Location
London

Hours
Full Time

Salary
£50,000 per annum

About the Role
Kido operates 21 nurseries in and around London, dedicated to providing the highest quality early years education and care. We create magical and engaging learning spaces infused with cutting edge pedagogy, brought to life by great teachers who nurture every child’s curiosity, creativity and lifelong learning ability. We believe a combination of free and structured play, an engaging environment, and abundant love and care provide the best foundation for children in their early years.

We are seeking a fantastic People & Quality Manager to nurture our people throughout their employee journey by delivering training and supporting career development. Unlike traditional structures, we do not have Area or Regional Managers focused on spreadsheets or nursery-level P&L. Instead, our People & Quality Managers focus on getting the quality of care and education just right in their regions.

Our People & Quality Managers work closely with the Performance Director, Head of People and Chief Operations Officer to oversee nursery operations. You will be directly responsible for leading Nursery Managers through coaching, mentoring, and implementing robust action plans and performance management strategies to ensure excellence for children and families. Role modelling leadership behaviours to positively impact team engagement and staff retention is key.

The role involves significant time spent in nurseries embedding and empowering teams, balanced with protecting time for strategy and development work. You will need to manage competing demands effectively and navigate complex trade-offs. This is an exciting opportunity for a team player with initiative, resilience and gumption who wants to make a meaningful impact on our people, children and parents.

Experience
Proven leadership experience managing nursery or early years teams is highly desirable. Experience in delivering training, coaching and mentoring within early years settings is essential. Knowledge of the Early Years Statutory Framework (EYFS) and early years legislation is required. Experience supporting Ofsted inspections and managing compliance is advantageous.

About you
You are a hands-on problem solver who leads through culture, values and behaviours to drive excellence. You enjoy spending time in nurseries, embedding best practices and role modelling from within the rooms. You empower your teams to succeed independently and manage operational challenges effectively. You are resilient, proactive and able to manage competing priorities and complex trade-offs. You have excellent interpersonal skills and a passion for developing people and improving quality in early years education.

Qualifications
Relevant qualifications in early years education, leadership or management are desirable but not mandatory. You will be expected to have a sound knowledge of early years legislation and compliance requirements. Commitment to ongoing professional development and supporting apprentices and EYITT students towards qualification is essential.

Key Responsibilities
- Provide exceptional leadership and line management to nursery management teams
- Spend time in every nursery to embed best practices and role model leadership
- Support teams with daily operational challenges
- Ensure nurseries are staffed and supported daily
- Manage regional commercial performance including budgets and costs
- Ensure compliance with EYFS and early years legislation
- Oversee regulatory training and company inductions
- Identify training needs and develop personal development plans
- Lead and support Ofsted inspections
- Ensure delivery of the Kido curriculum to an outstanding level
- Develop soft skills through training, workshops and coaching
- Support apprentices and EYITT students towards qualification
- Advise and support nursery teams on safeguarding concerns and ensure robust follow-up actions

Additional Information
Kido is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of all children. Successful candidates will undergo pre-employment checks including enhanced DBS and barred lists checks. All applications are considered in line with the Equality Act 2010. Disclosure of relevant criminal records is required as part of the recruitment process.