Manager

Junior Adventures Group; Hitchin; On-site; GBP 20,000 - 25,000; Part time

Job summary

A childcare organization in Hitchin is looking for a Manager to oversee activities and support child development in a fun and engaging setting. Responsibilities include ensuring the needs of children are met, managing a team of playworkers, and delivering quality play experiences. The role requires management experience and ideally a childcare qualification. Join a caring team that values child development and offers training opportunities.

Benefits

Pension scheme

In-house training opportunities

Career progression opportunities

Qualifications

• Management experience is essential.
• Experience within a nursery/preschool/childminding environment required.
• A passion for childcare and a genuine interest in child development.

Responsibilities

• Ensure every child’s needs are met.
• Own observation, assessments and planning for children.
• Encourage and praise children’s development.

Skills

Childcare experience

Team management

Child development interest

Education

Level 3 qualification in Childcare / Early Years

Job description

Overview

As a Manager within our settings, you will lead a range of activities, including role play, arts and crafts, bouncy castle time, discos, visits and outings such as feeding lambs and many more. Your day‑to‑day role will be ever‑changing, exciting and full of laughter, focusing on enjoying these activities and supporting children to engage and develop through the 16 play types. You will work at our settings within schools Monday – Friday, with shifts of 7:30 am – 9:00 am for the Breakfast Club and 3:00 pm – 6:00 pm for the After‑School Club. This is a 24‑hour/week contract including admin time and is all year round, covering school holidays. You will model best practice to colleagues and ensure children have the best start to their school day, creating a safe, fun and fulfilling home‑from‑home environment for the children at our clubs by asking how their school day was, playing games and eating a snack before they go home for dinner. We care about our children and hope you will love this job as much as we do.

We can’t wait to welcome you to the team and begin the journey together!

Responsibilities

• Ensure every child’s needs are met, including supporting parents with SEND needs and supporting your staff team.
• Own the observation, assessments and planning for your key children in line with EYFS and provide developmentally challenging next steps.
• Be a key player in ensuring the setting receives excellent outcomes in internal audits and those of external authorities such as Ofsted and Environmental Health.
• Encourage and praise children’s development and achievements.
• Ensure the supervision of children by your team of playworkers is sufficient – children need to be within sight or hearing at all times.
• Deliver and assist playworkers with leading the timetabled activities you create together for a group of children from 2 to 13 years old.
• Coordinate staff to ensure staff‑to‑child ratios are always followed.
• Understand and follow the requirements of the Ofsted voluntary and childcare register and early years register.
• Manage the sign‑in and sign‑out process with parents and children.
• Manage child behaviour in line with the child behaviour policy.
• Organise and manage your team effectively.
• Manage bookings and maximise places at the club with the administration team.
• Follow all company policies – you need to know them, understand them and implement them.
• Complete admin and paperwork required in line with Ofsted, early years and childcare regulations such as reporting.
• Record and report any safeguarding concerns to your Area Manager and follow the safeguarding procedure, speaking up against practices that do not support safeguarding or our core values.
• Ensure the entire team knows and understands the safeguarding procedure.

Qualifications & Experience

• Ideally hold a level 3 qualification in Childcare / Early Years (not essential).
• Management experience essential.
• Experience within a nursery/preschool/childminding environment.
• A willingness to undertake relevant training in the future.
• Own transport to get to the venues.
• A passion for childcare and a genuine interest in child development.

Benefits

• Pension scheme.
• Excellent in‑house training with accredited courses, opportunities to gain further qualifications, virtual learning and career progression opportunities.
• Work at a setting locally to you to minimise travel costs.
• Lovely working environment with brilliant, hard‑working, like‑minded people.
• Working with an employer who genuinely cares about you.

About the Setting

Fairfield Park Lower School, Stotfold

About Junior Adventures Group

Junior Adventures Group (formerly Dawn Until Dusk Ltd) provides high‑quality, fun, vibrant, child‑centred and affordable out‑of‑school play provision for children at 20 schools in and around Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire. We value a home‑from‑home environment where children are encouraged to flourish through an exciting array of play opportunities and experiences.