• Lead cultural change and build a strong, positive team environment.
• Above-award salary + KPI focus + access to salary packaging benefits.
• Small coastal community centre with real scope to make your mark.

Your new role

Ready to lead meaningful change in a centre with strong community connections and real potential? 

Bass Valley Early Learning, located alongside Bass Valley Primary School in Corinella, provides long day care and kindergarten services for local children and families in a welcoming community environment.

We’re looking for an experienced and confident Centre Director who can bring strong leadership, rebuild team culture, and create a positive, high-performing environment for educators, children and families.

This is a hands-on leadership role where you’ll lead day-to-day operations, support educational quality, strengthen team capability, and help shape the future direction of the service.

You’ll be supported by Uniting’s broader Early Learning leadership team while having the autonomy to make a genuine impact locally.

Your impact will include:

• Leading and developing a positive, accountable and collaborative team culture
• Building strong relationships with families, educators and the local community
• Driving quality improvement and supporting strong educational practice aligned to EYLF and VEYLDF
• Supporting occupancy, family engagement and centre sustainability goals
• Coaching and mentoring educators to build capability and confidence
• Ensuring compliance with the National Quality Framework and Child Safe Standards
• Creating a safe, welcoming and inclusive environment for children and families
• Leading continuous improvement initiatives across the service

What’s on offer

• Above-award salary aligned to your experience and capability
• Full-time role with some flexibility considered (e.g. part time 0.9FTE).
• Up to $15,900 in salary packaging benefits that can be used for living expenses such as groceries, bills, clothing and streaming services.
• Save on dining out and drinks with a meal entertainment benefit of $2,650 annually.
• Opt in or out of public holidays and be respected for your unique background.
• Employee discounts at Uniting Early Education services and Uniting op shops.
• Opportunity to genuinely shape and influence a centre’s future direction.
• Professional development and a supportive Early Learning leadership team.

About you

You’re a confident people leader who can bring stability, energy and direction to a team. You know how to balance warmth and relationships with accountability and performance expectations.

You’re comfortable having reflective conversations, setting standards, and supporting teams through change.

You may already be an experienced Centre Director, Assistant Director ready to step up, or an operational leader from education, community, health or care services with transferable leadership experience.

To be successful, you’ll bring:

• Experience leading teams in early learning, education or a related people-focused environment.
• Strong leadership capability and confidence leading culture and change.
• Ability to build trust, engagement and professional accountability.
• Understanding of quality improvement and continuous improvement practices.
• Strong communication and relationship-building skills.
• Diploma in Children’s Services (or equivalent as approved by Australian Children’s Education and Care Quality Authority) preferred.
• Knowledge of the National Quality Framework or ability to quickly build capability.

View the position description.

How to apply

Click Apply Now to submit your interest, and we’ll contact you shortly. We’ll review applications as they come through and schedule interviews, as we’re keen to engage with someone.

If you’d like to know more, contact Kristin Kenwell on 0438 589 984 during business hours or email [email protected] using the subject line: Centre Director - Bass Valley Uniting Early Learning - Corinella enquiry via EthicalJobs.

About Uniting

At Uniting we are passionate about working together to inspire people, enliven communities and confront injustice. We have a 5,000 strong workforce of employees and volunteers who deliver a diverse range of services across Victoria and Tasmania.

Visit us: www.vt.uniting.org

Uniting is a child safe organisation and is committed in everyday practice to ensure the safety and wellbeing of all children, at all times. As a ‘child safe’ organisation, employment with Uniting is subject to a satisfactory national (and international where relevant) police check and relevant Working with Children Check in your State prior to commencement of any paid or unpaid work and/or participation in any service or undertaking. 

Through the recruitment process, we will ask you for personal information. Disclosure is optional, however, it can help us support you better. We invite you to tell us if you identify as Aboriginal, a person with disability, from a diverse background or LGBTIQA+. You will be given an opportunity in the application form to request additional support. We welcome the opportunity to discuss how we can support you.