Term time Pre-School Manager

About the role

About the role

To apply for this exciting opportunity please send your CV to chair.hillsidepreschool@gmail.com.  Thank you for your interest!

Reporting To: Chair of Parent Led Committee

Job Purpose:

To plan and deliver effective daily management of the Pre-School, in accordance with company policy, all relevant legislation, plus local authority and OFSTED requirements.

To ensure the provision is of the highest quality; providing a safe, stimulating and caring environment, catering for the children's educational and developmental needs. 

To ensure that all agreed quality and safety standards are maintained in the Pre-School all times.

To liaise closely with parents and carers to ensure they are fully informed of required information.

To regularly review and develop the Pre-School policies/procedures and curriculum inline with government legislation. 

To have an appropriate action plan in place which enables the setting to achieve and maintaina  minimum good Ofsted rating at the next inspection.

To develop and implement the operational framework and standards, including staff rotas to ensure the smooth running of the Pre-School.

To fulfil duties as the Safeguarding Designated Officer for the setting to actively promote and support the safeguarding of children in the workplace, ensuring that all staff and volunteers observe the pre-school policies and procedures to keep children safe from harm.

MAIN DUTIES: 

Staff Management

To lead, motivate and manage the Hillside Pre-School team. 

To ensure that staff comply with pre-school policies, procedures and standards, including safeguarding, health and safety, hygiene, inclusion, confidentiality.

Responsible for recruitment campaigns, ensuring safe recruitment of Pre-School staff as required.

To identify all training and development needs for staff and liaise with the Committee to ensure these needs are met.

Responsible for managing weekly staff rotas and required ratios.

Chairing regular team meetings eg inset day staff meetings and team morning briefings.

Responsible for identifying training and development opportunities via regular supervision meetings, mentoring and objective setting.

To ensure that the wellbeing of staff is maintained and to support staff whenever possible.

To develop and maintain a bank of Pre-School staff to provide ad-hoc cover when required.

To plan, manage and implement staff appraisals in partnership with the Committee. 

To effectively lead and manage a team, including conducting performance management processes and working with the Committee Chair to deal with any issues.

Operational Control

To develop and manage the operational framework and standards to ensure the smooth running of the Pre-School at all times.

To contribute to the strategic planning, monitoring, evaluation and development of Hillside Pre-School.

To make recommendations and proposals about service developments and changes, but not to make decisions about substantive changes to the setting.

To assist with the marketing of the Pre-School to local people, including meeting prospective parents and attending toddler groups, updating social media and the Pre-School website.

To manage invoicing, monthly wages, bank reconciliation, banking, petty cash, funding and HMRC submissions

To assist the Committee with ongoing competitor analysis. 

Responsible for ensuring the required standards, ratios and conditions of registration are maintained at all times.

To monitor occupancy levels to ensure that they are maximised. 

To ensure registers are maintained.

Responsible for the day to day management of the premises and services. Also for ensuring that the daycare provision is clean, safe, hygienic and welcoming for families and staff.

To monitor and practise all appropriate emergency procedures for all staff eg fire drills.

Responsible for all health and safety compliance within the Pre-School, ensuring that the company's Health and Safety procedure is adhered to at all times.

To ensure robust risk assessments are regularly reviewed.

To audit accident forms monthly and report findings to staff to ensure safety is maintained.

Profitability

Responsible for driving the business to meet the highest occupancy levels.

To manage the waiting list effectively to ensure that income is maximised.

To collect and record staff hours ready to be processed for payroll.

Childcare and Curriculum

To ensure that the planning and organisation of a quality educational provision is carried out in accordance with the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) Framework.

To develop and implement initiatives that support children ensuring their individual needs are continually assessed, monitored and met via tracking procedures.

To monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of the curriculum provided and regularly identify areas for development. 

To ensure that Learning Journals are regularly updated and maintained with the required evidence, observations and documentation for each child. 

To promote positive values, attitudes and good child behaviour, dealing promptly with conflict and incidents inline with established policy and encouraging children to take responsibility for their own behaviour.

To ensure the implementation of the Special Educational Needs Code of Practice. 

To ensure smooth transition for both parents and children when they start at Pre-School and leave to go onto school or another setting

Record Keeping/Data Protection 

To ensure safe storage and appropriate access for all information, to ensure compliance with data protection legislation.

To ensure all staff, including new starters are aware of GDPR processes.

To maintain effective personnel systems (e.g. Parenta) and ensure that files are kept up to date.

Parent Partnerships

To ensure all relevant information is communicated to parents and carers via email, the website, learning journals, social media, noticeboard and newsletters.

To ensure that children's progress is regularly reviewed and shared with parents and carers including organising parents evenings

Responsible for building and maintaining relationships with parents and carers including providing newsletters and sharing information regularly with parents to keep them fully informed and encouraging parents’ involvement. Including organising show-rounds for prospective parents.

Outside agencies

Responsible for liaising with outside agencies and other parties e.g. Hertfordshire Council, OFSTED, Health Visitors, local schools etc to ensure the Pre-School receives all information and support available.

To work closely with the Herts Early Years Consultant to ensure the highest standards of education and care are maintained at the Pre-School

Parent-Led Committee

To liaise with the Parent-Led Committee in the development and improvement of the pre- school setting.

To attend the 6-weekly committee meetings.

To work with the Parent-Led committee to assist with fundraising efforts for the pre-school, as well as working with the committee to approve key actions (including but not limited to potential new external vendors, staffing concerns, policy updates and financially impacting decisions).

Mandatory attendance to key events such as the Christmas shopping night, Christmas market and Village Day.

To maintain a strong working relationship with the chair(s) of the committee and ensure the chair(s) retain oversight over key governance related decisions.

To work with the Chair to ensure the pre-school committee operates under the rules of our Articles of Association (e.g. 60% current parents) and that key positions are always staffed.

The work requires normal physical effort. It may occasionally involve lifting and handling of training equipment, play equipment and other resources and to be involved in practical activities and physical care of young children.

This job description is not an exhaustive list of duties and the post holder will be required to undertake any other reasonable duties discussed and directed by the line manager. The post holder is also expected to be flexible and adaptable in their approach to fulfilling their duties.

Person specification

Essential

• Minimum NVQ level 3 or equivalent.
• Minimum of 2 Years working in a management capacity in early years care and education setting or at least two years’ other suitable experience
• Knowledge of OFSTED standards and experience of inspections. Ability to ensure that the setting achieves and maintains at least a good Ofsted rating.
• Sound understanding of child development, and of children’s needs.
• Ability to plan and implement a pre-school curriculum, taking into account the SEN Code of Practice, child protection procedures and equal opportunities considerations.
• To actively promote the pre-school to maximise occupancy levels, and that services are marketed and advertised so that the pre-school runs to full capacity.
• Demonstrable and detailed knowledge of current legislation relevant to the early years, health and safety legislation and safeguarding procedures
• Ability to comply with the requirements placed on the setting by the EYFS.
• Ability to effectively lead and manage a team, including conducting performance management processes e.g. induction, supervision meetings, appraisals and setting objectives.
• Demonstrate a commitment to continuously promoting a culture of safeguarding.
• Commitment to equal opportunities and an understanding of equality and diversity issues.
• Flexible and receptive to change 
• Excellent communication skills,
• Strong people management skills. 
• Ability to be pro-active, reflective and self motivated.
• Excellent organisational skills and attention to detail.

 

Desirable criteria:

• Level 4 or above early years education and childcare qualification or degree.