My life at work

Job title: Centre manager of after-school and holiday provision

Employer: Hammersmith & Fulham Council's education department (lifelong learning, childcare, learning and play)

Salary: 24,129 - 25,533

Duties

As the centre manager, I have overall responsibility for monitoring and developing all areas of play and childcare provision at the Distillery Centre in Hammersmith, West London. My goal is to provide high quality after-school and holiday care and activities.

The needs of children and families who visit the centre are changing all the time, so it is a case of identifying their requirements and motivating staff to provide a service that meets these changing needs. Clear programmes also have to be established for staff, including supervision, training, appraisals and the delegation of tasks and responsibilities.

There are a lot of activities going on in the centre at any one time and it falls within my remit to organise these. At the moment I am developing the toy library for children under five and the use of the multi-sensory room for relaxation and play.

It is important that activities and services are inclusive of all children and families in the community, and one of the ways I address this is by running sessions for disabled children in the multi-sensory room.

A lot of my time is spent liaising with partner organisations to provide other activities and services, including dance and music tuition, visits by a Sure Start librarian, baby massage, and speech and language therapy.

Maintaining and developing partnerships with local schools is a priority, as is ensuring that services are of a high enough standard to be endorsed by Ofsted and accredited under the Quality Assurance programme and Aiming High.

Parents forums are co-ordinated twice a year to give service users the opportunity to provide feedback. The administrative side of my job also involves financial monitoring and ensuring that risk assessments are carried out regularly. The building and outside area have to be well maintained and supervised in the interests of health and safety.

It is my responsibility to ensure the welfare, care and supervision of the children is in keeping with the Children Act and council policies. I make sure I keep up to date with current legislation in childcare policy and practice so I can always respond positively.

Likes

I find my job exciting because of the many new initiatives I have been involved in. For example, we have recently developed a toy library that is accessible to the local community and we facilitate other community groups run by the Sure Start programme. I have a passion for working with children aged between five and 11, and I enjoy working with parents and carers.

Working as part of a diverse team is both stimulating and a challenge, and I find the sharing of skills and experiences extremely rewarding. The flexible hours suit my lifestyle and I like the fact that I have lots of opportunities to develop my skills through training programmes.

Dislikes

The downside of the job is that lunchtimes are often interrupted and children are left late after closing.

Best achievements

Starting up a care provision on this side of the borough and receiving an excellent Ofsted report were very satisfying. Developing and running the toy library and multi-sensory room have also been rewarding projects.

Gaining my NVQ 3 definitely counts as one of my best achievements.

Training

I recently completed my NVQ 3, which is a requirement of this management position. For this I studied appraisals, equal opportunities, team building, child protection and risk assessments. I have also attended various management courses.

Career path

I began working part-time in play to subsidise my studies while training to be a teacher. However, I enjoyed the work so much that I decided to go into playwork full time - beginning as a playworker and gradually working my way up to a more senior level.

Career progression

Within the overall structure of the play service my post is on the fourth tier of the hierarchy. The structure in play provision is - manager, deputy and playworkers.

Advice

The best approach is to try a voluntary placement to see if the job is really for you and then opt for a training course. You need to enjoy working as part of a team, have lots of energy, enthusiasm and creativity, and be a good communicator.

Interests & hobbies

I enjoy attending keep-fit classes and am very interested in French culture. I enjoy reading, countryside walks and spending time with my family.

Useful contacts:

* Playworkers information www.skillsactive.com

* Children's Information Service www.childcarelink.gov.uk

* Local council www.lbhf.gov.uk