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Richard Knight shares his experience of working with the Alliance, and discusses his progression through the Alliance's Early Years Traineeship and Level 3  childcare and early learning course.

What attracted me to the traineeship?

I was attracted to the Early Years Traineeship as soon as I found out about it, at the time I was volunteering at a local pre-school playgroup and the manager of the setting gave me  some information about the programme. I had never heard of the Pre-school Learning Alliance before, and after contacting the Alliance to register my interest in the traineeship I began  to research on the internet, and soon discovered just how big the organisation is. The fact that the programme had an employability element to the training was what initially interested  me. I knew my interview and CV skills needed some work and from my time volunteering at the playgroup, I was beginning to think about a complete career change. I was definitely  interested in working with children, so the level 1 childcare element was also of attractive.

About the traineeship, what I liked and the challenges I faced...

The traineeship was similar to an apprenticeship, it employed us for 16 hours a week. 5 of these hours were spent in the classroom taking part in training, with the remaining hours being spent on work placement in a childcare setting. I was very pleased that we had opportunities to do our CV’s properly and hone our interview techniques, my work placement took place at the setting I had been volunteering at, I enjoyed spending time there as a student and tried to learn as much as I could. I found the time spent in the classroom very enjoyable, the tutors supported us in any way they could and the aspects of childcare we covered on the course armed us with basic knowledge, which we could put into practice in our settings. I was quite unconfident in my own abilities initially, I very much wanted to take part in the training programme but I felt I could not compete with the other students because a lot of them were parents themselves and would know lots more about children than I did. As the course progressed and with the support of the tutors my self-confidence did grow and the more I learned the better I felt.

What I progressed on to...

After completing the traineeship, the setting I had volunteered at and done my work placement with offered me a part time job, which I took. I also continued my employment with the Alliance, straight after the traineeship I got recruited on to the crèche bank staff and began working for the Alliance in crèche sessions. Between both jobs I was pretty much working full time with children, I was thrilled and this was all thanks to the Early Years Traineeship.

From this I started to look at furthering my qualifications, I found out that the Alliance was running a level 3 childcare and early learning course. I enrolled on this course and completed my studies alongside my work. This was a busy time for me, I was working at playgroup, supporting creches in various children’s centres and undertaking my level 3. It was a culture shock for me because level 3 is a lot more demanding than the traineeship but I was glad I was studying with the Pre-school Learning Alliance again because I felt valued and supported. I was learning so much on the course and each week I could see my practice was improving. My tutor consistently gave me positive feedback with my work and at the same time I felt appreciated because my good work in the crèche service was being acknowledged. My confidence was growing all the time. Towards the end of my level 3 I became aware that a contracted post with the Alliance was coming up. My line manager in the crèche service asked me if I was going to apply for it, I was considering the post because by this time I knew that I wanted to work for the Alliance full time. I was still unsure because the setting I had been with since the beginning was a big part of my life and I would be extremely sad to leave it.

The end of my level 3 had finally arrived and it was an emotional time for all us students. We were finally fully qualified and that felt great, we all worked really hard, managing our demanding studies around working and family life. The hard work was worth it and our tutor had been extremely supportive throughout.

Interview and my current position...

After finishing my level 3 qualification I decided to apply for the contracted post I had been told about. I soon found out that I had been selected for interview, I was excited by the news but also very nervous! The interview came and I had it with the manager of the sub-committee and my line manager from the crèche service. I did find the interview process quite stressful but I managed to answer all of the questions I was asked and drew on my own experiences at work to inform my answers. I also looked back over my work from the traineeship regarding interview skills and techniques, I found this very useful and put some of the skills I had learned from this into practice for the interview. After the questions from both managers had finished I was asked to go back and wait in the reception area for a while.

A short while later, I was called back in. I remember feeling anxious at this point and I just wanted to know if I had done ok or not. Kath and Sarah began to feedback to me and they both said that I had interviewed extremely well, with Sarah going onto add that I was probably one of the best people she had ever had in interview and that she could see me being a manager one day. I couldn’t believe it! I could not believe that they were talking about me. With that came the job offer and I accepted it straight away, I was sad to have to leave my setting but I couldn’t wait to start my new role with the Alliance.

My current role is as Play and Learning Worker, my week involves supporting creches and other Children’s Centre sessions such as Stay and Play’s and One Stop Shops. I am also currently training to lead these sessions and at the moment I lead about 2 sessions a week. I am very pleased with my position, my week is varied because each day I am working in different Centres with different families. I am happy I am being developed into a lead worker, I have lots of support regarding this from management and feedback so far has been very positive. I am glad my potential is being recognised, I feel valued and encouraged by everyone at the Alliance.

What difference has the  Alliance made to me?

Without the Alliance I would not be where I am today. The Alliance has had a great impact on my life as a whole, I finally feel like I am doing what I was always supposed to do. Through training and my employment with the organisation, I have learned just how important a child’s early learning is. I have made some strong professional relationships within the Alliance and I hope to make many more.