There has been a raft of changes to early years qualifications over recent years. Maths rules were relaxed for apprentices in all fields earlier this year, with those aged 19+ no longer having to pass maths as an exit requirement. (Level 3 apprentices under 18 still have to have English and maths qualifications at level 2 to complete their apprenticeship, however.) Other moves to ease recruitment difficulties specifically in the early years include only managers requiring L2 maths, and experienced Level 2 staff being able to count in Level 3 ratios.
T-Levels, introduced in September 2020, have been slow to take off but are growing, making up 19 per cent of NCFE's child development/wellbeing enrolments for 16/18s in 2022/23. This represents an increase to 27 per cent in 2023/24. Nearly 5,000 young people undertook an early years T-Level last year. There is no formal requirement for T-Level students to have English and maths to complete their course.
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