SEHSCT Early Years Leader Band 4

Job details

• Branch: North Down & Ards Area (SEHSCT)
• Location: Maxwell's Courtyard
• Salary: Band 4 (£27,485 - £30,162)
• Contract Type: Permanent
• Opening Date: 01/09/26
• Closes: Tue, 15 September 2026 @ 5:30 PM
• Interview Dates: To Be Confirmed

Notes

If you are submitting a manual application, please post it to: Recruitment Shared Services, Rosewood Villa, Longstone Hospital Site, 73 Loughgall Road, Armagh, BT61 7PR. Applications received after the advertised closing date/time cannot be considered, so please allow enough time for postage. A waiting list may be created for similar posts that may arise while the waiting list is live, this may include temporary or part-time posts. This will be managed in line with the updated HSC waiting list principles effective from 1 April 2026. Where a part-time waiting list is required, one part-time waiting list will be created- regardless of any specific hours advertised, this waiting list will cover all future vacancies where part-time posts arise. A part-time post is defined as any post that has less than 37.5 hours per week. Please remember to save or print a copy of the job description before submitting your application, as it will not be accessible afterwards. Flexible Working We welcome flexible working requests from day one. All HSC organisations offer a range of flexible working options. The options available for this post will depend on the requirements of the role. Find out more about flexible working options on our website.

JOB DESCRIPTION

JOB TITLE

Early Years Leader

BAND

4

DIRECTORATE

INITIAL LOCATION

Planning, Performance & Informatics

Maxwell's Courtyard

REPORTS TO

Early Years Coordinator

ACCOUNTABLE TO

SureStart Ards Project Coordinator and

Management Committee

JOB SUMMARY

The successful candidate will assist the SureStart team in achieving the aims of the Project and to include the aims of the Surestart Developmental Programme for Two Year Olds.

The EY Leader will be responsible for organising and implementing a stimulating and varied programme of activities for children aged up to 4 years within different settings including groups and on an individual level, including the home.

The EY Leader will work with children and their families to enhance their social development build on their communication and language skills and encourage their imagination through play, which will enhance the quality of life of children within the SureStart area.

The EY Leader will supervise and manage a team of Early Years Assistants, students and Volunteers attached to their programmes

KEY DUTIES / RESPONSIBILITIES

1. Clinical/Professional/Specific Managerial Responsibilities

PROMOTING THE IMPORTANCE OF EARLY LEARNING FOR CHILDREN UP TO THE AGE OF 4 ACROSS THE SURESTART ARDS AREA.

To be responsible for the provision of a safe, stimulating and varied programme of play for children up to the age of four, suitable to the children’s age and stage of development.

To promote the social, emotional, physical, creative and cognitive development of children and to work in the interest of children at all times, while ensuring the maintenance and improvement of a welcoming child-centred environment which encourages the child’s independence.

To promote and encourage the development of activities which promote parent-child interaction.

To develop programmes and activities for children specific to their needs on a group and individual level.

To provide Supervision for Early Years Assistants on a day to day basis and in some instances, for the supervision of volunteers and students attached to the group.

To develop and maintain good relationships with other agencies, community groups, children, parents, volunteers, schools and nurseries.

To liaise with any other relevant agencies regarding the welfare of children and implementing a planned strategy of intervention where necessary.

To ensure preparation and maintenance of all facilities required, such as rooms, materials and equipment and ensure all facilities and resources are left clean and tidy after sessions.

To ensure a good standard of hygiene and safety and observe all relevant health and safety rules and guidelines.

To keep a register and attendance record of children, daily diary of events/activities and any other such records as may be required in a clear, detailed and accurate manner.

To ensure confidentiality of information relating to children and families at all times.

To submit reports as required.

To participate in induction and training programmes, meetings and supervision as required.

To undertake any other relevant duties as considered appropriate by the Early Years Co-ordinator, SureStart Co-ordinator or Management Committee.

2. Generic managerial responsibilities both within an operational and strategic

context.

2.1 Keeping up to date on training developments applicable to staff working within the setting.

2.2 Supporting EY staff in applying training to practice and modelling good practice within settings.

2.3 Identifying and accessing training opportunities on needs identified and delivering such training as required.

2.4 Being responsible for own professional development by updating knowledge and attending training as required.

2.5 Development and maintenance of good working relationships within the Project team and other agencies, community groups, schools and nurseries.

