Stonebridge Associated Colleges

[Acepuppets]

Has anyone had experience of studying at Stonebridge Associated Colleges?

Was the course good?

Was your qualification accepted to enable you to get a job?

Has anyone done The 'Child Day Care' course?

Thank you

I'm doing my level 3 CACHE with them at the moment and it seems pretty damn good.
I spoke to them over the phone too and everything is legit.
I obviously can't comment further because I haven't finished the course yet but so far I'm impressed.

Hi Acepuppets again,
I have just called up CACHE and spoken to them directly and they have vouched for Stonebridge. They are one of their registered centres.

Hope this helps.

Thank you - I will go for it in September.

Good luck with your courses.

Best wishes

Acepuppets.

I personally wouldn't.

Firstly you might get the impression it qualifies you as a nanny or nursery nurse or CM. It doesn't. Stonebridge registered with CACHE but they only offer the CACHE CYPOP5 and 7, which don't feature in the child day care diploma. That gains you a level 3 NCFE award which means nothing. See here for some very recent issues about distance learning and childcare.

Secondly their student support is extremely variable depending in the tutor. Face to face tuition in your local college is much more reliable.

CYPOP5, by the way, meets the initial training requirements for Childminders but doesn't cover the common core for nannies and has nothing to do with nursery nursing as it's about home based childcare.

Thanks Frakiosaurus, (for taking the time to answer)

• I am actually a qualified and experienced teacher and am now running my own business (puppet theatre company). I wanted to do a crash course on early years so that I would have the knowledge. Although at the moment it doesn't matter if the qualification isn't 'real' but how do I know that in the future I want to use the qualification for a super opportunity that comes along and I can't take up the job because it is a Micky Mouse qualification?

I may just read up on early years, which I am doing at the moment and gain knowledge through experience because my teaching qualification probably supersedes the diploma anyway - I have also taught in reception and can arrange as much experience with children that I need.

I may just do drama in education and play works, which are qualifications that add knowledge that will improve my work.

Thank you - you have saved me money and time.

In that case I would probably recommend looking at the OU and their early childhood courses if you did want to do something :)

It's a pet peeve of mine that colleges can be so misleading and because childcare is a field with many qualifications and insufficient regulation in some ways it's all to easy to become lost do I'm glad I've (possibly) saved you money and time, although I'll earn you the OU is pricy!

It is the no qualifications required to get on the course that rings alarm bells because it should have a basic requirement to do it - only if it is to be able to read and write.

I will look into the OU - which will probably be better anyway because I want to provide a service that is for a particular niche market with high standards.

Admittedly I do dress up as a clown and have pink hair in my job - so I need to be taken seriously.