Advice Please :)

Advice Please :)

by: stephmcuk - 18-05-08 20:12

Hello Everyone,

I am just asking for some advice from those who are in childcare what they think.

I currently am a stay at home mum and would love a career in childcare in the future. I have looked into colleges but with a baby i would have to pay for someone to look after her and i cannot afford to pay that much. so college is not really an option for me right now. Also i don't think i am ready to put her in childcare just yet.

I have phoned the local nursery's and they are not taking anyone on without a qualification right now. I was thinking of doing the CACHE  level 2 in children's care, learning and development at home. On a home learning course. By the time i would have finished me daughter would be old enough to start nursery and hopefully i would be qualified to get a job in one.

My question's really are:

Is this qualification good/recognised?

Will i get a job after and be qualified to work in a nursery?

Also one nursery said to do the ASET Level 3 Diploma in Child Day Care,would it be better for me to do that one?

Am sorry this is so long, Thank you for any advice in advance.

Stephanie.

by: Posh

CACHE is a recognised qualification but you may be better doing a level 3 rather than a level 2!!

by: Viv

Dear Stephmcuk

If you wish to go into full time childcae as a career I wuld suggest you try and do the NVQ level 3 CCLD. You would have to get a part time placement in a childcare setting but it is such a good option if you cannot do the college course. The company I work for offers an online blended learning programme and assessment all combined. This would be ideal for a mother at home . As I say a placement for a day or two a week would be necessary for that but we can almost always find funding for students to do the course so it is unlikely you would have to pay for that. A nursery might even let you have your child there while you work voluntarily to get your qalifiaction. Try looking at our website.

www.thechildcarecompany.com

by: Rose

Hi stephmcuk, some colleges and training providers have a creche for students to use, and I think its fairly cheap. You would also need to think about work based training, doing the CACHE or NVQ will require you to be in a setting for x amount of hours during the course. Online training is good for some, but the mix of people sharing ideas in a classroom provides extra ideas and support. In my experience the CACHE courses give you the knowledge underpinning why we do what we do in childcare, while the NVQ is there to assess what people already know, it was never intended to be a 'course' and some trainers offer little in the way of actual knowledge. As for doing the level 2 or 3 fIrst, its certainly an option to go straight for the level 3, although you might find some colleges prefer you to start at the 2 or even the introductory level. It seems to be for funding issues rather han because thats what suits the student though.

I hope you find somewhere suitable, its a great job.