2.6 Completing and maintaining records pertaining to the role.

2.7 Participation in staff induction, mandatory training, staff development, team meetings, KSF, supervision and following trust policies and procedures in relation to staff management as required.

2.8 Ensuring the achievement of meeting external quality assurance standards.

2.9 Completing annual appraisals on staff and operating procedures eg disciplinary where necessary.

2.10 Undertaking any other relevant duties as considered appropriate by the Sure Start Coordinator or Management Committee.

HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT RESPONSIBILITIES

The Trust supports and promotes a culture of collective leadership where those who have responsibility for managing other staff:

Establish and promote a supportive, fair and open culture that encourages and enables all parts of the team to have clearly aligned goals and objectives, to meet the required performance standards and to achieve continuous improvement in the services they deliver.

Ensure access to skills and personal development through appropriate training and support.

Promote a culture of openness and honesty to enable shared learning.

Encourage and empower others in their team to achieve their goals and reach their full potential through regular supportive conversation and shared decision making .

Adhere to and promote Trust policy and procedure in all staffing matters, participating as appropriate in a way which underpins Trust values.

GENERAL MANAGEMENT RESPONSIBILITIES

The post holder will promote and support effective team working, fostering a culture of openness and transparency. The post holder will ensure that they take all concerns raised with them seriously and act in accordance with the South Eastern Health & Social Care Trust’s Raising Concerns Policy and their professional code of conduct, where applicable.

GENERAL REQUIREMENTS

The post holder will be required to

Ensure the Trust’s policy on equality of opportunity is promoted through his/her own actions and those of any staff for whom he/she has responsibility.

Co-operate fully with the implementation of the Trust's Health and Safety arrangements, reporting any accidents/incidents/equipment defects to his/her manager, and maintaining a clean, uncluttered and safe environment for patients/clients, members of the public and staff.

Adhere at all times to all Trust policies/codes of conduct, including for example

Smoke Free policy

IT Security Policy and Code of Conduct

standards of attendance, appearance and behaviour

Contribute to ensuring the highest standards of environmental cleanliness within your designated area of work.

Co-operate fully with regard to Trust policies and procedures relating to infection prevention and control.

All employees of the Trust are legally responsible for all records held, created or used as part of their business within the SETRUST including patients/clients, corporate and administrative records whether paper-based or electronic and also including emails. All such records are public records and are accessible to the general public, with limited exceptions, under the Freedom of Information act 2000 the Environmental Information Regulations 2004, the General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018. Employees are required to be conversant with the Trust policy and procedures on records management and to seek advice if in doubt.

Take responsibility for his/her own ongoing learning and development, in order to maximise his/her potential and continue to meet the demands of the post.

Represent the Trust’s commitment to providing the highest possible standard of service to patients/clients and members of the public, by treating all those with whom he/she comes into contact in the course of work, in a pleasant, courteous and respectful manner.

This Job Description will be subject to review in the light of changing circumstances and is not intended to be rigid and inflexible but should be regarded as providing guidelines within which the individual works. Other duties of a similar nature and appropriate to the grade may be assigned from time to time.

It is a standard condition that all Trust staff may be required to serve at any location within the Trust's area, as needs of the service demand.

eHealth

The South Eastern Health & Social Care Trust has invested in eHealth to deliver better, faster, safer care to our community and is committed to supporting staff to utilise associated information systems that directly and indirectly inform care. Trust staff are therefore required to commit sufficient time to ensure that they acquire and/or retain the core technology skills required to support their role.

Personal and Public Involvement (PPI)

Staff members are expected to involve patients, clients, carers and the wider community were relevant, in developing, planning and delivering our services in a meaningful and effective way, as part of the Trust’s ongoing commitment to Personal and Public Involvement (PPI).

