Nursery managers will need to hold a maths GCSE or equivalent from next year, following reforms to the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) framework.

The government is removing the requirement for Level 3 practitioners to hold a maths GSCE or equivalent in order to count as Level 3 in the staff/ child ratio from January 2024. At the same time, it is placing a requirement on nursery managers to hold the qualification.

The change will only apply to new managers or managers who move to a new role. Nursery managers employed on or after 4 January 2024 must hold a Level 2 maths qualification or achieve one within two years of starting the position.

Following an eight week consultation, which closed on 26 July 2023, the government reported 67% of respondents agreed with the proposal to remove the requirement for practitioners to hold a Level 2 maths qualification. However, only 52% agreed with the proposal to place the requirement on setting managers.

Those who disagreed with the move said managers do not need a maths qualification to succeed in the role, the requirement could hamper career progression, and the change may lead to a shortage of managers.

Early years providers consulted on the proposal said additional training on delivering mathematics learning effectively in the early years would be welcomed.

The majority (68%) of providers said the removal of the requirement for Level 3 practitioners to hold a maths qualification would make it easier to recruit staff, while 84% said it was likely they would count staff without a maths qualification in Level 3 ratios if allowed.

Jenny Bounds, early years manager at Stockton House School, said the removal of the requirement for Level 3 practitioners was a positive move. “Hopefully it will encourage more people to train and become practitioners,” she said.  “The ‘maths’ requirement within the EYFS is not difficult to understand and certainly does not need a GCSE in order to be able to help the children with it. “

On the requirement for managers to hold a Level 2 maths qualification Bounds said while some managers deal with funding, fees and budgets, others do not.  “If that is the case, why would the manager need to have a GCSE in order to complete their role? Having their statutory level 3 or even better a higher full and relevant qualification should be sufficient,” she said. “I believe that if there should be a mandatory requirement qualification it should be English.  It doesn’t matter who you are within a setting, you have to be able to communicate with parents / outside agencies etc both orally and in written format.”

Other reforms set to be enacted in January 2024 include:

• The creation of two separate EYFS frameworks (one for childminders and one for group and school-based providers)
• Allowing students and apprentices to count in staff:child ratios at the discretion of the setting manager
• A clarification that while qualifications must be verified, employees do not have to provide physical copies of their qualifications
• Providers no longer have to provide opportunities for children with English as an additional language to use their home language within their setting
• Extending safeguarding policy and procedures to cover electronic devices with imaging and sharing capabilities such as smart watches, as well as phones and cameras
• A clarification that practitioners do not have to collect physical evidence to prove a child’s level of development, but should draw on their knowledge of the child and their own expertise

This government also plans to work with awarding organisations, stakeholder experts and practitioners to develop a new “experience based route”, which would allow practitioners to count within the Level 3 staff:child ratios without holding a “full and relevant” qualification. This will not come into force in January 2024.

Following the consultation, the government has abandoned plans to reduce the percentage of Level 2 qualified staff required in the ratio and to change qualification requirements outside of peak hours.