Job Description: Early Childhood Educator

Reporting to: Headteacher/Deputy Headteacher

Location: Ark Start John Keats (Bell Ln, Enfield EN3 5PA)

 Contract: Permanent

Working Pattern: Full-time 

Salary: Competitive

The Role

• To ensure a high standard of physical, emotional, social, and intellectual care for all children in their care
• To ensure all children are safeguarded and their welfare and safety is promoted
• To provide an enabling environment in which all children can play, learn, and develop
• To have the skill, creativity, commitment, energy, and enthusiasm required to deliver excellent provision.

Key Responsibilities

• To promote the aims and objectives of the nursery
• To promote the high standards of the nursery at all times to parents, staff, and visitors
• To follow the nursery safeguarding procedure to ensure all children are kept safe, well, and secure
• To ensure the provision of high standards of physical and emotional care
• To work with families and parents / carers
• To keep records of your children’s development and learning journals and share this with parents and carers and ensure all record keeping is up to date and accurate
• Liaise with the local authority and other external agencies as required
• Undertake required domestic jobs within the nursery as required
• Participate fully in team meetings and training
• Read, understand, and adhere to all policies and procedures within the nursery
• Ensure good standards of safety, hygiene and cleanliness are maintained
• Washing and changing children when required
• Ensure mealtimes are pleasant social experience
• Ensure poorly children are tended to and parents informed immediately
• To provide cover when required
• To undertake any other duties as determined by the management

Other

• Actively promote the safety and welfare of our children and young people
• Ensure compliance with Ark Start data protection rules and procedures
• Liaise with colleagues and external contacts at all levels of seniority with confidence, tact, and diplomacy
• Work with colleagues and other nurseries and schools in the Ark network, to establish good practice, offering support where required.

• 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 and 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.

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.