Please use the link below to access the PPI standards leaflet for further information. PPI_leaflet.pdf (hscni.net)

August 2026

PERSONNEL SPECIFICATION

DEPARTMENT / DIRECTORATE

SALARY

Band 4

HOURS

25

Ref No: 55884652

Notes to applicants

You must clearly demonstrate on your application form under each question, how you meet the required criteria as failure to do so may result in you not being shortlisted. You should clearly demonstrate this for both the essential and desirable criteria.

Shortlisting will be carried out on the basis of the essential criteria set out in Section 1 below, using the information provided by you on your application form. Please note the Trust reserves the right to use any desirable criteria outlined in Section 3 at shortlisting. You must clearly demonstrate on your application form how you meet the desirable criteria.

Proof of qualifications and/or professional registration will be required if an offer of employment is made – if you are unable to provide this, the offer may be withdrawn.

ESSENTIAL CRITERIA

SECTION 1: The following are ESSENTIAL criteria which will initially be measured at shortlisting stage although may also be further explored during the interview/selection stage. You should therefore make it clear on your application form whether or not you meet these criteria. Failure to do so may result in you not being shortlisted. The stage in the process when the criteria will be measured is stated below.

Factor

Criteria

Method of Assessment

Qualifications

QCF level 5 Diploma in Playwork, Early years, Childcare, Learning and Development studies or a relevant occupational qualification in early years education

Shortlisting by application form

Experience

At least 2 years paid experience of working with children 0-4 years in a care/educational setting

At least 1 years paid experience in a managerial/supervisors role in an Early Years setting

Other

Hold a current full driving licence which is valid for use in the UK and have access to a car on appointment. This criteria will be waived in the case of applicants whose disability prohibits driving but who have access to a form of transport approved by the Trust which will permit them to carry out the duties of the post.

SECTION 2: The following are ESSENTIAL criteria which will be measured during the interview/ selection stage:

Skills / Abilities

A passion for working with children and families and the ability to work effectively with them.

Ability to plan, organise and implement varied play programmes for appropriate age and stage of development of children.

To plan and lead programmes across sites.

Effective leadership and quality assurance.

Organisational ability to manage the service while adhering to policy and protocols.

Ability to work positively as part of a multi- disciplinary team

I.T. skills.

Interview / Test

Knowledge

Knowledge of SureStarts Aims and Objectives

Knowledge of the Developmental programme for 2/3 year olds.

DESIRABLE CRITERIA

SECTION 3: these will ONLY be used where it is necessary to introduce additional job related criteria to ensure files are manageable. You should therefore make it clear on your application form how you meet these criteria. Failure to do so may result in you not being shortlisted

At least 2 years of paid experience in a managerial/supervisors role in an Early Years Setting

Experience of working within the Developmental programme For 2/3 year Old setting.

As Essential Criteria

To access a copy of the Access NI Code of Practice, please Click here

The South Eastern Health & Social Care Trust has guidance on the Recruitment of People with Criminal Convictions. To access a copy of this guidance, please Click Here

Protecting and using your information

To access a copy of the Trust’s Data Protection Policy Statement,

Click Here

As part of the Recruitment & Selection process it may be necessary for The Organisation to carry out an Enhanced Disclosure Check through Access NI before any appointment to this post can be confirmed.

THE ORGANISATION IS AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES EMPLOYER

Successful applicants

may be required to attend for a Health Assessment

can expect to be placed at the minimum point of the pay scale, although a higher starting salary, within the range of the pay band may be available if the person appointed has experience relevant & equivalent to the post. Request for recognition of previous service with non-direct NHS/HSC organisations towards starting salary and incremental credit must be made via the Retained Recruitment team within 3 months from commencement of employment. Requests made after 3 months will not be considered. If the successful candidate is an existing HSC employee moving to a higher band, AfC Pay on Promotion will apply.

are able to request Flexible Working from the 1st day of their employment. A number of flexible working provisions are offered by all HSC Organisations including Full-time working, Fixed working patterns, Part-time working, Flexi-time, Compressed/elongated hours, Average hours working patterns, Term-time working, Job-share or Homeworking for some or all of the working pattern, depending on the role being undertaken. Successful applicants are encouraged to discuss with their manager what Flexible Working provisions may be available in the role they are taking up, prior to commencing employment, to help them achieve a positive Work/Life Balance

All staff are expected to display the HSC Values at all times