Senior Support Worker

GO Kids

Location: Go Kids, C/O Kinnaird Primary School, Larbert

Salary: £17,506.80 (averaged over the year)

Hours: 7:45am - 9am and 2:45pm - 6pm term-time. 8am - 6pm during holidays (10 hours per week Easter and October and 15 hours per week for Summer holidays)

Contract: Permanent

Closing Date: 21st September 2026

About the Role

GO Kids is looking for an enthusiastic, caring and confident Senior Support Worker to join our team.

This is a hands-on role within a busy and varied out-of-school care environment. The Senior Support Worker works closely with the Practitioner, who has overall responsibility for the day-to-day running of the service, providing support and leadership to the staff team and helping to ensure children have a safe, happy, inclusive and fun experience.

The Senior Support Worker will provide day-to-day leadership and support to a team of approximately seven staff. They will help organise the team, respond to challenges and ensure the service runs smoothly.

An important part of the role is being able to step up and take the lead when the Practitioner is absent. The Senior Support Worker will also take a leading role during our full-day holiday club sessions, when the service is particularly busy and there are increased demands on the staff team.

We are looking for someone who can remain calm when things don't go to plan, make sensible decisions, support their colleagues and keep children at the heart of everything they do.

What Will You Be Doing?

As a Senior Support Worker, you will:

• Work closely with the Practitioner to support the effective day-to-day running of the service.
• Provide day-to-day leadership, guidance and support to a team of approximately seven staff.
• Help organise staff responsibilities and ensure everyone understands their role.
• Take responsibility for leading the session when the Practitioner is absent.
• Take an active leadership role during full-day holiday club sessions.
• Remain calm, professional and solution-focused during busy or challenging situations.
• Think on your feet and respond appropriately when plans change or unexpected situations arise.
• Manage competing priorities while maintaining a high standard of care and supervision.
• Recognise when colleagues need additional support and provide guidance in a calm and constructive way.
• Communicate effectively with the Practitioner and wider management team, knowing when matters need to be escalated.
• Build positive and professional relationships with children, families and colleagues.
• Welcome families and communicate confidently and respectfully with parents and carers.
• Listen to concerns and respond appropriately, without becoming defensive.
• Help create a warm, welcoming and inclusive environment where every child feels valued and listened to.
• Build fun, warm, trusting and compassionate relationships with children.
• Be actively involved in children's play rather than simply supervising from the side.
• Support children to make choices, develop friendships and have positive experiences.
• Respond appropriately to individual children's needs and promote inclusion.
• Follow safeguarding, health and safety, confidentiality and wellbeing procedures.
• Ensure appropriate records and documentation are completed.
• Support the team to maintain a safe, clean, stimulating and well-organised environment.
• Contribute to team meetings, reflection, training and ongoing service improvement.

The Person

We are looking for someone who genuinely enjoys being around children and understands that great out-of-school care is about much more than keeping children safe.

You will be someone who can build genuine relationships with children, join in their play and help create an environment where children feel comfortable being themselves.

You will also need to be a confident team player who can provide leadership without losing sight of the fact that the Practitioner has overall responsibility for the service.

When the Practitioner is absent, we need someone who is comfortable stepping up, taking responsibility and making decisions within their role.

You should be able to walk into a busy session, quickly recognise what needs to happen, support your colleagues and deal calmly with whatever the day brings.

You will need to be:

• Calm and composed under pressure.
• Confident but approachable.
• Caring, compassionate and empathetic.
• A positive role model for colleagues and children.
• Able to communicate professionally with families.
• Comfortable having difficult or challenging conversations respectfully.
• Organised and able to prioritise.
• Adaptable and able to respond positively to change.
• A good listener.
• Solution-focused rather than problem-focused.
• Fair and consistent when supporting colleagues.
• Confident enough to take the lead when required, while knowing when to seek advice or escalate an issue.
• Enthusiastic about children's play, fun and experiences.

What Are We Looking For?

This is not simply a role for someone who wants to be the most senior person in the room.

We are looking for someone who leads by example.

Someone who can support a team of around seven staff, recognise when colleagues need help, organise priorities and remain calm when the day doesn't go to plan.

Someone who can have a professional and respectful conversation with a parent, support a colleague through a difficult situation and make sensible decisions when the Practitioner is not there.

But just as importantly, we want someone who really enjoys children.

Someone who will listen to a child, understand when they need support, celebrate their achievements, join in their games and help make their time at GO Kids fun.

The successful candidate will understand that good leadership is about relationships, communication, consistency and leading by example.

Qualifications & Experience

We are looking for candidates who have:

• Experience working with children in an out-of-school care, childcare, playwork or similar setting.
• Experience supporting or leading colleagues within a team.
• Experience working in a busy environment where priorities can change quickly.
• Experience communicating professionally with parents and carers.
• A relevant childcare/playwork qualification.
• An understanding of the Playwork Principles and the importance of child-led play.
• An understanding of safeguarding and children's wellbeing.
• The ability to work within relevant policies, procedures and professional standards.
• SSSC registration, or willingness and eligibility to meet registration requirements.
• A commitment to ongoing learning and professional development.

Additional relevant training such as First Aid, Safeguarding, Food Safety, Trauma-Informed Practice or other specialist training would be beneficial.

About GO Kids

At GO Kids, we want every child to feel safe, happy, valued, included and listened to.

We believe children should have opportunities to play, have fun, build friendships, make choices and be themselves.

Our staff are central to achieving this. We value positive relationships, teamwork, compassion and a supportive working environment.

We are looking for someone who shares these values and wants to make a genuine difference to children's experiences.

How to Apply

If you feel you have the skills, experience and qualities we are looking for, we would love to hear from you.

The successful candidate will be required to meet all relevant safeguarding, PVG, SSSC and Care Inspectorate requirements applicable to the role.

GO Kids is committed to providing high-quality, inclusive childcare where children can feel safe, have fun and thrive.