Dodds, says: “A lack of awareness of careers and sectors remains a key barrier to success. Young people can’t be what they can’t see so, working together, Esh, BUSINESSiQ and the Chamber hope that careers sessions directly with students will mean employers can bring their sector to life with passion and heart, helping to inspire young people while building a stronger, more sustainable future workforce.” Delivered to students in Years 9-12 as part of the timetable, the programme helps schools to easily plan their careers education for the academic year. It is aligned to the Gatsby benchmarks and supports OFSTED expectations.
“The recently unveiled Milburn Interim Report (Young People and July/August 2026
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Work) positions quality school-business engagement as ‘a critical missing part of the system’,” Darush adds. “Growing Building My Skills couldn’t have come at a more pivotal time.”
All participating schools will receive four workshops – each delivered by a different company – in an assembly format to a whole year group. Students will then complete a ‘checkpoint’ after each workshop and those who complete all checkpoints are invited to a regional mock interview day.
John McCabe, Chief Executive of the North East Chamber of Commerce, said: “The North East has enormous potential, but we will only fulfil it if young people can see the opportunities available to them and understand the range of careers they can build here.”
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