Early years apprenticeships provider Realise has launched a Skills Bootcamp to help attract hundreds of new recruits to the sector and fast-track their training.

Realise will launch its “apprenticeship accelerator” programme on February 1 with the aim of recruiting 650 people to the short courses over 18 months.

The Bootcamp, the first of its kind to be funded by the Department for Education, will be open to anyone aged over 19 and training is delivered free of charge to the learner to anybody not currently employed in the early years sector. The Bootcamp can also be accessed by those working in early years who have not yet secured a Level 2 apprenticeship, but the employer must contribute between 10% and 30% of the costs.

Individuals who complete the Bootcamp will be guaranteed an interview for a job with a local nursery and will automatically be eligible to begin a Level 3 apprenticeship when they secure employment.

A face-to-face three-week course will run in Slough, Liverpool, Northampton and Kent, areas with a particularly high demand for new recruits into early years, and a six week online course will be open for applications from the rest of the UK. Those completing the Skills Bootcamp will have access to career coaches and will begin the process of enhanced DBS checks.

Karen Derbyshire, operations director for early years at Realise, said: “With the number of children eligible for free childcare set to grow substantially in the next 18 months, it’s more important than ever to not only attract new people to the industry but to get them qualified as quickly as possible, while ensuring they go through appropriate training.”

She added: “The Skills Bootcamp is a real opportunity for people who are currently unemployed, in another job but looking for a new career or people who have worked in early years previously and are now looking to return to the sector.

“For the learner, it is the chance to take the first steps to forging a new career and for nursery settings, it’s an opportunity to add another Level 2 qualified team member to their ranks once they are considered competent by the nursery manager.”

Realise currently has 1,850 active early years apprentices across more than 1,000 employers in the UK.

Anyone interested in finding out more about the Skills Bootcamp should e-mail Karen Derbyshire at [email protected]