Nursery World - Green shoots of recruitment recovery as nursery vacancies drop

The number of nursery vacancies has dropped while the number of staff qualified to Level 3 has increased, according to early years data company Ceeda.

In signs that may indicate the green shoots of a staffing recovery, one in three settings is now recruiting compared with nearly one in two last year, when 45 per cent of settings were recruiting for 24,600 posts, according to the latest ‘About Early Years’ bulletin.

Now, one in three settings are looking to fill 14,300 positions, a 42 per cent decrease on empty posts.

The proportion of staff qualified to level three or above has also increased from 71 per cent in 2017 to 76 per cent in 2018. Ceeda estimates remain below DfE estimates of 81 per cent.

However, there are significant skills gaps in the sector’s workforce and recruitment is still very tough.

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