Deputy Nursery Manager

St Mary the Virgin Church of England Primary School, Gillingham, SP8 4GG

6 days remaining to apply

• Start date details

  January 2026

• Closing date

  3 November 2025 at 9am

• Date listed

  6 October 2025

Job details

• Job role:
  • Other support roles
• Visa sponsorship: Visas cannot be sponsored
• Working pattern: Full time
• Contract type: Fixed term
• Full-time equivalent salary: £21,670.00 Annually (Actual) Grade 7, Scale Point 8

Deputy Nursery Manager job summary

Salary: Grade 7, Point 8: £21,670 per annum (ACTUAL)

Contract: Maternity Cover until December 2026, 34.75 hours per week, 39 weeks per year (term time plus inset days)

St Mary the Virgin Primary School have an exciting opportunity for an enthusiastic and experienced childcare professional to join our team as Deputy Nursery Manager. The successful candidate will lead the nursery team in offering high quality day care and will assume full responsibility for the day-to-day management of the nursery in the Manager’s absence. This is a temporary role supporting a period of maternity absence - a wonderful chance to make a real impact and be part of our nurturing school community.

Key responsibilities include:

• Planning and delivering an engaging curriculum that supports each child’s development.

• Leading, supporting and developing nursery staff.

• Ensuring the smooth daily running of the nursery, including safeguarding, record-keeping and resource management.

• Building strong, positive relationships with parents, carers and outside agencies.

• Upholding the school’s values and commitment to equality, inclusion and child protection.

We are seeking someone with:

• A Level 3 Childcare qualification (or equivalent).

• A sound understanding of early years development and EYFS principles.

• Proven experience in an early years setting with leadership or supervisory responsibilities.

• Excellent communication, organisational and team leadership skills.

If you are passionate about early years education and ready to take the next step in your childcare career, we’d love to hear from you.

To find out more about the benefits of working for SAST, click here

For more information about our school, please click here to view our careers page.

Should you wish to arrange a visit to view the School, please do not hesitate to contact the School Office on office@stmarygillingham.dorset.sch.uk or 01747 824446.

SAST will conduct online searches of shortlisted candidates. In line with KCSIE guidance, this will be part of safer recruitment checks, and the search will purely be based on whether an individual is suitable to work with children. As care must be taken to avoid unconscious bias and any risk of discrimination, a person who will not be on the appointment panel will conduct the searches and will only share information if and when findings are relevant and of concern.

Safeguarding responsibilities associated with this role may include engagement in regulatory activity, such as administering first aid or supporting an upset child. It will have contact with young people on a day-to-day basis. SAST is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. The successful candidate will have to meet the person specification and the post is subject to safeguarding checks, including an enhanced DBS check and Children’s Barred List check. The post is exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 and the amendments to the Exceptions Order 1975, 2013 and 2020.

SAST recognises the benefit of having a diverse workforce and is committed to building a workforce which reflects diversity from the communities it serves. SAST values the contributions from all staff from a wide range of different backgrounds and actively seeks to promote an environment that is free from discrimination and harassment and at the same time supports fair promotion and cultural acceptance. Under the provision of the Equality Act 2010 SAST welcomes applications from everyone and operates a recruitment process which is fair and does not discriminate against or disadvantage anyone because of their age, disability, gender reassignment status, marriage or civil partnership status, pregnancy or maternity, race or nationality, religion or belief, sex, or sexual orientation.

This role is UK- based and your right to work will need to be established as part of the appointment process.

Further information about the job

The candidate will be required to undergo a full enhanced DBS check and must be eligible to work in the UK.

Visas cannot be sponsored.

If you're interested in teaching or training to teach in England as an international citizen, we can help you understand your next steps.

Commitment to safeguarding

Safeguarding responsibilities associated with this role will include engagement in regulatory activity, such as administering first aid or supporting an upset child. It will have contact with young people on a day-to day basis. SAST is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. The successful candidate will meet the person specification and is subject to an enhanced DBS and Children’s Barred List check. The post is exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 and the amendments to the Exceptions Order 1975, 2013 and 2020.

Applying for the job

This school accepts applications through their own website, where you may also find more information about this job.

CVs will not be accepted for this application.

About St Mary the Virgin Church of England Primary School

• School type: Academy, Church of England, ages 2 to 11
• Education phase: Primary
• School size: 241 pupils enrolled
• Age range: 2 to 11
• Ofsted report: View Ofsted report
• School website: St Mary the Virgin Church of England Primary School website
• See more jobs: teaching-vacancies.service.gov.uk/organisations/st-mary-the-virgin-church-of-england-primary-school-gillingham

We are part of SAST and are proud to be part of a trust where there is considerable support and collaboration with the other schools and leaders across these schools.

You are warmly encouraged to visit us in advance of applying. When you visit the school, you will notice the:
• Strong Christian ethos
• Friendly and welcoming atmosphere
• Children that are thriving and enjoying learning
• High expectations of all
• Breadth of experiences and opportunities
• Hard working, committed and caring staff
• Strong local community

There are 240 children on roll. The School has a Church of England foundation within the Diocese of Salisbury. The school was judged to be Good when last inspected by Ofsted in February 2023 and Excellent when inspected as a Church School in June 2019. We are an innovative school and continue to strive for the very best for all in our community.

We are excited to be part of SAST. There is real strength in coming together with a collective responsibility for all the children’s development and progress between 0-19 years. We believe in preserving schools in their local community. This means that there will be considerable local expertise to support the school and staff with the chance to make a contribution to wider developments.

At the heart of SAST is the desire to work in partnership, to collaborate with others and to be outward facing for the benefit of children and staff. The schools have extensive links beyond the immediate area and are keen to extend these further.

We are looking for someone with high expectations, a love of learning, able to inspire and laugh and enjoy the challenges of this role. You need to be a team player; you will go the extra mile to support children and want to continually develop and pick up the best ideas from around the world in education. In return, you will join a School and Trust that is full of activity, opportunity, and optimism.

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