Child Care Operations Manager

Are you a strategic leader ready to guide two child care centres toward excellence in quality, compliance, and family experience?

Do you thrive in environments where high standards, strong governance, and meaningful community connection drive everything you do?

Do you want to be part of a team that’s growing, evolving, and committed to delivering exceptional early childhood education?

Our Child Care team are currently looking for a Child Care Operations Manager to join the team at our Hills or Brisbane Central campus. This role will be responsible for leading the strategic, operational, compliance, and growth functions of two childcare centres, ensuring consistent quality, regulatory compliance, and effective leadership of Centre Directors. The role is accountable for maintaining high standards of care while actively driving centre occupancy through local marketing and community engagement to support long term financial viability.

Other aspects of this role include:

Strategic & Operational Leadership

• Lead and support Centre Directors to deliver excellent centre operations, educational programs, and family experiences.
• Set operational standards, implement strategic direction, and ensure alignment across centres.
• Oversee centre performance, incl. occupancy, staffing, family engagement, educational quality, and financial outcomes.
• Facilitate cross-centre collaboration, shared learning, and the consistent application of organisational policies.
• Lead centre leadership meetings, planning cycles, and improvement initiatives.
• Provide coaching, guidance, and performance management support for Centre Directors.

Regulatory Compliance & Governance

• Ensure centres fully comply with the Education and Care Services National Law, National Regulations, ACECQA requirements, and state regulatory bodies.
• Monitor regulatory obligations including notifications, record keeping, curriculum compliance (Regulations 73–74), and Section 168 requirements.
• Establish and maintain the organisational compliance calendar.
• Oversee preparation and readiness for audits, assessments, ratings visits, and compliance investigations.
• Investigate and respond to incidents, complaints, and compliance issues in collaboration with Centre Directors.

Quality, Risk & Safety Oversight

• Lead the implementation of continuous improvement across both centres.
• Ensure risk assessments, incident management, WHS practices, and emergency procedures are up to date and executed effectively.
• Maintain high standards of child safety, safeguarding, and protection.
• Oversee quality assurance processes, internal reviews, and improvement plans aligned with the National Quality Standard (NQS).

Centre Occupancy, Marketing & Community Engagement

• Drive sustained occupancy growth through targeted local marketing, digital promotion, and strong community visibility, collaborating with the Arts & Comms Department as needed for branding and content support.
• Build strong community presence through relationships with families, schools, churches, and local organisations.
• Oversee enquiry pipelines, family tours, and enrolment conversion, monitoring trends to inform occupancy strategy.
• Support Centre Directors to implement effective enrolment practices and positive family engagement that encourages retention.

Staffing & Workforce Management

• Ensure staffing levels meet educator to child ratios and qualification requirements.
• Approve staffing structures, role nominations (e.g., Nominated Supervisor, Educational Leader), and succession plans.
• Support Centre Directors with recruitment, onboarding, performance management, and professional development planning.
• Oversee compliance for mandatory training and professional learning.

External Relations & Stakeholder Engagement

• Liaise with regulatory authorities (ACECQA, NSW/QLD education departments) on behalf of both centres.
• Provide required notifications (serious incidents, allegations, complaints, hazards).
• Build positive relationships with vendors, contractors, external specialists, and community partners.
• Represent centres within organisational initiatives and at executive or governance meetings.

Ideally, the successful candidate will bring:

• Bachelor’s Degree or Diploma in Early Childhood Education, Educational Leadership, compliance, or a related field.
• Experience in managing or overseeing multi site early childhood services desireable.
• Strong knowledge of the NQF, National Law, National Regulations, ACECQA processes, Child Care Subsidy compliance, and state-based regulatory requirements.
• Demonstrated capacity to lead leaders, drive improvement, and maintain excellence across complex environments.
• Experience in policy development, risk management, audits, and regulatory engagement.

If this sounds like you, we would love for you to apply today!

Applications close: 29 March 2026, 11.59pm AEDT

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