On Mornington Island, we're looking for a Director-Manager to oversee our Children and Family Centre and our Long Day Care teams to maximise our support on the lives of children and families. In this varied and challenging role, you'll work with our local team of educators in engaging with children, families, community, and groups to improve knowledge of and access to early childhood education and family support services.

54 reasons is Australia's leading child rights organisation - no ordinary not-for-profit.

A place where your purpose matters. Proudly part of the Save the Children Australia Group and global movement, we're here to make sure that children and young people have their rights met and thrive, in all their diversity.

With the child's voice at the centre, we provide quality services to children and their caregivers, advocating with them so that children develop, learn, and are connected, safe and confident. Our people are proudly local, reflective of the communities we serve - in every state and territory, and across regions, remote areas and capital cities.

It takes all types of personalities and talents to drive our organisation- yours included. We value a healthy work-life balance and ensure our people feel connected to each other and our impact. Learn from inspiring people and grow from a connection to our strong local and global networks. From our programs to our support services - this is the place to realise your purpose. 

A place to make a difference: 

In this full-time, maximum term role (through to June 2026), you'll lead the teams at both our Children and Family Centre (CFC) and Long Day Care (LDC). The CFC works with children aged 0-8 and their families, running a number of programs including School Transition, Play2Learn, School Holiday and After School Clubs. At the LDC, we work with children aged from 6 weeks to 5 years across all areas of Early Childhood Education and Care, including Health and Safety and Transition to School.

While the role is based primarily on Mornington Island, a FIFO schedule (from Brisbane, Cairns or Townsville) will also be considered for the right candidate.

You will make a difference by:

• Leading the team to deliver the EYLF curriculum framework, ensuring quality and consistency in the delivery of an early childhood education program
• Maintaining a safe and healthy environment for children, families, staff, and visitors ensuring policies and procedures are followed, and legislation is complied with across our centres
• Working on partnerships with parents, families, and community to provide appropriate education and care for children
• Partnering with local services to facilitate community groups, activities, events, and stakeholder meetings
• Driving community development processes and championing a best practice approach to integrated service delivery

A place to feel valued: 

You're an experienced leader who's truly passionate about standing up for children, and your exceptional cultural knowledge will help you build strong connections with local community, families and children. Your infectious enthusiasm for your job will see you actively seeking out families in need of support, and your team will be driven to high performance by your dynamic leadership.

Bringing your best every day, means:

• A Bachelor's Degree in Early Education or equivalent (recognised by ACECQA as an early childhood teaching qualification), or Bachelor of Primary Teaching with an approved Diploma-level qualification
• Experience working with and supervising educators providing care and supervision for young children from diverse backgrounds, particularly Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander backgrounds
• Demonstrated experience in working alongside children and families, using a partnership and strengths-based approach in a community development setting
• In depth knowledge of the Learning Outcomes in the Early Years Learning Framework
• Thorough knowledge of child protection processes and commitment to upholding them
• Demonstrated experience in maintaining service records, reporting, and collection of outcome data

A place to belong: 

54 reasons is proudly part of Save the Children Australia. We are a learning organisation that invests in the development and wellbeing of our people. Our workforce is approximately 1100 people strong, and proudly diverse, whether in race, ethnicity, gender, age, disability, sexuality, cultures and beliefs.

It takes all types of people to do the challenging work we do. We are diverse personalities, backgrounds and talents, embracing our differences as one strong and united team. We see and celebrate the unique value you bring to our organisation, and offer a range of rewards for your effort, including: 

• Competitive salary plus full salary packaging benefits - use this link to see how much this benefit could mean to you!
• Shared accommodation provided on island, if required
• Extra leave to use in a range of ways to ensure you're able to perform at your optimum
• Internal employment and development opportunities
• Supportive Managers - we provide professional supervision training and monthly supervision sessions so you can feel supported and build a career at Save
• Support for workplace wellness, including access to our free, confidential Employee Wellbeing Program

Follow this link for the full list of our employee benefits. 

Does this sound like the place for you? 

We'd love to hear from you. Submit your cover letter and resume below. 

A position description is attached.

For more information, contact Anne Hodge, Senior Manager (after November 6th) on 0428 039104 or [email protected] using the subject line: Director / Manager - Children and Family Centre - Mornington Island enquiry via EthicalJobs.

Click here to learn more about the region!

We have tested our application process with diverse groups in mind, with the intent to ensure its straightforward and accessible for all to apply. Diversity and inclusion are fundamental to our culture and improve our ability to reach our most vulnerable client groups. But we also know there is no one-size fits-all when it comes to recruitment - so if we didn't quite hit the mark for you, please let us know at [email protected]. We're dedicated to ensuring Save the Children Australia is a place where everyone can feel supported - no matter your race, ethnicity, gender, age, disability, sexuality, neurodiversity, culture and beliefs. 

Save the Children Australia is a child-safe organisation. All employees are required to undergo a National Police Check, a Working with Children Check, and sign our Child Safeguarding Policy and Code of Conduct. We also support the Inter-Agency Misconduct Disclosure Scheme. You can read about the Scheme and our commitment to Safeguarding here. 

Save the Children is committed to providing and maintaining a safe working environment for its employees and client groups, consistent with our obligations under OH&S legislation.

If you are having any issues with uploading your application for this role, please contact [email protected] for further support.