Level 3 Diploma for Working in the Early Years Sector (Early Years Educator)

Overview

This qualification is aimed at people seeking to develop skills and knowledge in the early years and to be counted in staff-to-child ratios at level 3.

To achieve the qualification, learners are required to demonstrate both knowledge and skills in the workplace that meet the Department for Education's Early Years Educator (EYE) criteria and map to the knowledge, skills and behaviours within the EYE occupational standard ST0135 in England.

Entry requirements:

• Must have a minimum of six months of working in early years.
• Must have English GCSE Grade C/4 or equivalency.
• Must be working in a setting where they can carry out level 3 duties (supervised) for a minimum of 16 hours a week term time.
• Must live and work in a Cambridgeshire early years provision for children aged birth to five years.
• Must be aged over 19 from Sunday, 30 August 2026.
• Must have lived in the UK for three years.
• Will need access to a computer device to attend online training sessions via Microsoft Teams.
• Will need access to the internet whilst engaging in training delivery and access to e-portfolio.

The qualification requires:

• Learners to be self-driven and motivated to achieve this level 3.
• Must attend mandatory online delivery training in term time online via Microsoft Teams.
• Working in a setting is a must to complete the mandatory work/industry placement experience throughout the qualification. This is called skills-based learning which is associated with work experience to demonstrate competency through face-to-face assessment.

Qualification duration

This will depend on learner commitment and motivation between 12 and 18 months. Learners will need to:

• Attend term-time training delivery to gain underpinning knowledge to complete knowledge and skills assessments.
• Complete workplace assessments and real working time between 300 and 350 hours.
• Complete personal study and homework tasks up to 500 hours throughout the qualification to develop evidence for the qualification portfolio.