More must be done to address falling apprenticeship starts in early years providers amid the sector’s staffing crisis, Ofsted’s chief has said.
But Amanda Spielman has also warned against using apprentices to replace “skilled, experienced practitioners”, which “isn’t fair to children or apprentices” and “can’t be a long-term solution”.
Spielman told Saturday’s Ofsted Big Conversation that apprenticeships are a part of the solution to address declining staff numbers in the early years sector, but said that “unfortunately fewer young people are even beginning these programmes at the moment”.
According to the education watchdog, the number of new apprentices starting in the sector had fallen from 27,000 six years ago to just 16,000 last year – a 40 per cent fall.
