Play Assistant, St Madoes Primary School Nursery, Glencarse

Main Purpose of the Role

Working within Perth & Kinross Council is more than a job, it's about being part of an organisation that puts people at the heart of all we do and provides opportunities to make a real difference by enhancing every life we touch.

We currently have the following opportunity:

Play Assistant - PKC13332
£9,608 - £9,851 (16 Hours per week, Term-time only)
St. Madoes Primary School Nursery, Glencarse

Are you enthusiastic, motivated, and passionate about working with young children?

If so, we have an exciting opportunity for a Play Assistant to become part of our friendly, supportive Nursery team.

You’ll play a key role in ensuring the smooth running of our Nursery, especially during the busy lunchtime period, where teamwork and flexibility are essential.

An exciting opportunity has arisen for a Play Assistant to work as part of the nursery team at St. Madoes Primary School.

This is an excellent opportunity for an individual to enter into the profession and progress a career in childcare, gaining experience while being supported to gain a qualification.

As a Play Assistant you will assist in the provision of high quality play and lunchtime experiences within Early Learning and Childcare.  This will involve contributing to the development, planning and implementation of appropriate experiences within a play/care curriculum before, during and after lunch time.  

Please note, it is anticipated that interviews for this post will be held at the school on Monday 22 December 2025.

Skills & Experience Required

No entry qualifications are required, however you will be required and supported to work towards one of the qualifications below: 

• NC / HNC Early Education and Childcare
• SVQ Level 2 or / 3 in Social Services (Children & Young People).

You will be required to register with the Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC) for Day Care of Children within 6 months of commencing employment and responsible for maintaining annual membership. 

The successful candidate will be supported to access further training both award bearing and continued professional development.

We’re looking for someone who is:

• Friendly and approachable, able to build positive relationships with children, staff, and parents.
• Proactive and confident, able to work on your own initiative.
• Committed to following local and national guidance on food hygiene, nutritional standards, and practical procedures.

If you love working with children and want to make a real difference in a warm, welcoming environment, we’d love to hear from you!

Working at Perth & Kinross Council

Our values and behaviours influence our work and support us in the delivery of our key priorities. In your application, and should you be invited to interview, you will be asked to describe situations that support the criteria required in the role and which also demonstrate our values and behaviours. Find out more about Perth & Kinross Council and you could soon be joining our team!

Here's what we can offer you:

• A generous annual leave package
• 6 days public holiday and an additional discretionary day
• Eligibility to join our pension scheme
• Family friendly and positive work/life balance policies such as Flexible Working, Maternity, Paternity & Adoption leave, time off for volunteering and our Wellbeing Framework
• Access to a range of benefits
• Paid SSSC annual membership for relevant positions

We recognise there can be benefits to flexible working and where individual jobs allow, we seek to support this. You are encouraged to discuss potential options with the recruiting manager, if this is of interest to you. A healthy work life balance is important to us and we provide supportive management and, where possible, flexible working arrangements to help you achieve that balance. You will have access to training and support for continued professional development.

This role requires you to be registered with the Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC), if you are not yet registered, you can still apply, as long as you are willing to apply for registration within 3 months of starting with us and be registered within 6 months.

Next Steps

We would love to hear from you and would encourage you to get in touch with Lisa Millar, Head Teacher on 01738 459500 to find out more.

Click “APPLY NOW”

External candidates are required to provide contact details for 2 referees, including email addresses. One of these must be your current or most recent employer.

We welcome applications from everyone and as a Disability Confident employer, we guarantee to interview applicants who declare a disability and meet the essential requirements of the post. Please contact the hiring manager above or the Recruitment Team on (01738) 475555 or recruitment@pkc.gov.uk to discuss any reasonable adjustments. Appointments are based on evidence supplied during the selection process.

Diversity is important to us and although some of our jobs may be perceived to be traditionally gender specific, we welcome applications from everyone and would encourage you to apply if you meet the job requirements. That includes welcoming applications from former armed forces personnel/reservists. Many of the skills picked up during your military career could be transferred directly into a role with local government.

Working with children and/or protected adults is regarded as a regulated role and under the Disclosure (Scotland) Act 2020 you will be required to join the PVG Scheme or undergo a PVG Scheme update check.

If you have lived overseas for a period of 12 months or more (continuous or total) within the last 10 years, an Overseas Criminal Record Check will be required. You will be required to provide this check.

A confirmed offer of employment and commencement in the post will be subject to the outcome of the above mentioned mandatory pre-employment checks (including references) and will also include eligibility to work in the UK, qualifications and fitness to undertake the post.