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Education (Early Years) (Top-up) BA(Hons)

2025-26

Start date

22 September 2025

Duration

2 years part-time

About the course

Reasons to study

  1. Build your career: this course could help you progress to senior roles in early years education.
  2. Flexible learning - Saturday lessons allow you to fit your studies around existing employment.
  3. Develop the practical and professional skills you'll need to work with children and families in the early years.

Current government reforms in education are focused on early childhood development and the importance of high-quality early years provision in providing the foundations that prepare young children for the best start in life. So, if you’re currently an early years practitioner, aspiring to develop high quality practice and are passionate about working with children and their families, then this course could be for you.

Why Education (Early Years)?

  • You’ll have the opportunity to explore a variety of issues in relation to children and early childhood, including health and wellbeing, education, learning and development and to look at wider topics such as safeguarding, society and early years practice. We’ll help you develop as a reflective, evidence-based practitioner.
  • We’ll ensure you develop the essential practical and professional skills to work with children and families in the early years, including the ability to work collaboratively with parents, colleagues and other professionals. You’ll have the opportunity to demonstrate your commitment to equality of opportunity and inclusive, anti-discriminatory practice.
  • Your place of work forms a key element of the course allowing you to put theory into practice. To ensure flexibility and access for those working within schools and other childcare settings during the week, teaching on this course typically takes place on Saturdays, approximately 8 per academic year.
  • You’ll be taught by an outstanding team of teachers. You’ll also have access to our extensive professional and academic network which feeds directly into course design and delivery and to excellent facilities and specialist equipment.

Course detail

Core modules:

Health and Wellbeing

Through this module you’ll explore different aspects of the health and well-being of children and young people and become equipped to evaluate the wider public health agenda, national trends and supporting legislation. Assessment is typically via research, presentation, discussion and written evaluation.

Option modules:

You will choose one option module from a list which may include:

Supporting Learning in Young Children

You’ll be introduced to the principles of effective teaching for supporting children’s learning. You'll learn about the concept of inclusion, the principles of both medium and short term planning, and a variety of perspectives on planning and teaching. Assessment is typically via peer presentation and the development of a written, reflective report.

Critical Approaches to Inclusive Education

On this module you’ll examine definitions and different understandings of inclusion and models of disability, considering a national and global context. You’ll explore the impact these different definitions and models have on educational policy and practice. You’ll also critically analyse current approaches to inclusion in a range of settings, as well as develop your understanding of approaches to inclusive planning, teaching and assessment that ensures accessibility, challenge and achievability for all pupils. Assessment typically takes the form of an in-class debate and an annotated teaching plan for an activity you’ve designed.

Entry requirements

Entry requirements for this course are normally one of the following:

  • A Higher National Diploma, Foundation Degree, or equivalent.
  • An initial teaching qualification from a recognised teacher education institution.
  • Successful completion of a Higher Education qualification with 120 European Credit Transfer System (ECTS) credits (or equivalent).
  • Your qualification should be in an area related to early years education.

In addition, you must also have GCSE English Language at grade 4 or above, or grade C or above if awarded under the previous GCSE grading scheme.

You must be in employment or voluntary work in an appropriate registered setting (for a minimum of 120 hours per year) and have support from your employer.

If your first language is not English, you will need to meet the minimum requirements of an English Language qualification. The minimum of IELTS 6.0 overall with no element lower than 5.5, or equivalent. Read more about the University’s entry requirements for students outside of the UK on our International Entry Requirements page. If you have alternative qualifications or do not meet the IELTS requirement we also offer a range of Pre-Sessional English Programmes.

For further information please see the University's minimum entry requirements.

Your career


This course is designed to support your progression in to more senior roles in early years education. Studying this course could enable you to consider a varied range of careers in education, including teaching, early years professional and learning support roles.

 

*Percentage of graduates from this subject who are in work and/or further study within fifteen months of graduating (HESA Graduate Outcomes 2019/20, UK domiciled, other activities excluded).

90% Graduates employed*

Student support

At the University of Huddersfield, you'll find support networks and services to help you get ahead in your studies and social life. Whether you study at undergraduate or postgraduate level, you'll soon discover that you're never far away from our dedicated staff and resources to help you to navigate through your personal student journey. Find out more about all our support services.

Important information

Although we always try and ensure we deliver our courses as described, sometimes we may have to make changes for the following reasons

When you enrol as a student of the University, your study and time with us will be governed by our terms and conditions, Handbook of Regulations and associated policies. It is important that you familiarise yourself with these as you will be asked to agree to them when you join us as a student. You will find a guide to the key terms here, along with the Student Protection Plan.

Although we always try and ensure we deliver our courses as described, sometimes we may have to make changes for the following reasons

Changes to a course you have applied for but are not yet enrolled on

If we propose to make a major change to a course that you are holding an offer for, then we will tell you as soon as possible so that you can decide whether to withdraw your application prior to enrolment. We may occasionally have to withdraw a course you have applied for or combine your programme with another programme if we consider this reasonably necessary to ensure a good student experience, for example if there are not enough applicants. Where this is the case we will notify you as soon as reasonably possible and we will discuss with you other suitable courses we can transfer your application to. If you do not wish to transfer to another course with us, you may cancel your application and we will refund you any deposits or fees you have paid to us.

Changes to your course after you enrol as a student

Changes to option modules:

Where your course allows you to choose modules from a range of options, we will review these each year and change them to reflect the expertise of our staff, current trends in research and as a result of student feedback or demand for certain modules. We will always ensure that you have an equivalent range of options to that advertised for the course. We will let you know in good time the options available for you to choose for the following year.

Major changes:

We will only make major changes to non-optional modules on a course if it is necessary for us to do so and provided such changes are reasonable. A major change is a change that substantially changes the outcomes, or a significant part of your course, such as the nature of the award or a substantial change to module content, teaching days (part time provision), type of delivery or assessment of the core curriculum. For example, it may be necessary to make a major change to reflect changes in the law or the requirements of the University’s regulators or a commissioning or accrediting body. We may also make changes to improve the course in response to student, examiners’ or other course evaluators’ feedback or to ensure you are being taught current best practice. Major changes may also be necessary because of circumstances outside our reasonable control, such as a key member of staff leaving the University or being unable to teach, where they have a particular specialism that can’t be adequately covered by other members of staff; or due to damage or interruption to buildings, facilities or equipment, or pandemics.

Major changes would usually be made with effect from the next academic year, but may happen sooner in an emergency. We will notify you as soon as possible should we need to make a major change and will carry out suitable consultation. If you reasonably believe that the proposed change will cause you detriment or hardship we will, if appropriate, work with you to try to reduce the adverse effect on you or find an appropriate solution. Where an appropriate solution cannot be found and you contact us in writing before the change takes effect you can cancel your registration and withdraw from the University without liability to the University for future tuition fees. We will provide reasonable support to assist you with transferring to another university if you wish to do so.

In exceptional circumstances, we may, for reasons outside of our control, be forced to discontinue or suspend your course. Where this is the case, a formal exit strategy will be followed in accordance with the student protection plan.

The Office for Students (OfS) is the principal regulator for the University.

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