Nursery Manager
Lead the next chapter of Overbury Grasshoppers
An early-years leadership opportunity, rooted in the countryside
Grasshoppers isn't a conventional nursery and we are looking for more than a conventional Nursery Manager.
Set within a working rural community near Tewkesbury, Grasshoppers gives children the opportunity to learn through the world immediately around them: farming, food, animals, gardens, woodland, wildlife and the changing seasons.
We are looking for an exceptional, appropriately qualified early-years leader to take responsibility for this established independent nursery and help shape what comes next.
Could that be you?
The opportunity
At Grasshoppers, outdoor learning is not an occasional activity.
Children can visit the kitchen garden, experience life on the farm, explore woodland, wildlife and nature, understand where food comes from and learn through practical, sensory experiences.
The nursery was built and later managed as part of a wider commitment to children, families, the village school and the thriving rural community.
Over 20 years on, we are looking for someone who can build on those foundations.
This is a genuine leadership opportunity: to inspire the team, take ownership of the nursery, create new opportunities for the children and make the most of everything that being part of Overbury offers.
Who we are looking for
You will be an appropriately qualified early-years professional with the experience and credibility to lead a nursery setting.
You may already be a Nursery Manager or an exceptional Deputy ready for your next step.
Just as importantly, you will be:
- curious, positive and practical;
- comfortable taking responsibility and finding solutions;
- able to inspire and develop a team;
- confident building relationships with parents and colleagues;
- excited by outdoor learning, farming, food and nature;
- willing to ask questions and learn;
- prepared to get involved rather than manage from a distance; and
- looking for meaningful, long-term responsibility.
You do not need to come from an agricultural background.
What matters is that the environment excites you and you can see its potential for children's learning.
What you would lead
The Nursery Manager will:
- lead and inspire the Grasshoppers team;
- ensure excellent standards of early-years care, safeguarding and education;
- take responsibility for the nursery's day-to-day operation;
- work closely with parents;
- strengthen links across Overbury;
- develop the nursery's distinctive outdoor and countryside approach; and
- help identify opportunities for its future development.
Why Grasshoppers?
A genuinely distinctive setting
Fields, gardens, woodland, animals and a working farm form part of the children's wider learning environment.
Freedom to lead
This is an independent nursery looking for someone with initiative and judgement, not simply someone to follow a formula.
An established team and community
You will join a nursery with strong roots in Overbury and an important place within the surrounding community. We have several longstanding staff; three are Qualified Teachers, several are experienced Early Years Practitioners. Our newer members bring many years of knowledge from other settings, and we have an impressive new apprentice, with fresh enthusiasm and ideas, who is just embarking on her Early Years career supported by the team. A couple of Grasshopppers’ alumni have returned to Overbury, either to the Nursery, but also as part of our farm team as a full-time gap year student from Hartpury.
A future to shape
There is scope for the right person to bring ideas and help determine how Grasshoppers develops. The Nursery Manager will also be part of the wider Overbury Enterprises team, with managers and departments working across the farm, gardens, buildings and estate sharing their knowledge and helping to create opportunities for the children.
Practical support
A property is available to rent.
Interested?
Perhaps you are actively looking for a new role.
Perhaps you weren't - until you read this.
Either way, if you are an experienced early-years professional and the opportunity to lead a nursery immersed in countryside life has caught your imagination, we would like to hear from you.
For further information, please contact:
Penelope Bossom (Managing Partner)
email: [email protected]