The number of men working in the Early Years sector in the UK is extremely low; only 2% of childcare practitioners are male!
At Tops, we are a family. We don’t discriminate against any of our children, and we certainly don’t discriminate against any of our staff either.
It’s true that the majority of our team is female. Unfortunately, there is still a misguided preconception that childcare is not a suitable career for men. Rubbish, of course! Recent surveys of parents who have a child/children in early years education found that more than half of these parents would like to see more male team members working in their child’s nursery. What better way to encourage our little boys to grow up enthusiastic about art than seeing their male keyworker getting his fingers sticky and paint on his nose? What better way to encourage our children to grow up and expect their partner to be just as hands on with their children as they are? And what better way to encourage more boys to grow up considering childcare as a suitable career?
We are very lucky at Tops to have numerous male members of staff, holding all positions within the nurseries. You can find out more about Tops Winchesters’ Nursery Manager Simon here, and Tops Christchurch have welcomed Iain as their Nursery Manager.
Some of our male team members have started with us as unqualified apprentices and have progressed to being a level 2 or level 3 practitioners. Some are permanent staff, and some are casual, and we’re even fortunate enough to have a volunteer! Gethin at Tops Mini Mariners is training to be a 1:1 Support Staff, while Liam at Tops Portsmouth leads the children on exciting Forest School adventures. And of course, lets not forget our talented Head Chefs, Cooks and Kitchen Assistants who produce the healthy, yummy food for our children; the wonderful drivers who help distribute said meals to nurseries without their own catering; and the fantastic cleaners who keep our nurseries stunning.
According to recent research, less than 2% of people working in childcare are male. At Tops, we are delighted to be above this national average with 8%! Although, of course, we can never have enough talented team members here!
