Do something BIG, recruitment campaign
– Department for Education, February 2024
The Department for Education have recently launched their new national recruitment campaign for early years and the childcare sector; Do something BIG. Work with small children. This campaign will shine a light on the great careers available in the sector and recognise the lifelong impact childcare professionals have on children during their most formative years. It will run across TV, cinema, social media, online, radio and billboard advertising.
As part of the campaign, the DfE have created a new website https://earlyyearscareers.campaign.gov.uk for people to find out about working in early education and childcare and the qualifications available, discover how uniquely rewarding early years and childcare careers can be and can search for vacancies via the DWP Find a Job platform.
Financial incentives
To learn more about ways to attract people into the sector, the Department for Education have also invited 20 local authorities to take part in a £4.9 million financial incentives pilot scheme to provide up to 3,000 new starters and returners with a £1,000 tax-free cash payment shortly after they take up a job working in in early years and childcare. This pilot will test whether financial incentives help boost recruitment in the early years and childcare sector in the same way that they have for teachers and will run from April to December 2024.
Wraparound
As part of their plans to support the expansion of childcare provision, term time between 8am and 6pm, for primary school aged children, the DfE will be working with four early adopters - Central Bedfordshire, Bi-borough (consisting of Westminster and Kensington & Chelsea local authorities), Norfolk and Cambridgeshire to roll out provision from this April ahead of the national rollout of the Wraparound Childcare Programme in September. These early adopters will support the Department to learn more about delivery and test plans further before the programme’s national rollout.
If you would like further information, please get in touch with the CACHE Alumni Team and we can contact the department with your questions.
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