Centre Director | Southern Highlands

Lead a beautifully designed service with genuine operational and pedagogical support behind you.

An exciting opportunity is available for an experienced Centre Director to lead a high-quality, purpose-built early learning service in Southern Highlands.

This is an opportunity for a strong early childhood leader who is passionate about quality education, people and practice, and wants to work with an organisation that genuinely invests in its environments, educators and leadership team.

You will be joining an independently owned early learning provider with established services across two states and a strong reputation for creating thoughtfully designed learning environments underpinned by research-led pedagogy.

About the Centre

The service is purpose-built to an exceptionally high standard, with beautiful indoor and outdoor learning environments designed around how children learn, explore and connect. Every room flows directly into outdoor spaces, including undercover areas and thoughtfully landscaped grounds. The physical environment is considered an important part of children's learning and reflects the organisation's educational approach.

The incoming Centre Director will have the opportunity to build its foundations from scratch while bringing their own leadership style and ideas to the centre.

A Different Leadership Model

One of the real strengths of this opportunity is the support surrounding the Centre Director. Rather than expecting one person to manage every aspect of the service independently, the organisation operates a model that supports the Director with operations,



marketing and full centre set up.

You will work closely with an experienced Operations Manager who will visit the service, alongside dedicated senior pedagogical leadership.

This allows the Centre Director to focus on what great centre leadership should be about - leading people, building culture, connecting with families and ensuring children experience consistently high-quality education and care.

Education & Pedagogy Quality

Education is at the heart of this organisation. Their approach is research-led, with a strong focus on creating meaningful learning experiences where educators, families and the workplace all play an important role in supporting children’s learning, development and curiosity.

Practice is grounded in children's rights, voice and agency, with educators encouraged to co-learn with children and scaffold their interests rather than simply directing their learning. The organisation maintains relationships with universities to ensure its curriculum and practice remain connected to contemporary early childhood research.

About You

We are looking for an experienced early childhood leader who can take ownership of the day-to-day leadership of the service while working collaboratively with a highly experienced broader leadership team.





You will ideally bring:

- A Bachelor's degree in Early Childhood Education or a related discipline
- Previous leadership experience within an early childhood service
- Strong knowledge of contemporary early childhood pedagogy and practice
- A genuine passion for children's learning and development
- The ability to lead, motivate and develop a team
- Strong communication and relationship-building skills
- Confidence managing the operational requirements of a 90-place service
- The ability to identify talent and build capability within your team
- A collaborative leadership style and willingness to work alongside specialist operational and pedagogical leaders

What's on Offer?

This is an opportunity to join an organisation that understands that quality early childhood education requires investment — in its people, its environments and its leadership.
You can expect:

- Above Award, negotiable salary package
- A stunning, purpose-built learning environment
- Strong operational support
- Dedicated specialist pedagogical leadership
- Head Office support across marketing, enrolments, systems and processes
- An organisation genuinely committed to research-informed early childhood education
- Four weeks' annual leave
- The opportunity to make a meaningful impact within the Southern Highlands community

If you are an experienced Centre Director looking for an organisation where quality, pedagogy and strong leadership are genuinely supported, I would love to speak with you.

Apply via SEEK or contact Selina Stanley Recruitment for a confidential discussion.

📌 Centre Manager Southern Highlands NSW
🏢 Selina Stanley Recruitment
📍 Southern Highlands