Nursery Assistant

Nursery Assistant

We are looking for a Full Time Nursery Assistant to join our outstanding Nursery team. The Nursery is open from 7.30am to 6.00pm. The Nursery Manager works closely with the Nursery Assistants to ensure all hours are covered. Your hours will be agreed with you in advance to suit the needs of the Nursery each week and will include some 7.30am starts and some 6.00pm finishes. The starting rate of pay is £24,980.

The annual holiday entitlement is five weeks, in addition to Public Holidays.

Our Nursery team strive to meet the individual needs of our children, giving them the social skills and confidence they need in their formative years and providing them with a sound platform for transition into school life.

This post requires someone who loves working with and caring for children, and a confident user of ICT. They must be a self-starter who is able to work on their own initiative and as part of a team, and someone who would be able to help maintain high standards, good order and a happy, warm, stimulating and secure learning environment for our children.

We welcome applications from Nursery practitioners who are qualified to NVQ Level 3, CACHE, or equivalent, but will also consider applicants who are in the process of completing these qualifications or who wish to work towards these qualifications. It is expected that the successful candidate will have knowledge and experience of EYFS, and within a School environment is desirable. Our Nursery Assistants will work with the Nursery Manager, Assistant Nursery Manager and team to deliver a flexible, high-quality education and care to meet the needs of the children and their families throughout the year.

Responsibilities and Main Tasks

To work with the team to deliver a flexible, high quality education and care to meet the needs of the children and their families.

• To plan and carry out observations on children as needed;
• To understand the role of children’s play in their physical, intellectual and emotional development;
• To be familiar with the aims and standards for learning in use at the Nursery - the Early Years Foundation Stage;
• To promote positive images for all children in the pre-school’s care by introducing appropriate activities to encourage equal development for both sexes, fostered through language, play and other activities;
• To provide input to Nursery planning. To plan, carry out and evaluate activities for all children including differentiating where necessary to promote inclusion;
• To keep developmental records of key group children including updating Learning Journeys, regular evaluations of children’s development and contribute to a Transition Report when appropriate;
• To attend to the needs of the children including personal care at Nursery whilst they are in our care ensuring that they are safe, happy and stimulated to enable them to enjoy their time at Nursery;
• To be fully involved in the children’s play, nurturing the children’s own creative potential through the activities offered and encouraging their full development;
• Hold a current paediatric first aid certificate and food hygiene certificate and be responsible for their updating;
• To report any safeguarding concerns over children and liaise with the appropriate external agencies, preserving confidentiality as necessary;
• Comply with the School’s policies and procedures for child protection, countering bullying and positive handling, and be aware of the appropriate response needed in these areas;
• To demonstrate a commitment to parental participation, recognising the individual needs of the parent and offering support to the parents where appropriate;
• To ensure the safety and security of children in the Nursery. To have a knowledge of health and safety procedures and to be prepared to carry them out;
• Carry out ongoing cleaning of the Nursery equipment to ensure the Nursery is tidy, safe, clean and secure for children, staff, parent/carers and visitors;
• To provide an environment that adheres to the Vision, Mission and Ethos of the School.

About Little Lambs Nursery

Our rapidly expanding and outstanding Little Lambs Nursery is where many children begin their journey with SVPS. Little Lambs provides a happy, warm, stimulating and secure learning environment for our children. From the moment children come in the door, every child receives a warm individual welcome from our friendly team, which we believe creates an enthusiasm for learning and for each day ahead.

The Nursery operates with an ethos of learning through play which encourages children to combine both structured learning experiences and their natural inclination to play, explore and question, to develop into young boys and girls, ready for the challenges that growing up will bring.

Our staff aim to meet the individual needs of our children, giving them the social skills and confidence they need in these formative years and providing them with a sound platform for transition into school life, be that in Pre-Prep or elsewhere.

Little Lambs Nursery operates all year round, with some children only attending during School term time. We offer both full-day and half-day sessions for children from two to four years of age. The Nursery does close briefly between Christmas and New Year to allow families to be together.

Topics and activities change according to the time of year, but a daily routine of learning from the Early Years framework consisting of seven areas of learning: Personal, Social and Emotional Development; Physical Development; Communication and Language; Literacy; Mathematics; Understanding the World; and Expressive Arts and Design.

We are lucky enough to have our very own Forest School on-site where children immerse themselves in our natural surroundings and exercise their imaginations. Our extensive gardens and grounds provide endless opportunities for activities outside in the fresh air and we have ample outdoor toys for the Nursery children to enjoy, including sandpits, water-play equipment and a mud kitchen amongst many other spaces to explore.

Closing date for applications - Friday 7th June 2024

Please note: we reserve the right to appoint prior to the closing date.

Little Lambs Nursery (as part of Sutton Valence Preparatory School) is an equal opportunities employer.