Preschool Field Officer Program Leader

Permanent Full Time, Monthly RDO
- Salary circa $113,428 plus 10% allowance, plus super
- WFH and office hybrid

At Darebin, diversity, equity, and inclusion are at the core of how we work. Our commitment to these values is unwavering, they are central to our mission, to our impact and to help us better serve our community. We know that having varied perspectives and lived experiences helps generate better ideas to enable a diverse, inclusive and connected community.

**About Darebin City Council**
Located in Melbourne’s northern suburbs, Darebin City Council is home to one of the largest, most diverse communities in terms of culture, language, religion, socio-economic background, occupation, and housing needs. The city has one of the largest populations of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander residents in metropolitan Melbourne. Our Vision is for a community that works together to advance community life.

**About the Role**
The City of Darebin is committed to working in partnership with stakeholders to provide high quality, inclusive and accessible programs that respond to the diverse and changing needs of our community and support the care, education, health and wellbeing of children, young people and their families.

The Preschool Field Officer Program is an important service in this partnership approach, assisting early childhood services to build on their practices and enhance their capacity and confidence to deliver inclusive early learning experiences for all children with additional needs and their families.

The Preschool Field Officer Leader will coordinate the PSFO program, using research, evidence based best practice and the practice principles of the Victorian Early Years Learning and Development Framework (VEYLDF) to guide the program and service improvements, while monitoring service delivery priorities and effectiveness, supervising staff and ensuring the community receive customer service excellence.
- Manage the PSFO Program to ensure the provision of high-quality customer service to ECEC services and the community; and support family’s equitable access to care and education with the aim of increasing participation in the early years; particularly by the most vulnerable.
- Lead, support, supervise and mentor PSFO staff.
- Plan, contribute to and promote community engagement, communication, education and training opportunities relating to the importance of inclusion and the early years.
- Manage and monitor the service delivery priorities and effectiveness of the PSFO program in line with Department of Education and Training (DET) service level agreements and guidelines, whilst maintaining an active case load.

**Skills & Experience**
- A tertiary qualification in Early Childhood Education in accordance with the National Legislation 2010, or current regulatory requirement. Further experience and qualifications in special education, early intervention, or disability preferred.
- Experience with developing, leading, supervising, motivating and supporting a dynamic and innovative team.
- Highly developed assessment and referral skills and demonstrated understanding of the impact of trauma and disadvantage on a child’s development and the importance of relationships in fostering a child’s learning and development.
- Advanced facilitation, negotiation and leadership skills and ability to work with a range of stakeholders for positive outcomes, effective collaboration and shared responsibilities.
- Demonstrated leadership skills in the promotion of inclusive practice to improve access, equity and social justice outcomes for children and experience in developing and providing professional development for early childhood educators.

**Culture**
As a progressive leader in Local Government, Darebin City Council is passionate about social inclusion, sustainability, engagement and service excellence. We are proud of the diversity of our workforce and recognise the strength this provides in meeting the needs of the community we serve. We are committed to upholding a positive and supportive work environment that values the contribution of all employees and treats all employees with dignity and respect.

**Benefits**
We offer a range of benefits to our employees including opportunities for personal and professional development, flexible work practices, Employee Assistance Program, recognition and reward program - Appreciate Great and a variety of generous paid and unpaid leave options.

**How to Apply**

We’re also happy to adjust our recruitment process to support your accessibility needs.

Contact Karla Coombes, Coordinator Children and Community Development, on 0417 367 124 for a confidential discussion.

**Applications close on Friday 12 August at 11.30pm.**
- Darebin is committed to providing a safe working environment that embraces and values child safety, and thorough ‘Safety Screening’ processes apply. To work at Darebin City Council, you will be required to supply proof of work rig