Vacancy: Reading Schools Early Years Project Manager

About the role

Job title: Reading Schools Early Years Project Manager

Hours of work: Full-time (35 hours per week)

Contract: Fixed term until 31 August 2026

Salary: Grade 4, starting salary £30,975 per annum

Closing date: 28 July 2025

Location: The post is a hybrid role with regular attendance at Scottish Book Trust office in Edinburgh required

Benefits

• Generous holiday allowance
• Employee pension contribution of 5% per annum
• Possibility of flexible working
• Life assurance scheme
• Employee Assistance Programme
• Cycle to Work scheme

About the job

The Reading Schools Early Years Project Manager will lead on the development and delivery of the Reading Schools Early Years (RS-EY) project to 45 settings across three Local Authorities, Glasgow, Renfrewshire and Angus.

They will be responsible for managing relationships with individual settings to support participation in phase 2 of this pilot project. They will also be responsible for managing and maintaining key relationships with colleagues within each of the designated Local Authorities.

Download the recruitment pack

Key responsibilities

• Manage the development and delivery of the Reading Schools Early Years pilot project in 45 settings across three local authorities
• Provide support and guidance to the participating EY settings on how they can meet the requirements of the RS-EY framework
• Host regular meetings and information updates within each of the participating local authorities
• Prepare progress reports on registration and participation for internal use, and provide regular progress briefings for Scottish Government
• Work with the SBT Research and Evaluation team to deliver a final programme impact report.
• Research, prepare and present professional learning opportunities for EY practitioners leading the pilot in their setting(s)
• Research and create resources, adapting current resources where appropriate, for lead EY practitioners
• Working with Reading Schools Project Manager and SBT Learning Content Manager, review the Reading Schools website to ensure Early Years is represented correctly and work with the  Digital team to deliver website content as required.
• Manage the Reading Schools Early Years budget with support from Head of School Communities
• Coordinate all communications with participating EY settings via the Marketing team to ensure all aspects of the pilot project are effectively represented and communicated
• Work with colleagues in Scottish Book Trust’s Early Years Team to ensure training opportunities for practitioners, and resources such as Bookbug bags, are maximised within the pilot project
• Liaise with the Education Scotland Early Speech and Language leads to ensure that the project supports children’s early speech and language development
• Conduct accreditations for participating schools at each level, providing specialist guidance and feedback on how to meet the necessary levels of the framework
• Work with other teams within Scottish Book Trust to ensure knowledge, experience and contacts are shared across the organisation to aid effective programme delivery
• Work collaboratively with the wider Reading Schools team to support collective goals

Knowledge, skills and experience

You will have:

• Significant experience of project management, managing budgets and producing financial updates
• Significant experience of working with early years settings, schools, educators and other professional practitioners to develop and maintain productive working relationships
• Experience of working with multiple local authority contacts
• Excellent written and oral communication skills including presentation skills
• Experience of supporting the co-ordination and delivery of events in early years settings
• Knowledge of or experience of the Reading Schools and/or Reading Schools Early Years frameworks and a vision for how it may be delivered in early years settings
• Confident in the use of IT programs, including Microsoft Office applications and project management software, e.g. monday.com
• Exceptional organisational, planning and time management skills, with the ability to organise own workload, manage multiple priorities and meet deadlines
• Ability to work confidently and effectively across different teams both remotely and in person

This opportunity is now closed. This page is for information only.