About the Role

Wentwood House Day Nursery is a quaint 45 place day nursery located in the heart of Fleet and conveniently between Fleet Station and Fleet town centre. We are proudly rated as ‘GOOD’ by Ofsted (Sept 24) and provide flexible childcare solutions for hard working parents and offer high standards of care for up to 110 children daily between the ages of 3 months- 5 years over 51 weeks of the year.

We have a long standing, welcoming and varied staff team and are passionate about providing engaging and exciting learning opportunities for our children.

The stork has been busy, with some wonderful and exciting times ahead for those involved. We are therefore looking for a Maternity Cover Nursery Deputy Manager and Under 2’s Lead from around September 2025 until the return (tbc) of our current Deputy. This timeframe would allow us to provide an overlap and smooth transition between management.

This role is 41 hours over 4.5 days (8am-6pm and 1 half day)- Monday- Friday.

This is an excellent role and exciting opportunity to:

• Support the manager in overseeing the smooth running of the nursery and to uphold and thoroughly embed the Outstanding standards which we are striving for. This includes sharing and supporting the vision of the Manager, General Manager and Director’s views of how the nursery should be run.
• Split your time between supporting the Manager and overseeing the running of the 12 place Under 2’s Suite. This role is a lovely balance of room and office based tasks.
• Have a proven track record of successful managing/ Ofsted outcomes.
• Be hardworking, pro-active and lead by example. You will have great ideas and be able to work well as part of a team. Your can-do attitude will motivate and inspire your team to reach their full potential.
• Be confident in your ability to make decisions and the ability to lead when the Manager is absent. You will also be adept in working out nursery rotas, suitable staff deployment and handling employee queries.
• Have an excellent knowledge of the EYFS, policies, procedures and the latest Ofsted trends. This includes up to date training on Fundamental British Values, the Prevent Duty, FGM and GDPR. Be hungry to continue building on your professional knowledge and sharing this with your team.
• Be innovative in your approach to problem solving and ideas for the nursery.
• Communicate well with parents and carers to ensure you maintain Wentwood House’s high standards of parent partnership. This includes responding to enquiries and showing parents around the setting. This includes using our Early Childhood Platform- Famly- for the approving of everything from medication to accidents and enrolment info.
• Be aware and flexible to the realities of childcare! As an experienced practitioner, you’ll know that no two days are ever the same! But we can assure you that the team around you will make every challenge a pleasant and supportive experience.
• Have a genuine love of childcare and be happy to jump into ratio when needed. As a competent Deputy Manager, you will use these opportunities to observe practice in the rooms and build strong relationships with your team.

The joy of a fixed term contract and opportunity to dip your toe into a new setting. With 4 settings, there will always be the opportunity to switch to a permanent role should you wish to stay after the maternity cover period is over. This is something we always strive for.

Salary: Starting at £30k

We look forward to hearing from you!