UCB is "College of the Month" for creative craft skills in early years teaching

UCB has been named NCFE College of the Month for the creative craft skills taught as part of its enrichment programme for vocational childcare.

UCB runs Level 1 and Level 2 Awards in Creative Craft to help students engage more effectively with young children and the work has been recognised by NCFE, the national awarding organisation.

A unit titled Exploring focuses on marble painting, bubble painting and potato printing and demonstrates how participation in such activities encourages children to improve their language skills and express their feelings.

The qualification is delivered during a 90-minute class delivered in UCB’s art room and might involve students making resources to use in science-based lessons, such as making height charts, growing seeds or demonstrating the nature of shadows and reflections.

Staff encourage students to use recycled materials to show that nurseries do not have to use their profits to buy expensive craft products.

Students have been able to put their craft skills – and foreign language skills – to the test during placements in nurseries in France and Cyprus. Eleven students went to Lyon and three went to Cyprus as part of the Leonardo programme, which supports vocational education and training abroad.

The Lyon group, who were accompanied by a staff mentor, included three students who had not been away from their families before. Whilst helping in the French nurseries, they used their craft skills for cutting and sticking and making collages with the youngsters.

The majority of the course students progress to higher education where they pursue courses such as early childhood studies, paediatric nursing and adult nursing. Other pathways include working in schools, nurseries and in before and after-school clubs.