ECE Centre Manager | Busy Bees Onehunga

Lead with purpose. Shape a culture. Grow a centre where people matter.

Busy Bees Onehunga is searching for an inspiring, people-centred Centre Manager to guide our kaiako, strengthen our community, and champion a vision where tamariki thrive through curiosity, connection, and care.

Licensed for 80 tamariki, our centre has a boutique, homely feel and a philosophy grounded in child-led exploration, strong relationships, and creative expression. We draw from a range of learning approaches, weaving them into a local vision that reflects our neighbourhood, our families, and the changing future of our community.

At Onehunga, leadership is relational. You’ll walk alongside a passionate team, uplifting great practice, shaping a cohesive culture, and holding space for kaiako to grow in confidence and capability. You’ll carry the heart of our values, Ako, Kotahitanga, Manaakitanga, Whanaungatanga, into everything from daily coaching to big-picture planning.

This is your chance to lead a centre with soul, supported by an organisation with scale.
 

About us:
Our vision: Nurtured hearts and thriving minds. We are part of a global whānau with deep local roots. Our organisation blends international expertise with the identity, uniqueness and tikanga of each of our Aotearoa centres. People sit at the centre of our purpose. We work collaboratively, uplift one another, and empower our teams to deliver world-class early learning.
 

About you:
You are a fully registered ECE teacher with proven leadership strengths. You know how to support a team, energise a team, and get your people to buy in to the vision. You are confident in building culture through open communication and coaching, guiding high-quality practice aligned with Te Whāriki, and growing occupancy through authentic community relationships. You bring strong organisational skills and a calm, steady presence. You lead with humanity and clarity, and you know how to turn shared values into daily practice.
 

Why you’ll love it here:

• A competitive remuneration package

• Time out of ratio dedicated to leadership and coaching

• Leadership development across Busy Bees Aotearoa

• Monthly staff wellbeing budget and EAP access

• Ongoing PLD, mentoring and organisational support

• Subsidised childcare if applicable, First Aid certification, uniform and annual flu vaccination

• • The backing of a large values-driven organisation that celebrates each centre’s identity
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Ready to lead a centre with heart? This is your opportunity to shape the future of Busy Bees Onehunga and guide a team committed to meaningful relationships and high-quality teaching.
 

Apply with your CV and cover letter.
 

Applicants must hold NZ residency or a valid work visa and a full driver licence.

Why Work for Busy Bees?
If you’re passionate about early learning, Busy Bees is the place to be. Although we are part of a global organisation, our company was founded by three families looking for better, more enriching childcare. Three decades later, we still keep the same values at heart.

We know that we couldn’t do what we do without the important people in our teams. We invest in our people and work with them to build career pathways that inspire.