Nursery Manager – Ark Start Brunel

Reporting to: Area Manager

Location: Ark Start Brunel (Middle Row, London W10 5AT)

Working Pattern: Full-time

Interviews: Interviews will be arranged as suitable candidates are identified

Ark Start nurseries are staffed by professional early-years practitioners who provide a carefully balanced mix of play-based and adult-led learning in nurseries. A nursery manager should be someone with a genuine passion for working with young children and with the knowledge, skill, creativity, and commitment to lead provision at our nursery.

Key Responsibilities:

To create a nurturing, fun, safe and caring nursery environment that meets the needs of every child
To implement Ark Start model including curriculum, forest school and family programme
To ensure compliance to all Ark Start and statutory policies
To have a deep knowledge and understanding of the EYFS statutory framework and child development
To lead on nursery improvement and engage with regular coaching and monitoring of the provision and ensure the nursery is constantly improving
Actively promote the safety and welfare of our children and young people
To line manage and effectively deploy staff to ensure exceptional provision
To use data to inform teaching and learning, identify areas for intervention and provide feedback to children, staff and families in order to ensure accelerated progress
Deploy and manage staff to ensure exceptional provision for children
Lead training, coach and supervise staff team to ensure ongoing improvement
Work collaboratively with colleagues as a committed team member, building successful, high performing teams
To lead planning and ensure it meets the needs of all children in line with the Ark Start model
To ensure full occupancy and operate nursery at break even
Oversee assessment of all children and lead moderation internally and attend external moderation to ensure accurate data

Key Requirements:

Right to work in the UK
Qualified at level 3 or above; Level 6 desirable
Experience and knowledge of early child development
Sound knowledge of the legislation and guidelines of the EYFS and an excellent understanding of pedagogy, curriculum, and assessment
Genuine passion for and a belief in the potential of every child
Commitment to the vision and ambition of Ark Start
A robust awareness of keeping children safe, noticing safeguarding and welfare concerns, and you understand how and when to take appropriate action
Excellent interpersonal, planning, and organisational skills

Benefits
A Real Living Wage Employer: We are a Real Living Wage employer with a minimum salary of £13.15 per hour for all roles in London. We also pay 11% pension contributions
Ongoing Learning: We are committed to providing the best development for all our staff. We close the nurseries for five days each year to focus on staff training and ensure there is protected time for training and supervision each week for every adult. We work hard to ensure there are clear career progression routes
Annual leave: We are proud of our staff and want everyone to feel valued for playing their part. That’s why staff receive 25 days holiday each year, excluding bank holidays
Wellbeing: Staff wellbeing is incredibly important to us. We know that while incredibly rewarding, working in a nursery can be challenging. We therefore work hard to ensure all staff have the support and infrastructure they need to take care of their wellbeing
Part of a Network: Ark Start is part of Ark, a charity that aims to transform children’s lives through education. Ark operates a network of 39 schools across London, Birmingham, Portsmouth, and Hastings as well as a number of charitable ventures. Being part of a network means our staff get access to the opportunities, infrastructure, and support of a large organisation
About Us
Our dedicated team work together to ensure that every child has a joyful, engaging, and secure nursery experience and leaves us ready to start school happily and confidently. We are driven by our values in everything we do: Aim High, Be Brave, Be Kind and Keep Learning.

Ark Start is at an exciting time in its evolution. We opened two nurseries in South London last year and aim to expand our reach over the coming years. As we expand, we are looking for Early Childhood Educator to join our founding team. We are looking for someone with a genuine passion for young children and with the skill, creativity, commitment, and energy to deliver excellent provision at Ark Start.

Diversity and inclusion:

We aim to build a diverse and inclusive organisation where everyone – staff and students – can do their best work and achieve their full potential. We want to reflect and represent diverse perspectives across our organisation because we know that doing so will make us stronger and more effective. To know more about Ark’s diversity and inclusion commitments, please click on this link.

Safeguarding statement:

Ark is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people in its academies. In order to meet this responsibility, its academies follow a rigorous selection process to discourage and screen out unsuitable applicants.