Operations/General Manager
Job description
Original text imported from Reed
A growing early years education provider is partnering with NET Recruit to appoint an Operations/General Manager on a permanent basis, overseeing multiple nursery settings across South East London.
This well-established childcare organisation operates a network of high-quality early years settings, delivering safe, nurturing and development-focused environments for children. With a strong emphasis on emotional intelligence, creativity and exploration, the organisation works closely with families and local communities to support positive outcomes for every child.
With a clear focus on operational excellence, regulatory compliance and continuous improvement, the organisation invests heavily in leadership capability and performance management across its settings. The group is recognised for maintaining high standards of care, strong safeguarding practices and a consistent drive toward outstanding Ofsted outcomes.
Your Role and Responsibilities:
While in this position your duties may include but are not limited to:
- Providing strategic and operational leadership across multiple nursery settings within the region
- Leading, coaching and developing Nursery Managers to drive accountability, performance and team effectiveness
- Driving operational excellence, ensuring consistency in service delivery, educational standards and safeguarding practices
- Overseeing staffing structures, recruitment, retention and performance management across the nursery portfolio
- Monitoring key performance indicators including occupancy, revenue, staffing ratios and cost control
- Conducting regular site visits, audits and performance reviews to identify risks and improvement opportunities
- Implementing and embedding operational processes, policies and best practices across all locations
- Ensuring full compliance with EYFS, Ofsted requirements and safeguarding regulations
- Acting as a Designated Safeguarding Lead and providing oversight on safeguarding matters and investigations
- Supporting nurseries to achieve and maintain strong Ofsted ratings
- Collaborating with senior leadership to analyse data, drive decision-making and deliver business improvements
- Leading the integration and operational setup of new nursery settings within the region
- Building strong stakeholder relationships with parents, teams and the wider community
- Representing the organisation in external meetings, inspections and sector engagements
What You Will Need To Apply:
- Significant experience in early years education, ideally within a multi-site, regional or senior leadership role
- Proven track record of managing operations across multiple locations or driving performance improvements at scale
- Degree educated, ideally in Early Years Education, Child Development, Education Leadership or a related discipline
- Strong working knowledge of EYFS, Ofsted frameworks and safeguarding requirements
- Demonstrated leadership capability with experience coaching and developing managers
- Strong commercial and operational awareness, including financial performance and resource management
- Excellent analytical skills with the ability to interpret data and translate insights into action
- Confident communicator with the ability to influence at all levels
- Designated Safeguarding Lead training and Paediatric First Aid (desirable)
- Full UK working rights and willingness to travel regularly across sites
The successful candidate will receive a competitive salary and access to a comprehensive benefits package designed to support wellbeing, career development and professional growth.
This organisation offers a collaborative and forward-thinking environment, with a strong emphasis on leadership development and operational excellence. You will have the opportunity to make a tangible impact across multiple settings, shaping performance, culture and outcomes within a growing, mission-driven organisation.
If this fantastic opportunity appeals to you then please don't hesitate to contact:
Richard Quin - Director Global Insurance
M: 07961 425489
E:
Key skills
AI-extracted from the job advert
Application advice
5 AI-generated recommendations to maximise your chances.
⭐ Highlight your multi-site operations experience at the top of your CV as the role specifically requires managing multiple nursery locations across South East London
📊 Quantify your operational achievements: 'Improved occupancy rates by 15% across 8 nursery settings' or 'Reduced staff turnover by 25%'
🎯 Emphasise your EYFS and Ofsted expertise prominently as these are critical regulatory requirements mentioned throughout the advert
🔒 Showcase your Designated Safeguarding Lead credentials and any safeguarding training certifications you hold
🌟 Include specific examples of coaching nursery managers and driving performance improvements across teams
Suggested CV bullets
3 bullets our AI drafted for this specific advert, mirroring its ATS keywords.
Add these 3 bullets under your most recent experience:
- •Led operational oversight of 6 nursery settings across South London, achieving 95% occupancy rates and maintaining Outstanding Ofsted ratings for 4 locations
- •Coached 12 nursery managers through performance improvement programmes, reducing staff turnover by 30% and improving EYFS compliance scores by 25%
- •Implemented standardised safeguarding procedures across multi-site portfolio, ensuring 100% regulatory compliance and successful Ofsted inspections
Free to copy — tailoring requires a 30-sec CV upload.
Your cover letter is ready
We've drafted a cover letter for NET Recruit. Preview the opening, then unlock the full personalised version.
Letter preview — tailored to NET Recruit
Dear Hiring Manager,
Your Operations/General Manager position at NET Recruit's client organisation represents exactly the multi-site early years leadership challenge I'm seeking. My background in EYFS compliance and Ofsted preparation across multiple nursery settings aligns perfectly with your need for operational excellence and regulatory oversight.
My background in early years education management has equipped me with the skills to drive performance improvements whilst maintaining the highest safeguarding standards. I have successfully coached nursery managers, monitored key performance indicators, and led teams through Ofsted inspections, consistently achieving strong ratings through strategic operational leadership.
Free signup, no card needed. Export to PDF/Word requires a £1.99 trial (14 days).
Interview questions
10 questions generated from this advert.
Technical
- ›How do you ensure EYFS compliance across multiple nursery settings?
- ›What KPIs do you monitor to assess nursery performance?
- ›How do you prepare nurseries for Ofsted inspections?
- ›Describe your approach to safeguarding oversight across multiple sites
- ›How do you manage staffing ratios and recruitment challenges?
Behavioural
- ›Tell me about a time you had to improve underperforming nursery operations
- ›Describe a situation where you coached a struggling nursery manager
- ›How do you handle conflicting priorities across multiple locations?
- ›Give an example of how you've built stakeholder relationships with parents
- ›Describe a time you had to manage a serious safeguarding incident
STAR answer examples
Model answers using the Situation-Task-Action-Result framework. Adapt to your own experience.
Tell me about a time you had to improve underperforming nursery operations
Describe a situation where you coached a struggling nursery manager