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Nursery teacher
Hours
30-40 per week
Starting salary
£21,102 + per year
If you love young children and like the idea of helping to give them a great start in life, this could be an ideal job for you. Nursery teachers work with children aged three to five in nursery schools or classes. They plan, organise and run a wide range of indoor and outdoor activities for them.
To be a nursery teacher in a state school, you must gain Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) by completing Initial Teacher Training (ITT). For this you'll need GCSEs (A-C) in English, maths and a science subject or equivalent qualifications. You will also need to pass Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) checks.
As a nursery teacher you will need to be able to build good relationships with children. You will need to be able to manage classes and deal with challenging behaviour. You also need to be patient and have a good sense of humour.
WorkDesc
The work
As a nursery teacher you would:
- help children develop in every way
- build their language, literacy and numeracy skills
- help them achieve the early learning goals of the National Curriculum
- encourage co-operation and good behaviour.
As well as working with the children, you would:
- set out activities before classes and tidy up afterwards
- prepare activities and materials
- talk to parents or carers about their children’s development
- check children’s development and spot any problems
- keep records and carry out assessments for each child
- go to meetings and training courses.
You would also work with and supervise teaching assistants, nursery nurses and volunteer helpers.
HoursDesc
Hours
As a teacher in a state school in England and Wales, you would work 39 weeks a year in school. Teaching hours vary between schools, but are usually 9 am to 3.30 pm or 4 pm. Nursery age children are likely to go to school just for a morning or for an afternoon, so you may teach two groups.
You would also spend time outside these hours planning, preparing and assessing activities, and going to parents' evenings and training.
IncomeDesc
Income
The main salary scale is from £21,102 to £30,842 a year (£26,000 to £35,568 in inner London).
Teachers who reach the top of the main salary scale may be able to progress to the higher salary scale. This is from £33,412 to £35,929 (£40,288 to £43,690 in inner London).
Salary scales are reviewed each year. See details of all the salary scales on the Teaching Agency website.
Figures are intended as a guideline only.
EntryRequirementsDesc
Entry requirements
To be a nursery teacher in a state school, you must gain Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) by completing Initial Teacher Training (ITT).
There are four types of ITT:
- undergraduate
- postgraduate
- School-Centred Initial Teacher Training (SCITT)
- work-based.
See more details further on in this section.
To start with, for all of these you will need:
GCSEs (A-C) English, maths and a science subject or equivalent qualifications. Check with course providers to see which qualifications they will accept, or if there are any tests you can take to show equivalent skills in numeracy, literacy and ICT (information and communications technology).
It would also be helpful for you if you have experience of working with children (either paid or voluntary) in this age group. For example, you could volunteer at a local school.
You will also need to pass Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) checks. See the CRB website for details.
Routes to gaining QTS and completing ITT
You can choose from the four types of ITT, depending on whether you already have higher education qualifications.
Undergraduate route
If you do not already have a degree you can gain QTS alongside your degree by doing one of the following types of course:
- BA (Hons) or BSc (Hons) with QTS
- Bachelor of Education (BEd) degree course.
On some of these courses you may be able to concentrate on the three to five age group (Early Years). The courses last for three or four years, full-time.
To do a degree course you would usually need:
- at least two A levels (one must be in a National Curriculum subject)
- and at least five GCSEs (A-C).
Universities may accept other qualifications, such as an Access to Higher Education course. Check with course providers for their exact requirements.
You can find out about National Curriculum subjects on the following website:
To search for colleges and universities offering the degrees, see the UCAS website.
Postgraduate routes
If you have a degree or equivalent in a subject relevant to the primary National Curriculum, you can get QTS by doing a Postgraduate Certificate of Education (PGCE) course. Courses can be for one year full-time, two years part-time, or flexible by distance learning. You can search for PGCE courses and apply online on the Graduate Teacher Training Registry (GTTR) website. Check with universities to find out if your degree subject will be acceptable.
School-Centred Initial Teacher Training (SCITT)
SCITT is classroom-based training that takes one year and leads to QTS. You would need to have a degree for this course.
Work-based routes
You can gain QTS whilst working in a school on a trainee salary on one of the following programmes:
- Graduate Teacher Programme (GTP) – you must already have a degree
- Registered Teacher Programme (RTP) – you must have completed two years of higher education (for example, a BTEC HND, foundation degree or two years of a degree)
- Overseas Trained Teacher Programme (OTTP) – you must have a teaching qualification from a country outside the European Union that is equivalent to a UK degree.
The number of places on work-based programmes is limited and competition is strong.
Visit the Teaching Agency website for full details of all entry routes and funding for training.
Northern Ireland
For details of routes into teaching in Northern Ireland see the Department of Education Northern Ireland website.
