Operations Officer

• 8:30am to 3:00pm on Fridays, in term time, starting this Autumn. 
• £12.60 per hour
• Based at Horizon Youth Zone, Cartergate House, 26 Chantry Ln, Grimsby, DN31 2LJ
• Reporting to the Head of Babyzone Grimsby

About Babyzone:

Babyzone is a charity which aims to support parents with children in the early years, aged 0 to 5 years.  We are focused on removing barriers that many parents face in accessing high quality early years provision.

Babyzones are made up of soft play and evidence-based early years classes, one day a week in a clean, safe and welcoming environment. We design our approach around the needs of families who may not otherwise be able to access this support, but are open to all. Parents and carers do not sign up in advance, there is no timetable, no charge and we do not ask for any names or personal details. We believe that by removing barriers we are creating a fully accessible, inclusive place for parents and carers to bring their children to talk, read, sing and play together.  Babyzone Grimsby is a brand new Babyzone and we hope to be welcoming 180+ families each week as we do in our other Babyzone sites.

The Role:

The Babyzone Operations Officer is the face of Babyzone for our families and is responsible for ensuring that the set up and operations of the Babyzone run smoothly throughout the day. This role would be well suited to someone with experience working with or supporting children and families - for example, in nurseries, schools, or family hubs. It may also appeal to a parent seeking term - time work during school hours, or to someone currently studying for, or who has completed, a childcare-related qualification.

Key Activities:

• Setting up and packing away Babyzone each Friday. This will include preparing the space by moving furniture, adjusting the layout to meet the needs of the families and ensuring that the space is clear of any hazards.
• Supporting the external class leads to bring in all of the equipment from the storage container that is required to deliver the Babyzone each week.
• Supporting with the set up and packing away of the exploratory areas/soft play areas and overseeing these areas during the day (making sure there is no food or shoes on the mats, keeping the space tidy, safe and free of hazards).
• Setting up and maintaining additional elements such as a book corner and ensuring easy access to buggy parking and the baby-changing facilities.
• Personally welcoming each family to Babyzone, engaging with families and their children throughout the day, facilitating relationships, building community and signposting to local services.
• Capturing family numbers by entering basic postcode data into a digital form as families arrive at Babyzone
• Acting as a point of contact and problem solver for any issues during the day that are raised by families or class leaders to ensure the smooth running of the Babyzone.
• Welcoming external stakeholders to Babyzone
• Championing the Babyzone ethos and mission
• Meeting regularly with the Head of Babyzone Grimsby to share good practice

Your skills and experience:

• You must love engaging with all families and young children
• Understand and care about Babyzone's mission
• Be motivated and committed to the Babyzone principles and show sensitivity to the needs of the families who visit Babyzone
• Have experience working with or supporting children and families - for example, in a nursery, school, or family hub setting
• Be energetic and proactive, remaining calm under pressure
• Value and support everyone who comes into contact with Babyzone with an awareness of, and commitment to equal opportunities, equality and diversity
• Have an awareness of the importance of safeguarding children and understand that this is the responsibility of everyone
• Be comfortable with the physical demands of moving furniture around and be up for the challenge of a quick set up and close down process.
• Work effectively as part of a team
• Have excellent verbal communication skills

Babyzone will offer:

• Safeguarding training and DBS check
• Training and development opportunities

Babyzone is committed to safer recruitment practice as an important part of safeguarding and protecting children and vulnerable adults.  If successful in your application for this role, you will have a DBS check approved prior to your first day in the job