Cameron Harmer

This morning we were delighted to welcome Cameron Harmer from Beech Tree Childcare. He was a student at Angmering School between 2011 and 2017. Part-way through Year 12 Cameron felt that he was not suited to A-level study, and took up a Level 3 apprenticeship in Early Years Education at Beech Tree at the age of 17. After achieving his Level 3 qualification, he went to Brighton University where he completed a degree in Early Childhood Education, graduating this summer. Cameron is now managing a nursery in Selsey at the age of 24, and is working with West Sussex County Council to develop future apprenticeships in childcare and early years provision.

Cameron's experience of an apprenticeship was overwhelmingly positive: he was able to earn a wage from the outset, while the academic content of his studies took around 20% of his working week and his learning was largely hands-on, which suited his learning style effectively. 

Cameron explained how important the pre-school years are to our development and how passionate he is about ensuring the highest quality provision for children. He spoke about the poor representation of male staff in early years education - only 3% nationally - but this is improving and Beech Tree are proud to say that 30% of their staff are positive male role models for the children.