Childcare Apprentice

Employer Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust Employer type NHS Site Northern General and Royal Hallamshire Hospital Town Sheffield Salary £14,722 pa/pro rata for part time staff Salary period Yearly Closing 18/12/2025 23:59 Interview date 05/01/2026 We are committed to helping our staff balance their work and home lives and ensure they feel supported, valued and appreciated so whilst you care for our patients and clients, we’ll take care of you. We offer many different ways of helping staff including career development opportunities, flexible working, good annual leave and pension schemes , health and wellbeing packages and financial support systems. Joining the Trust also allows you access to a number of saving options via our salary sacrifice schemes and a wide range of discount opportunities with retailers and service providers. Job overview Level 2 Early Years Apprentice – Join Our Team Working in early years is fun, rewarding, and full of variety. As a Level 2 Early Years Apprentice, you’ll support children’s learning and development while gaining hands‑on experience and a recognised qualification. What You’ll Do Plan fun, engaging activities linked to the EYFS Build positive relationships with children and families Help create a safe, nurturing, and stimulating environment Observe and record children’s progress Work closely with a friendly, supportive team Follow safeguarding procedures to keep children safe What We’re Looking For Passion for working with young children A caring, enthusiastic, and creative approach Good communication and teamwork skills Main duties of the job The role involves supporting high-quality care, learning, and development for children in line with EYFS, Ofsted, and nursery policies. You will work closely with colleagues, parents, and other professionals to meet each child’s individual needs, helping to create a safe, stimulating, well‑organised environment that promotes independence, healthy choices, and positive development. Key responsibilities include contributing to planning and delivering age‑appropriate activities, maintaining accurate records of children’s progress, preparing displays, supporting children’s hygiene needs, and ensuring strong safeguarding practices. The role also requires housekeeping tasks, basic administrative duties, food preparation, and maintaining a safe and hygienic setting. You must communicate effectively with parents, provide daily feedback, and ensure confidentiality at all times. Flexibility is essential, including occasional work outside normal hours and covering shifts at different nursery sites. You are expected to follow all relevant legislation and nursery policies, uphold the Trust’s values, and engage in ongoing training, self‑reflection, and professional development. Health and safety awareness is essential, including monitoring risks, managing security procedures, and responding appropriately to concerns. Working for our organisation You will be working for an organisation which values and respects all of its staff and the community it serves. The Trust is a leader in the NHS and research sectors and provides excellent benefits for its employees. This includes commitments to professional development but also many policies to support employees in balancing their personal and professional lives. This vacancy is advertised on a fixed term contract basis for a period of 18 months due to this being an apprenticeship/training programme. The fixed term contract status of the post holder will be reviewed in accordance with the Trust's legal obligations regarding fixed term contracts. A learner/applicant must be a UK, EEA, or EU resident for at least the past three years to undertake an apprenticeship training programme. The apprentice allowance as specified in the Minimum Wage Regulations will be paid for the first 12 months. The rate will increase after 12 months in line with these regulations for anyone that is age 19 or over. Detailed job description and main responsibilities Please view the attached Job Description and Person Specification documents for full details regarding this post. When completing your application please ensure that you clearly demonstrate how you meet the role criteria. Person specification Qualifications English GCSE Grade D/3 or Functional skills English at Level 1 Maths at GCSE Grade D/3 or Functional Skills Maths at Level 1 General IT Skills Experience Some experience of working with or looking after children Further Training The ability to keep updated in Childcare issues Willing to do further training for personal development Patients First - An interest in working with children and their families within a childcare setting. Ability to provide good quality care with compassion, commitment, and competence. Respectful - An understanding of the importance of effective communication and interpersonal skills Understanding of the needs of children and their families and providing care whilst maintaining dignity. Effective communication skills both verbal and written. Effective organisational skills Unity - Ability to work as part of a team Ability to work in partnership with parents and any outside agencies in a professional manner. Deliver - Be able to demonstrate an understanding of the role of a Nursery Practitioner. Understanding the requirements of confidentiality in a Childcare setting Please note that in order to comply with the UK Government’s rules on Skilled Worker sponsorship, any applicants who do not meet the eligibility requirements or concessions on salary thresholds under the Skilled Worker visa will not be eligible to receive sponsorship from the Trust. Please keep this in mind when submitting your application. Further details on these concessions, and who qualifies for them, can be found here . Candidates are advised to read the attached guidance on using AI technology. W hen you complete your application, you are required to declare that the information in your application form is true and complete. The personal statement is exactly that; personal. When selecting to apply via NHS Jobs, you will be redirected to our preferred recruitment system called Trac. You will be asked to create and submit your application via the Trac recruitment system. You will not be able to track the progress of your application or receive messages through the NHS Jobs website, and furthermore, as an employer, we will not be able to respond to any e-mails sent to us via the NHS Jobs website. All communications should be sent via your Trac system account. If you are offered employment at Sheffield Teaching Hospitals your information will be transferred from the Trac recruitment system into the national NHS Electronic Staff Records system. In addition, in submitting an application form, you authorise our Trust to confirm any previous NHS service details via the ESR IAT process should you be appointed. Please note, all communication regarding your application will be made via email sent via the Trac recruitment system, please ensure you check your junk/spam folders as emails are sometimes filtered there. The Trust is committed to its obligations in accordance with the Equality Act 2010, and we positively encourage applications from all sections of the community. Should you require any assistance in applying for the position please contact the General or Medical Human Resources Departments on the number identified on the NHS Jobs page for the organisation. Job Share applicants are welcome for all full time posts unless indicated but cannot be guaranteed. In addition for Fixed Term Contracts, internal secondments may be considered, please seek the approval of your current line manager before applying for the position. All employment with the Trust is subject to a number of NHS Employment Checks being met to a satisfactory standard including verification of identity, eligibility to work in the United Kingdom, references and qualifications in addition to professional registration, a disclosure and barring records check and occupational health check if these are deemed to be a requirement for the position to be undertaken. For more information about our organisation and the opportunities available, please visit our website and follow us on Twitter and Facebook Employer certification / accreditation badges You must have appropriate UK professional registration. This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service. #J-18808-Ljbffr