Job Description

Location:

Leiston, Suffolk

Salary:

Up to 26,499 per annum (pro rata) dependent on experience

Contract/Hours:

Permanent/Part Time - 24 hours per week

Closing Date:

Midnight on the 29 th of January 2026

Benefits:

Time off to recharge

- 25 days plus bank holidays

24/7 Confidential Helpline

- speak to trained counsellors any time, 365 days a year, for emotional, wellbeing or mental health support.

Enhanced Wellbeing

-8 sessions In-Person, Phone, or Online Counselling or CBT

Treat yourself

- Staff discounts portal and blue light card with 15,000 + retailers

Childcare Discount

- Enjoy 60% off childcare within our nurseries and out of school clubs

Up to 3 Days Dependency Leave

- to care for dependents in an emergency. Paid maternity, adoption, and paternity leave

Gain professional qualifications

- with excellent training/development opportunities

Salary Finance

- access to financial advice and the ability to manage savings or loans directly from your salary

Secure your future

- Pension with up to 7% employer contribution with included life assurance cover

Why Spring Nurseries

Imagine a place where laughter echoes, imaginations run wild, and every day is new adventure. At Spring Nurseries, where more than a collection of settings, we are a family, dedicated to nurturing children to thrive and supporting staff through a clear career pathway.

A day in the life of an Early Years Practitioner

As an Early Years Practitioner (Level 3, Level 2 considered) at Spring Leiston, you'll support children through their daily activities, helping them learn, play, and explore in a safe and nurturing environment.


You'll guide and mentor staff, helping them develop their skills and confidence, and work closely with the team to ensure a high-quality care and meaningful learning experiences for every child. You'll support routines and be a part of a team that ensures every child feels confident, happy, and engaged throughout the day.

About Spring Leiston

Our 49- place nursery is a vibrant, welcoming space where discovery happens every day. With 3 home-from-home base rooms, we've created an environment that feels cosy as it is creative.


From cooking and gardening to dancing, messy play, and make-believe, we believe learning should be joyful. Our team is passionate about helping every child explore the world at their own pace and ensuring staff enjoy the journey just as much.

About the role:

As a Level 3 practitioner in our nursery, you'll play a vital role in shaping young lives during their most important early years.

You'll be someone who:

Builds warm, trusting relationships with children and families. Creates a nurturing, stimulating environment where every child can thrive. Support children's development through play, curiosity, and care. Embraces inclusive practise and adapts to meet individual needs.

What we need from you

In the role of Early Years Practitioner (Level 3), we're ideally looking for someone who has:


A Level 3 Early Years and Childcare qualification (NNEB, CACHE, NVQ Level 2 or 3 or equivalent) Experience in planning and delivering educational programmes for children aged 0 to 5, tailored to their individual needs and developmental stages. The ability to observe, guidance support less experienced colleagues, helping them to develop their skills. Experience applying effective communication techniques with children and their families. Knowledge of children's emotional, physical, psychological, and educational development from 0-5 years Awareness and understanding of special educational needs (SEN) and how these are supported in an early year setting.

Ready to make a difference in the lives of children? Whether you're looking for a career change or the next step in your journey, we'd love to hear from you!

Contact:

If you need support with your application, please contact our Recruitment Team at RecruitmentService@actionforchildren.org.uk quoting reference 12512.


We'll be happy to give you any support you require.

Diversity, Equality and Inclusion

At Spring Oscars we're dedicated to building a diverse, inclusive, and authentic workplace. We actively encourage applications from Black, Asian & Minority Ethnic and disabled candidates as they are under-represented within the organisation. We want to take deliberate and purposeful action to ensure equal opportunity to all groups.


Male staff are often under-represented within this sector, and we would like to encourage more male applicants for our roles.


We are committed to safer recruitment practices to protect our service users; therefore, all applicants are expected to have an understanding of and commitment to safeguarding best-practice.

Don't meet every single requirement?

If you're excited about this role but your experience doesn't align perfectly with the job description, we'd love you to apply anyway. You might just be the perfect person for this role, or another role within the Action for Children family.

Application Process

Please note we are unable to offer visa sponsorship for this role.

There are 5 sections for you to complete - Personal Details, CV, Supporting Statement & Information, Equality & Diversity, Submission & Declaration - please refer to the JD and Person Specification when applying.


We also want to know what unique qualities you can bring to help us reach our vision for children and families.

Talent Pool:

We're sure you've got what it takes to join our ambitious team. If you're unsuccessful this time around, we'd like to hold your details in case similar jobs come up that you might be better suited for. But feel free to let us know if you'd rather we didn't do that.



If you need support with your application, please contact our Recruitment Partner



We'll be happy to give you any support you require.

Want to know more about Spring and Oscars?

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