Head of Service

Job overview

An opportunity has arisen in our Children with Disability Service (CWD) for a Head of Service.  Our CWD service comprises primarily of two locality teams and a Family Support service.  As the Head of Service, you will oversee the principal managers who manage these teams, providing operational and social work practice advice.  You will need to have direct experience of children's  statutory work, including child protection.  You will also have responsibility for managing the social care and staffing budget, as well as the performance of your service.

The Head of Service role also plays a key role in the Local Authority management structure, and you will need to lead on development and improvement work in the service. You will be expected to work in partnership with the Local Authority’s Designated Social Care Officer (DSCO) to ensure compliance with the SEND Code of Practice to ensure our young people achieve their outcomes into adulthood. It is therefore essential that you have experience of leading on change and development and working in partnership with stakeholders..

In return, CWP offers a full range of benefits including access to leadership and other specialist training.  Through our close links with the Local Authority, we also provide bespoke training on a wide range of statutory issues.

This role will involve remote/hybrid working, however there will be a requirement to work from the office on certain days.

Main duties of the job

As Head of Service you will need to ensure that all work carried out by social work staff is compliant with statutory guidance and good practice.  You will need to authorise support plans and applications to court, ensuring that the young person’s outcomes are being met and risk is minimised.   You will also have responsibility for overseeing the work of our Family Support team which involves direct support to young people and their families. Our service also has responsibility for the transition of young people into adult services and you will work closely with partner agencies to ensure that young people have a smooth transition into adulthood. The role also includes developing and implementing new ways of working to improve outcomes for young people,

You will also be responsible for managing your staffing budget and team performance metrics ensuring that supervision, appraisal and training of all of your staff is up to date.  The Head of Service post has close links to our Local Authority commissioner’s senior leadership team and you will be expected to contribute to these meetings and to also play a key role in all internal governance structures including contract meetings.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Please download a copy of the job description (see ‘documents to download’ section below) for full details of the main responsibilities for this role.

At CWP, our recruitment selection processes are based on both competence (see person specification for details) and values.

CWP recruits people that can demonstrate the Trust’s Values in their everyday life and we use a values-based approach in our interviews, which explores not only what you do but how and why you do it.

Before applying, we encourage you to review the Trust’s Values and think about how these align with your own personal values. The supporting information section in your application should reflect your understanding of the Trust’s Values and associated behaviours and you should provide examples from your work experience and/or personal life which demonstrate these values through your behaviours.

An applicant guide to help and support you through your recruitment journey can be accessed at the bottom of this page. Further help and support for completing your application can be accessed via our website. If you need any further guidance to help you complete your application, contact our recruitment team via email at: [email protected] or by calling 01244 393100.

If you have a disability that meets the definition set out in the Equality Act 2010, and you can show that you meet the ‘essential’ criteria described in the person specification for an available position, please answer ‘YES’ to the question: ‘Do you wish to be considered under the Guaranteed Interview Scheme?’

Please inform the team if you have any special support needs to be considered as part of the interview and selection processes.

The trust offers a Guaranteed Interview Scheme to any armed forces community applicants who meet the essential criteria for the post and encourages applications from armed forces reservists or cadet force adult volunteers.

Please note applicants will be required to pay for their DBS check. Costs are deducted from salary following appointment. You are encouraged to enrol for the DBS Update Service. A small annual fee of £16 per year applies.

New entrants to the NHS will commence on the minimum of the scale stated above.

Applicants are advised to apply early as if a large number of applications are received for this post we reserve the right to close the vacancy prior to the advertised date.

Good luck with your application. We hope to welcome you to Team CWP very soon!