Sturgeon launches campaign to encourage school leavers into childcare
Scotland’s First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has launched a recruitment campaign aimed at encouraging school leavers into nursery and childcare careers.
The campaign – ‘Shape their worlds. Shape your career’ – aims to recruit 11,000 applicants, and school leavers in particular, into childcare in Scotland. The Scottish government is looking to expand funded early learning and childcare to 1,140 hours a year, or 30 hours per week, by 2020.
Commenting at the campaign launch at Visiting Towerview Nursery, where she met childcare practitioners and senior pupils considering a career in the profession, Sturgeon said: “Our expansion of funded nursery education and childcare will be truly transformational and we need a strong workforce to achieve this.
“Working in this profession is hugely rewarding as it makes a real difference to children’s lives, developing their skills and preparing them for school.
“As part of our efforts to increase the availability of nursery education and childcare, we also want to improve the quality of education and care with more professional development opportunities.
“We want more people to consider a career in nursery education and childcare and this campaign will highlight the range of jobs and opportunities available.”
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