TrainingAndDevelopmentDesc
Training and development
When you have completed your ITT course, you would need to complete a trial period of employment for three school terms before you are considered fully qualified. During this time you would be supported by a mentor.
Throughout your teaching career you would need to keep up to date with new methods and ideas in education by completing training. You could do this by attending training days in school or at local authority training centres.
Early Years Professional Status (EYPS)
As an EYP you would work to raise the quality of early years practice in your school, and support and mentor other staff. The government aims to have EYPs in all early years settings, including nursery and primary schools, by 2015. To find out how you can work towards EYPS, visit the Department for Education website.
Transferring to another age group
You do not need further training before you transfer to a different age group. However, schools recommend that you get some experience of the age group you are intending to teach. This could be done on a voluntary basis. Some Local Education Authorities (LEAs) and teacher training institutions offer short conversion or refresher courses. See the Teaching Agency website for details.
Returning to teaching
If you are a qualified teacher wanting to return to teaching after a career break you can find information on the Teaching Agency website. This includes details of returners' courses and other available support.
SkillsAndKnowledgeDesc
Skills and knowledge
To become a nursery teacher you will need to have:
- the ability to build good relationships with children, parents/carers and colleagues
- commitment to equal opportunities
- organisation and time-management skills
- the ability to manage classes and deal with challenging behaviour
- excellent communication skills
- patience and a good sense of humour.
MoreInformationDesc
More information
Teaching Agency - Get into Teaching
Teaching Information Line (freephone): 0800 389 2500
www.education.gov.uk/get-into-teaching
Department of Education Northern Ireland (DENI)
Rathael House
Balloo Road
Bangor
BT19 7PR
Tel: 028 9127 9279
www.deni.gov.uk
Graduate Teacher Training Registry (GTTR)
Rosehill
New Barn Lane
Cheltenham
Gloucestershire
GL52 3LZ
Tel: 0871 4680 469
www.gttr.ac.uk
OpportunitiesDesc
Opportunities
Most teaching jobs are in state schools, but you could also work in independent schools, hospitals and schools run by the armed forces, and Sure Start Children's Centres. Part-time and supply (temporary) teaching are also options.
You may find the following links useful for vacancies and general reading (links open in new window):
Job profiles are based on the latest information supplied to us by industry bodies, such as Sector Skills Councils. Please be aware that with the introduction of the Qualifications and Credit Framework there has been, and will continue to be, changes to vocational qualifications. For more information, please check with industry bodies directly.
We do not accept responsibility for the content of external sites.
LMIData
Related industry information
Industry summary
Early years, children and young people’s services are represented by the Skills for Care and Development Sector Skills Council. This includes those working in early years, children and young people’s services, and those working in social work and social care for children and adults in the UK. The social care sector comprises two sub-sectors:
- Adult social care – with a workforce of nearly 1.5 million, accounting for 5% of England’s workforce, and 38,000 employers
- Children and young people – with an estimated workforce of 2.7 million
Early years, children and young people’s services provide publicly funded services accessed by between 1.5 and 2.5 million families per year, including early years education, childcare, children’s social care, family support, child protection, fostering and adoption services. There are more than 500,000 workers delivering these services in England.
[N.B. Following the change of Government on 11th May, all statutory guidance and legislation referred to here continues to reflect the current legal position unless indicated otherwise, but this document may not reflect Government policy.]
Key facts:
- The children and young people’s social care workforce includes:
- Over a quarter of a million people working within early years and childcare settings, with 165,200 employed in full day care and 58,300 workers in sessional day care
- An estimated 111,484 nannies
- An estimated 1,152 portage workers in England (who provide a home-visiting service for pre-school children who have developmental or learning difficulties, physical disabilities or other special needs)
- About 1,985 in the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (CAFCASS)
- An estimated 7,500 residential childcare workers in children’s homes and 2,100 in care homes for disabled children
- 25,460 full-time equivalent social workers
- Approximately 37,000 foster families in England
- Approximately 14,000 learning mentors
- 2,247 educational psychologists
- Between 3,000 and 5,000 education welfare officers in England
- 65% of full day care provision is privately run, with 22% of settings run by a voluntary organisation.
- The majority of sessional care settings are run by voluntary organisations or are privately run.
The children and young people’s workforce includes a wide range of workers, jobs and professional occupations, including:
- Early years and childcare – Early years/nursery teachers; Nursery nurses/workers; Portage workers; Nannies; Home Child carers; Heads of children’s centres; Volunteers in childcare settings
- Children and young people’s social care – children and family court advisory and support service officers, foster carers, residential childcare workers, children and family social workers
- Learning, development and support services (LDSS) – learning mentors, educational psychologists, education welfare officers, behaviour and education support teams, family support workers
National and regional data
[N.B. National and regional data are currently unavailable.]
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