Nursery Manager & Preschool Lead
Location: Based at Kidspace Markfield, with oversight of our three Hinckley preschools
Salary: £34,000–£37,000 per annum, depending on experience and qualifications
Hours: Full-time, Monday–Friday – typically around 40 hours per week, with flexibility required as part of this salaried management role. Hours may vary depending on staffing and operational needs.
Contract: Permanent
Company: Kidspace Ltd
Join Our Team
Kidspace is looking for a passionate, confident and experienced Nursery Manager & Preschool Lead to join our family-run childcare group.
This is a varied and exciting management position for someone who wants to take the next step in their Early Years career.
You will be based at Kidspace Markfield, where you will have overall responsibility for the nursery and work alongside a full-time Assistant Nursery Manager who will support the day-to-day running of the setting.
Alongside your role at Markfield, you will provide leadership, oversight and support to our three Kidspace preschools in Hinckley, helping us maintain high and consistent standards across our Early Years provision.
We're looking for someone who loves Early Years, enjoys developing people and isn't afraid to bring new ideas.
You will have the opportunity to make the role your own, build strong relationships with our teams and families and have a genuine influence on how our Early Years settings continue to develop.
What We Can Offer You
We want our managers to feel valued and supported, with benefits including:
- Private healthcare option
- Health cash plan option, helping towards everyday healthcare costs including dental and optical
- Health and wellbeing support
- Cinema, shopping and lifestyle discounts and perks
- Workplace pension
- Ongoing training and professional development
- Opportunities for further career development within Kidspace
- Monday–Friday working
- A full-time Assistant Nursery Manager based at Kidspace Markfield
- Established teams across our Early Years settings
- The opportunity to bring your own ideas and influence how our settings develop
- Support with areas including HR, payroll and wider administration
- Permanent and stable employment
- A varied role combining nursery management with wider Early Years leadership
The Role
As Nursery Manager & Preschool Lead, you will have overall responsibility for Kidspace Markfield, while also overseeing and supporting our three preschool settings in Hinckley.
At Markfield, you won't be managing the setting alone. You will work closely with our full-time Assistant Nursery Manager, sharing the day-to-day leadership of the nursery and ensuring there is strong management support within the setting.
This structure will also allow you to spend planned time supporting our preschool teams, visiting the settings and monitoring standards across our Early Years provision.
Your responsibilities will include:
- Leading, motivating and developing the Markfield team alongside the Assistant Nursery Manager
- Providing leadership and oversight to our three Hinckley preschool teams
- Visiting and supporting the preschool settings regularly
- Maintaining high standards of childcare and Early Years education across the settings
- Ensuring children's learning and development is supported in line with the EYFS
- Maintaining excellent safeguarding and child protection practices
- Ensuring settings meet Ofsted, EYFS and regulatory requirements
- Supporting and developing setting leaders and senior staff
- Monitoring staff deployment and supporting effective staffing arrangements
- Supporting staff through supervision, coaching and professional development
- Monitoring the quality of teaching, learning and children's experiences
- Building excellent relationships with parents and families
- Supporting prospective family show-arounds and occupancy
- Monitoring key nursery and preschool records and documentation
- Supporting settings with improvement plans and continuous development
- Identifying training and development needs
- Sharing good practice across Kidspace
- Supporting teams in maintaining Ofsted readiness
- Helping ensure policies and procedures are implemented consistently
- Supporting nursery and preschool events and activities
- Monitoring the environments to ensure they remain welcoming, engaging and appropriate for the children
- Working with the company owner on the continued development of our Early Years provision
A Role With Variety
We know that overseeing more than one setting needs the right structure and support.
Kidspace Markfield will be your main base, and you will have the support of a full-time Assistant Nursery Manager who will be based there.
Your time supporting our Hinckley preschools will be planned around the needs of the settings. This may include visiting teams, supporting leaders, monitoring practice, reviewing documentation and helping settings prepare for Ofsted.
We're not looking for someone to be everywhere at once.
We're looking for a strong Early Years leader who can develop good teams, delegate effectively, monitor standards and step in with support when it's needed.
About You
We're looking for someone who is positive, organised, approachable and passionate about delivering excellent Early Years provision.
You'll need:
- A minimum Level 3 recognised Early Years/Childcare qualification
- Strong experience within an Early Years setting
- Excellent knowledge of the EYFS
- Strong safeguarding and child protection knowledge
- A good understanding of Ofsted requirements and inspection expectations
- Leadership or management experience within Early Years
- Confidence leading and developing teams
- The ability to support and challenge staff positively when required
- Strong organisational and time-management skills
- Excellent written and verbal communication
- The ability to build positive relationships with children, families and colleagues
- Confidence managing the varied responsibilities involved in running an Early Years setting
- The ability to delegate effectively
- The confidence to monitor standards and address areas requiring improvement
- The ability to prioritise responsibilities across different settings
- Flexibility to travel between Kidspace Markfield and our Hinckley preschools when required
Previous Nursery Manager experience would be an advantage with strong leadership experience who can demonstrate they are ready to progress into a wider management position.
About Kidspace
Kidspace is an established family-run childcare provider committed to creating happy, welcoming environments where children can learn, develop and have fun.
We believe great childcare comes from having strong, supported teams and managers who genuinely care about the children, families and people they work with.
We're proud of the individual character of our settings while also wanting consistently high standards across Kidspace.
This role will be an important part of achieving that.
You'll have responsibility for Kidspace Markfield, supported by a full-time Assistant Nursery Manager, while also helping guide and develop our three Hinckley preschools.
It's a great opportunity for someone who wants more than a traditional Nursery Manager position and would enjoy having a wider influence across several Early Years settings.
If you're looking for your next Early Years management opportunity and think you could be the person we're looking for, we'd love to hear from you.
Apply today and tell us a little about yourself, your Early Years experience and the teams you've led.
Pay: £35,000.00-£38,000.00 per year
Benefits:
- Childcare
- Employee discount
- Free parking
- Health & wellbeing programme
- Private medical insurance
Work Location: In person
