Through a three-stage thematic model this research has examined the evolution of the Senior Practitioner, a term introduced by the UK Department for Education and Skills (DfES) Surestart Unit, which advocates the promotion and recognition of the importance of staff with advanced and specialist skills, knowledge and experience. This status is gained through both formal and informal learning. The responsibility and cohesion of the traditional learning alongside the extension and development of relevant workplace practice has to be seen by the Quality Assurance Unit (QAA) and Higher Education Funding Council of England (HEFCE) to be both explicit and implicit, and weighs heavily on the awarding institution and those at the point of delivery. This programme of study provides challenge to non-traditional students who have in the past curtailed their studies at National Vocational Qualifications equivalent of level 3 in further education, and are somewhat removed from the familiar sense of tangibility and description of further education studies to the abstract, reflective and critical stance required for professional credibility and higher education studies in their unique opportunity to become the first Senior Practitioners in Early Childhood Studies and Practice. This original cohort began a Foundation Degree, which was not sector endorsed at the commencement of the programme. However, minor modifications were made that largely impacted on the second-year modules, and an additional module at level 1 was studied, thereby meeting the requirements for sector endorsement by the DfES Surestart Unit. The Senior Practitioner pathway has the potential to enable teachers and other staff to provide genuine support systems and learning opportunities for children. However, the professionalism and status appear somewhat opaque as the Government, whilst front loading the pilot programme, has failed to provide guidance and financial structure at the rear in terms of consolidating a framework in which the role of Senior Practitioner is not only visible but clearly understood.