'For me it meant there was no gap in earnings, and I found that the process of assessment was integrated into my day-to-day work in a way that was very easy to accommodate,' he says.
'I had worked in childcare before, so it was a case of putting everything into practice, either in terms of writing things down for assessment or being observed on the job. Observation varied between five minutes for a nappy change to much longer assessments for planned activities.'
Matt underwent a 12-week induction course when he joined the nursery before embarking on his year-long NVQ. He says he particularly enjoyed the physical and social development aspects of the course. 'There is also a lot of focus on working with parents, and obviously when you are in a job this is something you are very well placed to put into practice,' he says.
'Everything we covered was in line with the early learning goals which underpin the way the nursery works.'
After the year's course Matt became a fully-fledged nursery nurse and immediately moved up the salary scale. He now divides his time between the Linda Ellis Nursery and two others in the chain, where he works as part of a team teaching level 2 practitioners.
'Advanced Apprenticeships undoubtedly enable employers to cast the net wider and boost the calibre of the staff they employ,' he says. 'At the moment I am leading a drive to encourage more males into the childcare sector, and apprenticeships are certainly something which appeal to them.'
Matt Beety recently won the 2005 Learner First Award for young learners, sponsored by the Government's National Employer Service.
More information
* Course: Advanced Modern Apprenticeship leading to NVQ level 3 in Early Years Care and Education
* Course provider: KidsUnlimited in association with CACHE and the Learning and Skills Council (LSC)
* Content: Includes curriculum and early learning, work with babies and parents, health and community, first aid
* More information: Earlier this year the LSC made available an additional 38m to help employers meet the growing demand for apprenticeships.
See www.lsc.org.uk
