L3 Nursery Practitioner

YMCA Heart of England; Metropolitan Borough of Solihull; On-site; GBP 19,000 - 23,000; Full time

Job summary

YMCA Heart of England invites applications for a Level 3 Nursery Practitioner. The role focuses on delivering high-quality EYFS practice, creating a welcoming environment for 0–5 year olds, and supporting their development under supervision of the Nursery Manager.

Strong safeguarding knowledge and a Paediatric First Aid certificate are required. The successful candidate will contribute to a Christian charity that values children, families, and community engagement, with a DBS check as part of

Qualifications

• Experience in an EYFS setting and development of young children.
• GCSE English and Maths at least.
• Paediatric First Aid certificate.
• Safeguarding and Prevent training up to date.
• NVQ Level 3 in Childcare is essential.

Responsibilities

• Create a warm, friendly atmosphere to support children’s growth and development.
• Support learning and development in line with the EYFS framework.
• Collaborate with the Nursery Manager and staff to plan activities.
• Maintain safeguarding, confidentiality and child protection standards.
• Communicate with parents and external agencies as required.

Skills

Communication

Behaviour management

EYFS knowledge

Safeguarding

Teamwork

Education

NVQ Level 3 in Childcare

Paediatric First Aid

Safeguarding Training

GCSE English/Maths

Job description

Level 3 Nursery Practitioner

Contract Type: Full Time, Permanent

Location: Shirley Day Nursery, Brownley Road, Shirley, B90 4QP

About the Organisation:

YMCA Heart of England is a Christian charity providing a range of life-changing services for the local community. With a turnover of over £4m, we house over 300 young people, most of whom previously were homeless, and support them to get their lives back on track. We also care for pre-school children in our nursery and run various social enterprises to create employment and generate income for our charitable work.

With over 100 Staff and volunteers working for us and thousands of people using our many premises every year, we are an organisation committed to delivering the best possible service to our customers in line with our Christian ethos and values.

About the Nursery Practitioner - Level 3 Role:

Our nursery has places for children from 0–5 years of age. We need an enthusiastic Nursery Practitioner to create a warm and friendly atmosphere to support the children in their growth and development. You will need to have knowledge of working in an EYFS setting you will be able to create an enabling environment where all children can reach their potential through a child centred approach. Experience with a 2-year-old group is preferred.

As a Nursery Practitioner, you will respect the confidentiality of information received from all sources to safeguard the children in your care whilst working with staff, parents and external agencies to ensure every child is given the support they require.

Who We Are Looking For:

All of the following criteria are essential and applications are welcomed from candidates who meet the following:

• Able to form excellent relationships with children
• Able to communicate well and to establish firm and consistent boundaries
• Able to implement a range of activities suited to the age range and ability of the child, in conjunction with the Nursery Manager and other staff members
• Able to enhance children’s learning and development
• Knowledge of EYFS, Statutory and Learning and Development
• Knowledge of Safeguarding Practice
• Knowledge of Prevent and British Values
• Knowledge of OFSTED standards
• A good level of general education, to at least GCSE level in English and Maths, or equivalent
• Paediatric First Aid certificate
• Safeguarding and Child Protection Training in date
• NVQ Level 3 in Childcare

Important Information:

YMCA Heart of England is an independent Christian charity, a registered provider of social housing, and affiliated to the national and international YMCA Movement.

As an organisation fully committed to the welfare of children and vulnerable adults, a thorough vetting process is carried out as part of the appointment process, including verification of any required qualifications, verification of identity, taking of references and a DBS check as appropriate.

Applications are scheduled to close on 8th October 2026