Please see below any current staff vacancies:

Senior Deputy Manager: Closing date for applications Monday 11th November 2024

Ideal starting date January 2025 but this is flexible depending on the candidate.

Job Title: Senior Deputy Manager

Permanent, full-time. Start date from January 2025 but this is flexible depending on the candidate. Hours: Full time over 5 days 9:00am to 4:00pm Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday and 8:00am to 5pm Thursday and 8:00am to 4:30pm Friday. We are open during term time only – 38 weeks a year. There is the possibility of additional ad-hoc extra cover during term time to cover for staff sickness.

Beehive Pre-School playgroup are seeking an experienced Senior Deputy Manager to join our Pre-school. The Senior Deputy Manager would be employed 5 days a week: for 3 of these, they would work alongside the Manager, and for the remaining 2, when the Manager is not on-site, they would be acting Manager.

As a team, we are committed to providing the highest quality early years education and care. The ideal candidate must be professional, have exceptional interpersonal skills and be able to bring their own competencies and experience to develop outstanding practice. You must be passionate about early years and have the ability to motivate and lead a team in the manager’s absence, whilst supporting and encouraging practitioners’ ideas. As you will be involved in managing the playgroup in the manager’s absence, it is essential to have extensive leadership skills from a previous role such as room leader or deputy manager and an excellent working knowledge of the legal and quality standards required by Ofsted. As we are a charity, you will report to the Chair of Trustees who has overall responsibility for decision making.

Our purpose-built setting is located in Fulford, offering places to children aged 2 to school age. We are well-respected in the local community with a small, friendly, committed and dedicated team of practitioners who adapt to the needs of each child. Due to our location, we prioritise places to military children and pride ourselves on being a multi-cultural setting with families from all around the world. We offer free on-site car parking, branded work tops, sick pay and a staff pension scheme.

Safeguarding requirement: Beehive Preschool Playgroup is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people. It is a requirement of all staff that they share this commitment and follow the prescribed policy and procedures to continuously promote a culture of safeguarding across the whole setting.

Main Duties:

· To provide safe, high-quality education and care for early years children.

· To fulfil legal and statutory requirements.

· To undertake the Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead role.

· To work alongside or lead and manage staff on a day-to-day basis when the manager is absent.

· To work alongside the manager and contribute to and implement early years policies.

· To ensure that all statutory, legal and setting obligations are followed and met.

· To work alongside the manager to lead, motivate and inspire the team to deliver outstanding early years education and care.

· To work alongside the manager in taking responsibility for drawing up long-term, medium-term and sessional curriculum plans that take into account the requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS),and to monitor the effectiveness of the setting’s curriculum; this may include working with external professionals.

· To work alongside the manager in being responsible for providing a high quality of education and learning, ensuring that staff are properly deployed, and to offer appropriate stimulation and support to the children attending the setting.

· To support the manager to have an appropriate action plan in place that enables the setting to maintain a minimum ‘Good’ Ofsted rating at the next inspection.

· To work alongside and take responsibility for ensuring that performance management systems are in place and followed, e.g. induction, probation, supervision, team-meetings, appraisals and objective setting.

· To support the manager in ensuring that staff are appropriately supported to carry out their role effectively, including the SENCo.

· To support the manager in drawing up and supervising the daily routine of activities and events, and delegate these to practitioners.

· To support the manager in implementing systems of observation and record keeping so that children’s progress and achievements are effectively and regularly assessed; to monitor the effectiveness of assessment procedures.

· In manager’s absence, to effectively supervise staff on a daily basis; to be responsible for monitoring the quality of teaching; to participate in staff supervisions appraisals and to identify in-service training needs through regular Leadership Meetings with the Manager.

· To ensure that the welfare and safety of children is promoted within the setting and that any child protection concerns are always acted upon appropriately and immediately, following specified procedures.

· To ensure records are properly maintained and updated, e.g. the daily attendance register, accident and incident records.

· To liaise closely with parents/carers, informing them about the setting and its curriculum, exchanging information about children’s progress and encouraging parents’ involvement.

· To ensure that Beehive Pre-School Playgroup is a safe environment for children, staff and others, that equipment is safe, standards of hygiene are high, safety procedures are implemented at all times.

· To liaise with the Chair or Trustees, Ofsted services and other professionals as necessary, ensuring that all legal and statutory requirements are implemented, and providing reports as required.

· To support in implementing any recommendations made following regulatory inspections.

· To contribute to and implement all the setting’s policies and procedures.

· To ensure that children attending the setting receive a balanced and healthy diet.

· To attend any conferences, training events or meetings, as identified by the manager or chair of trustees and to keep up to date with current good practice.

· To ensure that accurate and up-to-date record keeping systems are in place, e.g. children’s records of progress and development reports, any safeguarding issues, health and safety issues.

· To undertake any other reasonable duties as directed by the Manager or Chair of trustees in accordance with the setting’s business plan/objectives.

· To take on the role of the Key Person and lead an excellent example of key person duties to other practitioners.

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 criteria:

· At least two years’ proven experience of working in an early years care and education setting at a room leader or deputy level.

· Level 3 early years education and childcare qualification or above.

· EYFS 2024 requirement: Employed or internal job changes on or after 4 January 2024 must hold a level 2 Maths qualification or must achieve one within 2 years of starting in the position.

· Ability to work alongside the manager to ensure that the setting maintains at least a good Ofsted rating.

· Excellent understanding of child development and children’s needs.

· Ability to plan and implement an early years curriculum, taking into account the SEN Code of Practice, child protection procedures and equal opportunities considerations.

· Demonstrable and detailed knowledge of current legislation relevant to the early years.

· Understanding of the Prevent Duty in the Counter-Terrorism and Security Act 2015, and how it relates to early years settings.

· Ability to comply with the requirements placed on the setting by the EYFS.

· Experience of effectively communicating with parents and addressing any concerns.

· Ability to work with parents and families to encourage their involvement.

· Ability to effectively lead and manage a team of adults, in the manager’s absence.

· Demonstrate a commitment to continuously promoting a culture of safeguarding.

· Commitment to equal opportunities and an understanding of equality, diversity and inclusion issues.

· Ability to write clear reports.

· Knowledge of data protection and information management practices and their application within the setting.

· Basic computer skills.

This post is exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act(1974)and requires an enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service Check. Applicants must be prepared to disclose any convictions they may have and any orders that have been made against them.