Responsible Person | Afternoon / Closing Role

Not every outstanding early childhood role has to be inside a room.

We are looking for an experienced Diploma-qualified educator to take ownership of something that matters enormously to children and families but is often nobody's specific responsibility:

the outdoor experience.

This isn't a groundskeeping role.

And it isn't simply another educator position where you'll be allocated somewhere on the roster.

We want someone who can look across an outdoor environment full of children, educators and families and think:

“I've got this.”

We are a small, established and growing Gold Coast childcare group. We remain closely connected to our centres, our educators and our families.

We aren't a large corporate operator — and we don't want our centres to feel like one.

What does “Outdoor Experience Lead” actually mean?

When the centre moves outdoors, you own the experience .

You will help make sure the outdoor environment is thoughtfully set up, engaging and running well.

That includes:

setting up intentional outdoor experiences and activities;

making sure there is genuinely something for children to engage with — rather than simply opening the doors to the yard;

helping educators understand where they are needed and what is happening across the outdoor environment;

being the person educators come to when an issue arises outside;

keeping an eye across children, staffing, supervision and the overall flow of the yard;

responding to safety issues and making sure concerns are followed through;

interacting with children and helping educators create genuinely engaging experiences;

helping make afternoon pickup a positive experience for families;

making sure the outdoor environment remains attractive and cared for;

overseeing pack-down and the proper closing of the yard;

leaving the environment ready to start well again tomorrow.

For the right person, you may also act as Responsible Person during the afternoon and centre close.

Why we're creating this role

Outdoor time shouldn't be the part of the day where programming stops and everyone waits for children to go home.

Done properly, it can be one of the best parts of the day.

Children should be engaged.

Educators should be engaged.

There should be things happening.





The environment should feel purposeful.

And when parents arrive in the afternoon, we want them to see children who are enjoying being at their centre.

That's the experience we want you to help create.

You'll have real ownership

We're not interested in giving someone responsibility without authority and then telling them exactly how to do every little thing.

We want someone experienced enough to notice:

“The children aren't really engaging with this.”

or

“We need something different happening over here.”

or

“This part of the yard isn't working.”

…and then do something about it.

You'll work with the team, rather than simply directing them, but there should be clarity:

when it comes to the outdoor operation, you're one of the people responsible for making it work.

And we'll know whether it's working

Success in this role shouldn't be vague.

Over time, we'd expect to see:

consistently interesting and intentional outdoor experiences;

high levels of child engagement;

educators actively participating rather than simply supervising;

a well-presented and properly managed outdoor environment;

safety issues identified and acted upon;

positive trends in outdoor incidents and risk management;

families responding positively to what they see at pickup;

a yard that is properly packed down and closed each day.

In other words:

children should love being outside, educators should know what's expected, and parents should be able to see the difference.

The hours could suit someone looking for something different

This role is particularly valuable during the later part of the day.

Depending on the service and the right candidate, shifts could look approximately like 12pm–6pm or 10am–6:30pm .

That may suit an experienced educator who doesn't necessarily want a traditional 38-hour week.

Pperhaps you're balancing family or study.





Or perhaps you've spent years in early childhood and would simply prefer a role where you're trusted to do something meaningful rather than being another name on the roster.

Full-time opportunities can also be discussed.

Who we're looking for

You'll probably have been in early childhood long enough to know what a genuinely good service feels like.

Ideally, you'll have:

a Diploma of Early Childhood Education and Care or approved equivalent;

experience within an Australian early childhood service;

the experience and suitability to act as a Responsible Person;

a current Blue Card / Working with Children Check;

relevant First Aid, CPR, Asthma and Anaphylaxis qualifications;

confidence working with and guiding other educators;

strong situational awareness;

good judgement;

initiative;

reliability; and

genuine pride in the environment you create for children.

You don't need to want to become a Centre Director.

But you do need to enjoy taking ownership .

Maybe you've been wondering whether there's somewhere better

There is a lot of change happening across early childhood.

Services change ownership. Organisations become bigger. Teams change. And sometimes very good educators find themselves in workplaces that simply don't feel like the place they originally joined.

If you still love early childhood but occasionally find yourself thinking:

“I just want to work somewhere that actually cares about doing this properly.”

We'd particularly like to hear from you.

We’re not interested in negativity about previous employers.

We’re interested in educators who have maintained their own standards regardless of what was happening around them.

Rather than writing us a generic cover letter, tell us this:

It's 4:30pm. Most of the centre is outside, families are starting to arrive, and you are responsible for the outdoor environment. What would you want to see happening?

There isn't a textbook answer.

We want to understand how you think.

If this advertisement sounds unusually specific, that's intentional.

We're not trying to find another educator.

We're trying to find the person who can own this part of our centre.

If that sounds like you, we'd genuinely like to meet you.

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📌 Diploma Educator & Outdoor Experience Lead (City of Gold Coast)
🏢 Best Staffing
📍 City of Gold Coast