Senior Midday Play Leader

Waltham Forest; Greater London; On-site; GBP 7,000 - 9,000; Part time

Job summary

London Borough Of Waltham Forest at Woodside Primary Academy in Wood Street, Walthamstow, is recruiting for a Senior Midday Play Leader. This part-time post (10 hours/week) sits on the NJC Outer London pay spine with a pro rata salary.

You will lead a small team of midday play leaders, supervise lunchtime activities, support pupils’ safety and welfare, and assist with basic first aid. Experience with primary children and a caring, reliable approach are essential.

Qualifications

• Experience working with primary aged children.
• A basic understanding of child development.
• Enthusiasm and dedication for supporting pupils during lunchtime.

Responsibilities

• Provide a continuous presence during lunch duties to ensure pupil safety.
• Oversee and support Midday Play Leaders with activities and behaviour.
• Administer minor first aid and support pupil welfare during lunch.
• Foster a safe, happy lunchtime environment and positive behaviour.

Skills

Experience working with primary aged

Understanding of child development

Enthusiasm and dedication

Job description

Employer: London Borough Of Waltham Forest

Location: Woodside Primary Academy, Wood Street, Walthamstow, London,

Contract: Permanent

Working Pattern: Part Time

Hours: 10 hours per week.

Closing Date: 24/09/2026 at 12:00

Reference: SCH/26/344424

Post: Senior Midday Play Leader

School/Location: Woodside Primary Academy, Wood Street, Walthamstow, London E17 3JX

Start Date: As soon as possible- subject to the completion of safer recruitment checks

Salary: NJC Outer London SCP 11 (£33,128) Pro rata salary is £7,950

We are looking for an enthusiastic and caring Senior Midday Play Leader to join our supportive and growing team at The Woodside Primary Academy. You will play an important role in helping children enjoy a safe, happy and positive lunchtime experience by leading a team of midday playleaders.

In this role, you willprovide a continuous presence during periods of duty to ensure the safety, welfare and conduct of pupils in accordance with school policy. You will oversee and support the Midday Play leaders in supporting the children with their table manners and use of cutlery, help to coordinate a range of fun and engaging play activities, and promote positive behaviour. You will also administer minor first aid and ensure the welfare and safety of all children throughout the lunchtime period. As highlighted in the role, your commitment to creating a safe and enjoyable environment is central to the position.

At The Woodside Primary Academy, we believe every child deserves the chance to succeed. As a Midday Assistant, you will help create opportunities for children to grow in confidence, develop independence and enjoy their time at school. We value every child as an individual and encourage them to challenge themselves through a variety of activities.

We are looking for someone with:

• Experience working with primary aged children
• A basic understanding of child development
• Enthusiasm and dedication for supporting pupils during lunchtime

You should be:

• Responsible and reliable
• Confident working with young people and able to maintain positive behaviour
• Able to build good relationships with both children and adults

In turn, we can offer you:

• Great facilities to create a vibrant, stimulating learning environment for children
• A supportive Leadership team who will encourage innovation and initiative
• A wider network within REAch2 Academy Trust of support, exceptional practice and excellent CPD

Join REAch2 Academy Trust, one of the UK's largest primary academy trusts, with a mission to unlock the potential of every child, regardless of their background. Here’s why joining our team can be an exciting and fulfilling career choice:

• Excellence & Development: We prioritise high standards and offer extensive professional development and career growth opportunities.
• Supportive & Collaborative:Be part of a strong, collaborative community of over 60 schools where every voice is valued, and best practices are shared.
• Well-being Focus: We promote a healthy work-life balance and offer robust well-being support for all staff.
• Diversity & Inclusion: We celebrate diversity and believe that varied perspectives strengthen our schools.
• Innovation & Impact: Bring creativity to the classroom and make a real difference in children’s lives.
• Making a difference: Working with REAch2 means contributing to something bigger than yourself. You’ll be helping to shape the lives of young learners, making a meaningful impact on communities and future generations.

Join us to grow your career, collaborate with passionate educators, and make a lasting impact on future generations.

• We offer a range of benefits to support your career and well-being:
• Generous Annual Leave: healthy work-life balance.
• Professional Development: Access diverse CPD and training opportunities to grow your skills.
• Flexible & Family-Friendly: We are committed to supporting flexible working and requests will be considered on an individual basis, including options such as part time, term-time, home working, and other options that work for both the employee and the Trust.
• Exclusive Discounts: Benefit from Blue Light Card offers and employee perks.
• Well-being Support: Receive comprehensive well-being and employee assistance for you and your family.

Safeguarding, Safer Recruitment and Data Protection

At REAch2 we recognise that those who work in an academy are in a unique position in their care of children. The responsibility for all staff to safeguard pupils and promote their welfare, as stated in Section 175 of the Education Act (2002) is one that is central to our ethos, our policies and our actions. All children are deserving of the highest levels of care and safeguarding, regardless of their individual characteristics or circumstances, and we are committed to applying our policies to ensure effective levels of safeguarding and care are afforded to all our pupils.

We will seek to recruit the best applicant for the job based on the abilities, qualifications, experience as measured against the job description and person specification. The recruitment and selection of staff will be conducted in a professional, timely and responsive manner and in compliance with current employment legislation, and relevant safeguarding legislation and statutory guidance.An enhanced DBS disclosure will be requested for all successful candidates, including a Children's Barred List check if the role meets the criteria for regulated activity.

All information is stored securely, and any information supplied by unsuccessful candidates will be destroyed through a confidential waste system six months after the decision has been communicated, in accordance with our information and records retention policy.

The Trust ensures all applicant data is stored and processed appropriately. For further details on how your information will be managed during the recruitment process please refer to our Privacy Notice for Job Applications .

Interviews to take place on: week commencing 28 th September 2026

Waltham Forest is a diverse borough where diversity is valued and is integral to both, service delivery and employment of its staff. The Council is proud of its rich mix of communities and as the largest employer in the area, it works hard to respond to the changing needs of its population. We use our statutory duties on race, gender and disability equality and best practice in respect of age, faith and sexual orientation to ensure equality of opportunity in the workplace. The Council is committed to meeting its 4 equality objectives: - Promoting equality of opportunity - Opposing all forms of discrimination, intolerance and disadvantage - Ensuring our workforce reflects the diverse communities of Waltham Forest at all levels. - Providing fair, appropriate, accessible and excellent Services to all. Respecting Diversity is a core Council value. To support the above and reduce the risk of bias in its recruitment activities, the council is operating an anonymous shortlisting process, which hides personal information that can identify individuals until their application has been considered for shortlisting. The council also operates a scheme whereby, for jobs graded up to and including scale SO2, internal candidates are considered first. This includes those candidates who self-identify as having a disability for the purposes of the Disability Confident scheme. For more information, please refer to our recruitment and selection policy