Room Leader, Senior Nursery Practitioner

GLL are currently recruiting a Senior Nursery Practitioner (Room Leader) at Burnt Oak Community Nursery, located within Burnt Oak Leisure Centre. This is a full time post working 40 hours per week. We are looking for a Senior Nursery Practitioner (Room Leader) to provide a safe, stimulating, educational and fun environment for children attending our setting.

As a Senior Nursery Practitioner, you will be leading and motivating a team of staff in your room, both qualified to unqualified, taking ownership and driving improvements, structuring your room's day and week to ensure children receive a varied, fun and educational learning environment which follows the Early Years Foundation Stage, and promoting the physical, social, emotional and intellectual development of children up to 5 years old through sensitive individual planning of each child's changing needs whilst encouraging their independence and self-reliance.

Our senior practitioners have excellent written and verbal communication skills as you’ll work with colleagues and partners to integrate the nursery with the wider children’s services brand to help identify and support the needs of local families with young children. You’ll have experience of working with children under five years of age and their families with an NVQ Level 3 in Childcare (or equivalent) and be able to respond to both group and individual needs. Knowledge of the EYFS framework and principles plus safeguarding issues, procedures and an understanding of equality and diversity issues would be beneficial in this role. It goes without saying you’ll be a confident team member with a positive driven approach and attitude.

What you’ll do:

• With members of the team, plan and participate in group led activities with individual and groups of children as appropriate to their development, age and interests, meeting their individual needs and supporting their access to a broad, balanced indoor and outdoor curriculum in accordance with the Early Years Foundation Stage.
• To be a key person for one or more children in order to develop warm relationships with children and families that support a child’s learning and development, so that each child benefits from the shared interest in and knowledge about their progress.
• Lead a team of nursery practitioners.
• Structure daily and weekly activities.
• Ensure observations and framework milestones/goals are met.
• To involve parents/carers in their child’s progress through daily informal contact, record keeping, and attending review meetings as appropriate.
• To support and value each child’s home culture and language.
• To contribute to planning for children with English as an additional language to help their language development.
• To contribute towards the provision and sustainability of a stimulating, secure, caring and learning environment that promotes equal opportunities and diversity for the children, and their parents, families and carers.
• To take responsibility for children in both indoor and outdoor areas and on trips, providing appropriate levels of supervision and intervention to progress children’s learning.

What you need:

• NVQ Level 3 in Child Development or equivalent.
• Experience of working with under fives.
• Experience of planning and supporting play provision supported by evidence based approaches outlined in the Early Years Foundation Stage.
• Knowledge of EYFS and understanding of safeguarding issues and procedures.
• Understanding of the Ofsted Children’s Centre requirements/frameworks.
• Knowledge and understanding of working with children and families from diverse cultural backgrounds, provision for disabled children and those with special needs.
• Knowledge of current relevant statutes, regulations, legislation, guidance and codes of practice as they affect the operation and delivery of a holistic support service for very young children and families.
• A good knowledge and understanding of equality and diversity issues.

As a charitable social enterprise owned by its staff, GLL has a great range of benefits for its employees:

• A Values driven organisation.
• Learning & development to support career development.
• Good Pension schemes.
• Discounted gym membership for you and your partner.
• 40 hours per week permanent position - working 4 days per week.
• Industry leading rates of pay.
• Opportunity to join the GLL Society and have a say in how we are run plus associated social events.
• Exclusive discounts on our villas in Portugal.
• Exclusive discounts on our Ski chalets in Bulgaria.
• Health assurance.
• Career pathways, professional development are just the start.
• To ensure you stay at the top of your game, we provide training with practical and theory elements too.
• Discounts across thousands of retailers (GLL Extras).
• 25% off Red Letter Days.
• 25% off Buy A Gift.
• 20% off GLL spa experience treatments and associated products.
• Ride to work scheme.
• Free eye tests and discounted glasses.

About GLL: As the UK’s largest leisure operator and charitable social enterprise, we offer a range of careers for everyone in our local communities. We manage over 400 facilities across England, Wales and Northern Ireland, including public sport and leisure centres, elite sporting venues, libraries and children’s centres. Our people are from the communities we serve and help us make real changes in their local area. One of our core values is ‘More than a Job’, because working with us opens up a wide range of possibilities and opportunities for you, starting with how you work with us.

To make sure we’re having a positive impact on our people, we also offer some flexible and part-time working options so you can make sure your new job works for you. Subject to vacancies, whether you are after a contractual commitment and a regular work schedule or the freedom of flexible hours, you may be able to choose an arrangement that works best for you and play your part in improving the health and wellbeing of your community.

We offer two different types of work arrangements:

• A permanent employment contract - part time and full time.
• A flexible worker engagement by joining our flexible worker pool.

If you are looking for a regular number of hours that you can work, and are flexible to meet the needs of a 7 day a week service, then a full-time or part-time permanent contract might be the right choice for you.