Operational Manager- Early Years

Job Introduction

Are you a passionate and experienced professional looking to make a real difference in the lives of children? Do you have a proven track record in managing OFSTED regulated early years/EYFS provision? We have an exciting opportunity for a Early Years Operational Managers who will oversee a team of Portage Officers, Area SENCOs, Early Years Childcare Advisors and our own BCP Nursery.  

Role Overview: We are seeking an enthusiastic and dynamic individual to lead and oversee the Early Years Service, supporting children under 5 years of age and their families. The successful candidate will drive the council’s ambition for excellent Early Years services by ensuring high-quality, effective partnerships and services are available to all families and their children across the BCP council area. In this post you will work closely with the strategic lead to help shape and drive the strategic direction of the Early Years sector across our authority.

Key Responsibilities:

• Lead and manage the Early Years Service, promoting a positive and inclusive culture.
• Demonstrate strong leadership skills with significant experience in managing, motivating, and coaching staff teams.
• To oversee SEND services across the Early Years. 
• Contribute to the development and implementation of strategies to ensure high-quality, inclusive, and coordinated multi-agency services for children.
• Work closely with the strategic lead to shape and drive the strategic direction of the Early Years sector.
• Manage a team of talented individuals and collaborate with maintained nursery schools, PVI settings, childminders, and out-of-hours providers to deliver statutory duties.
• Provide reports and statistical analysis to senior leaders and external agencies such as Ofsted and DfE.
• Attend regional partnership meetings on behalf of the service and local authority.
• Input into and support Early Help strategy development, leading its implementation and operation to comply with statutory regulations and consider the diverse needs of users.
• Lead on monitoring and evaluating performance against national and local key performance indicators, driving future improvement and outcomes.
• Manage team managers and associated budgets, ensuring the highest professional standards and efficient management of resources.
• Champion a framework for practice, leading teams in learning and embedding practice models, toolkits, and interventions.
• Contribute to the development of multi-agency services at a strategic level by building sophisticated relationships with external partners.
• Ensure consistent implementation of local policies, processes, and procedures to meet statutory guidance and legal framework.
• Develop and implement quality assurance processes to promote and embed best practices.

The Ideal Candidate:

• Lively and enthusiastic with a passion for early childhood education and services.
• Knowledge of SEND code of practice and implementation. 
• Ability to demonstrate strong leadership and promote a positive and inclusive culture.
• High level of resilience and emotional intelligence.
• Ability to remain calm under pressure and prioritise.
• Effective interpersonal skills and excellent planning and organisation skills.
• Ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously.

The successful candidate will have extensive knowledge of the Early Years Foundation Stage and early child development and will advocate for inclusive practice. You will have a sound understanding of Ofsted  inspections and current Government initiatives for children 0-5. In addition you will be knowledgeable about Early Years funding mechanisms and requirements.

Closing date- 9 March 2025

Proposed interview date- 21st March 2025 

For an informal discussion about this role please contact Jeanette Yorke at jeanette.yorke@bcpcouncil.gov.uk 

About BCP Council

BCP Council provides services to a diverse community of 400,000 residents and employs more than 5,000 people.  Our area includes over 15 miles of beautiful world-renowned coastline.  We can offer career defining roles to transform and improve services.  By working with us, you can help deliver a vision of a thriving, word-class, prosperous and inclusive place for generations to come.

Our Benefits

We offer an excellent benefits package for further details see here

As a result of the creation of BCP Council in 2019, we are working on simplifying our terms and conditions of service and will be creating a single pay structure which is to be applicable for all employees. It is important to us that we offer benefits that our colleagues value as part of their total employment package and we are reviewing these to make sure we have it right. We have been in a process of collective bargaining since 2019 and have positively worked forward to reach an agreed position with the unions for the new contractual offer. This has taken longer than we hoped and therefore we are having to consider all alternative avenues available to enable us to remove inequality in the organisation as a result of bringing together 3 councils. 

We are in the process of establishing a timescale for implementation, and all colleagues joining us will be included in these changes. We want to reassure everyone that whichever route is taken to reach the new terms and conditions, we can honour continuous service and there will not be any job reduction as a result of the implementation of Pay and Reward.  If you have any questions at all about this process, please feel free to raise this with the hiring manager.

DBS

BCP Council is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of the community and expects all staff and volunteers to share the same commitment. Applicants to this post will be required to complete the appropriate level of Disclosure & Barring Service Check. Please refer to the Job Description or Role Profile for more details.