Level 3 Qualified Nursery Practitioner

Southampton, England, United Kingdom

6/24/2025

Job Overview

University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust is delighted to offer a fantastic opportunity to work with us.

Main duties of the job

Are you a compassionate and caring individual looking to grow your career as a Qualified Practitioner in a fun and nurturing environment? If so, we are currently looking for both part-time and full-time enthusiastic Level 3 Qualified Nursery Practitioners to join our friendly team at our Trust Taplins at the Western Community Hospital!

We offer childcare from 3 months to 5 years in our bright and airy nursery. The nursery has a dedicated craft and messy play area and access to a large and secure outside space- so lots of opportunities for adventure for our children!

We also have cosy sleeping areas for when they need to rest. You will be looking after a group of children and ensuring that all their needs are met during the day and that they have fun and engaging activities planned.

Taplins operates two purpose-built day nurseries supporting our local NHS staff, and being part of the UHS family means you'll have access to lots of great benefits such as generous holiday allowance, and a discount scheme.

We're open Monday- Friday from 7 am to 6.30 pm and closed bank holidays. Please contact us if you would like to discuss shift patterns in more detail.

Further details on our current part-time hours available can be found below.

Working for our organisation

University Hospital Southampton is one of England's largest acute teaching Trusts, offering a wide range of learning and development opportunities to support your career aspirations.

Located on the south coast with an international airport and direct rail links to London, Southampton offers an ideal setting to live and work, with the New Forest, South Downs and Jurassic Coast.

We believe that using technology wisely shows strong time management and commitment to innovation. However, personalizing your recruitment application to highlight your unique skills and experiences is crucial. Relying too heavily on generic, AI-generated content instead of drawing from your own strengths and accomplishments may lead to your application being rejected if multiple candidates present identical or similar information.

At UHS we’re committed to providing a flexible working environment where possible. Whether you are balancing family, study, or your wellbeing with your career, we want to support you so you can help our patients.

At UHS, we proudly champion individuality, recognizing that outstanding care is only possible with a diverse, inclusive team. We’re committed to creating an anti-racist, anti-discriminatory environment where everyone feels valued, safe, and empowered to make a meaningful impact in our communities. We welcome applicants of all backgrounds, identities, and experiences to join us in building a healthcare community where everyone can belong, thrive, and contribute.

Detailed Job Description And Main Responsibilities

Working Hours

We currently have a part-time position available with the following hours:

• 15 hours a week
  
  

We still encourage applications for other hours. If you are eligible for the role, we can add you to our talent pool and contact you when additional hours become available.

General Duties

• To be fully responsible for the children in your care, providing a consistently safe, secure, and stimulating environment.
• To provide a wide range of enjoyable, stimulating, and educational activities for a group of children, covering all aspects of the child's individual development by the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS).
• To be a key person (if allocated a group by the Nursery Manager) building a strong attachment and knowing your key children well as individuals.
• To maintain required records of children’s development, learning and activities.
• To work alongside the nursery SENDco to support children with additional needs ensuring that their development is promoted as fully as possible.
• Ensure that all policies and procedures are adhered to and if there are any concerns, problems or issues these are escalated appropriately to the Duty Manager and/or the management team.
• Promoting a high standard of cleanliness and hygiene standards through monitoring and supervising nappy changing/toilet and washing procedures, regular cleaning of toys and equipment, the cleaning of children’s crockery and bedding.
• Assist in the preparation and serving of food and supervision of meal times.
• To exercise a duty of care for work colleagues and to be responsible for ensuring a safe working environment for all children, staff and visitors.
• You will plan and carry out a variety of fun activities with the children in line with the Early Years curriculum.
• You are also responsible for evaluating the activities, and for maintaining online learning journals via Tapestry.
  
  

To understand the role in more detail please read the full job description and person specification documents.

Person specification

Qualifications, Knowledge And Experience

Essential criteria

• Good standard of secondary education with literacy and numeracy skills demonstrable to GCSE pass level or equivalent standard
• To hold a full and relevant Level 3 Early Years Qualification (in accordance with https://www.gov.uk/guidance/early-years-qualifications-finder ) or above. If level 3 qualified post June 2016, to also hold a full paediatric first aid (PFA) or an emergency PFA certificate
• Recent previous experiences of working with 3 months – 5-year-olds within a childcare setting.
  
  

Desirable criteria

• Current paediatric and/or first aid at work certificate if qualified pre- June 2016, or if candidate holds a qualification higher than level 3
• Current food hygiene certificate
  
  

Trust Values

Essential criteria

• Patients First
• Always Improving
• Working Together