Early Years Assistant

Bright Horizons Family Solutions, LLC.; Burgess Hill; On-site; GBP 24,000 - 29,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Childcare discount

Parental leave

Extra leave options

Pension & wellbeing

Career development

Job summary

Bright Horizons in Burgess Hill is seeking an Early Years Assistant to care for babies and children up to 5 years old. You will support interactive play, reading, and activities, helping each child reach developmental milestones alongside your team.

No previous childcare experience is required, though preferred. We value a passion for learning, the ability to build trust with children and parents, and strong communication to collaborate with colleagues.

Qualifications

• Experience with children is ideal but not essential.
• Ability to build trust with children and parents.
• Strong communication and teamwork skills.

Responsibilities

• Look after babies and children up to 5 years old as part of a team.
• Engage in interactive play, activities and reading to support development.
• Assist colleagues in guiding each child's milestones and progress.

Skills

Childcare experience

Communication with children

Team collaboration

Job description

Salary

Salary – Starting from £26,662.20 per annum (dependent on qualification/s and experience)

Location

Burgess Hill

Benefits

• Childcare discount of 40% for first child*
• Enhanced parental leave 20 days annual leave, plus bank holidays and paid Christmas closure.
• Ability to also purchase additional leave*
• Pension Financial and wellbeing benefits including 24/7 virtual GP appointments, early access to wages, and more
• Professional development programme access for every stage of your career, including access to a careers coach *Subject to T&Cs

Role

As an Early Years Assistant, you will work as part of a team to look after babies and children up to the age of 5. You will have adventures with our children through interactive play, activities, reading, and encouraging their curious minds – supporting colleagues with each child’s development towards their key milestones.

What we’re looking for

• Previous experience working with children ideal but not essential – Nursery Bank Staff, Nursery Assistant, Teaching Assistant, Nursery Practitioner, Early Years Educator, Nanny, Childminder or similar
• Passion for making learning fun and engaging for each child
• Ability to develop trust and strong working partnerships with both colleagues and parents
• Ability to use a variety of communication techniques with both children and adults

Safeguarding & Vetting

Bright Horizons is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people. This post is subject to safer recruitment practice and pre-employment checks, including an enhanced DBS check, which will be undertaken before any appointment is confirmed.

Equal Opportunity

We are an inclusive employer and welcome people from all ages and backgrounds to apply. We will consider reasonable adjustments required by applicants.

About the Company

At Bright Horizons, our culture is built on our commitment to Keeping Everyone Safe and providing world‑class care and education, delivered by a world‑class workforce. We believe our people’s potential is endless and with this in mind, we aspire to create an environment where our colleagues can thrive and accomplish the things they thought impossible. Bright Horizons has been recognised as a Great Place to Work by our employees and the Great Place to Work Institute for the last 13 years. We care passionately about what we do, and our HEART values and principles help us support one another in the work that we do each day. These are quite literally at the HEART of our organisation’s ethos and culture as it helps us to provide a working environment that supports professionalism, growth and diversity. We are passionate about our people’s ongoing learning and development. Our learning and leading with HEART framework supports each Bright Horizons colleague on the first steps of their leadership journey, whether that includes our 'World‑Class Welcome' induction or our extensive ongoing training programme. Either way we want you to feel valued and invested in! Celebrating in the accomplishments of our people is an essential part of our culture. We believe in the power of “thank you” and throughout the year, in ways big and small, formal and informal, we show our appreciation for employees at all levels. We have many ways to acknowledge and celebrate our people, including our very popular “employee appreciation month”. This is a chance for everyone to share their gratitude to one another, across the whole company. Whether it is a “thank you” placed on our website, a chocolate pizza, team lunch or an ice cream van visit, it is our way of showing each other we care and appreciate everything we do. Each year, we have our annual 'Awards of Excellence' events; whether you are an award winner or cheering on a fellow team member, these formal award occasions are opportunities to come together and celebrate one another.