Earn up to £120,000 OTE, plus benefits
Base salary: £80,000
Annual KPI bonus: Up to £20,000, plus up to £20,000 business growth related bonus
On-target earnings: £100,000–£120,000
Additional benefits: Indicatively valued at £9,500+ in the first year
Potential first-year total reward: £109,500–£129,500+
We are looking for top talent within residential childcare and are offering a remuneration package designed to attract a senior leader with proven sector credibility. The successful person will be commercially minded, growth focused and equally committed to ensuring children are cared for safely and supported to achieve positive outcomes.
The company currently operates a growing portfolio of six solo residential children’s homes supporting children with complex needs and high levels of acuity. The Head of Residential Childcare will lead quality, safeguarding, culture, workforce and performance across the portfolio while helping the organisation grow in a controlled and sustainable way.
A message from Daniel, Company Director
My name is Daniel, and I am one of the Company Directors and Co-Founders. The organisation was created from my own lived experience of growing up in care.
I know first-hand how important it is for young people to have safe, stable and nurturing homes, with adults around them who genuinely care, remain committed and do not give up when things become difficult.
As we grow, we need a senior leader who can protect that purpose while building a strong, accountable and commercially sustainable residential service. Children must remain at the centre of every decision, but our homes must also be well led, properly staffed, compliant and financially disciplined.
We are prepared to invest in and properly reward someone who brings the credibility, resilience and attention to detail required to lead our managers, strengthen our homes and help us build something meaningful and lasting.
The opportunity
This is a senior leadership appointment with strategic influence and detailed operational accountability. You will work directly with the Directors and senior leadership team, providing clear oversight across the residential portfolio and ensuring that agreed standards are translated into consistent practice within every home.
You will be expected to combine child-centred leadership with commercial discipline. This includes maintaining regulatory quality, stabilising placements, developing managers, controlling staffing and budgets, improving systems and supporting the successful mobilisation and registration of new homes.
As part of the role, you will be required to be appointed as the organisation’s Responsible Individual and successfully complete the relevant Ofsted suitability process.
Strategic and operational leadership
- Provide strong strategic leadership and detailed operational oversight across the current portfolio of six solo residential children’s homes, with scope increasing as the organisation grows.
- Line manage and develop Registered Home Managers, Principal Residential Home Managers and managers progressing towards registration.
- Set clear expectations, challenge underperformance and ensure managers are supported without removing their accountability.
- Maintain oversight of placement stability, safeguarding risk, service performance, staffing and operational quality.
- Maintain homes at a minimum Good standard and drive services towards Outstanding outcomes.
- Oversee Regulation 44 processes, review reports and ensure actions are completed and evidenced.
- Attend and support Ofsted inspections and lead regulatory correspondence where required.
- Act as the professional face of the organisation with Ofsted, local authorities, social workers, LADO and other external partners.
- Review and strengthen care policies, procedures, systems and management controls.
- Work closely with the Directors to influence organisational direction, service development and continued growth.
- Lead the mobilisation, opening and registration of new children’s homes.
- Maintain oversight of budgets, staffing deployment, agency use, occupancy and portfolio performance.
- Identify and deliver efficiencies without compromising children’s safety, care quality or placement stability.
Safeguarding and compliance
- Act as the organisation’s senior safeguarding lead and embed a strong safeguarding culture across the homes.
- Direct safeguarding, staffing and professional-conduct investigations, including liaison with LADO and placing authorities.
- Attend strategy meetings and multi-agency forums where senior leadership is required.
- Oversee safer recruitment compliance and the quality of staff-file assurance.
- Lead or oversee disciplinary processes, allegations and complaints where appropriate.
- Ensure homes consistently meet the Children’s Homes Regulations, Quality Standards and Ofsted requirements.
- Provide calm, ethical and proportionate decision-making during incidents, crises and periods of heightened risk.
Quality, workforce and organisational development
- Identify service-wide development needs and translate them into clear improvement plans.
- Build a workforce and management culture that is accountable, child-focused and performance driven.
- Lead, motivate and develop both new and experienced Home Managers.
- Strengthen management information, digital systems, audits and performance reporting.
- Support recruitment, retention and succession planning across the residential portfolio.
- Participate in senior operational meetings, core-team meetings and monthly Board meetings.
- Maintain effective collaboration across quality assurance, safeguarding, training, HR, finance, facilities and business support.
- Participate in senior-level on-call arrangements and provide decisive leadership outside normal business hours.
Your KPI opportunity
You will have the opportunity to earn an annual discretionary KPI bonus of up to £20,000. The bonus will reward measurable portfolio performance and the delivery of safe, stable, compliant and commercially resilient homes.
Performance measures will include:
- Portfolio Ofsted outcomes
- Occupancy and placement stability
- Residential budget performance and agreed efficiency targets
- Staff retention, sickness and workforce stability
- Safeguarding, compliance and quality standards
- Director standards inspections and completion of improvement actions
- Successful mobilisation and registration of new homes
- Development and performance of Registered Home Managers
Your wider benefits package
In addition to salary and KPI earnings, the proposed employee and management benefits package has an indicative first-year value of approximately £9,500+, recognition awards or company car scheme value.
- Company car scheme access
- 36 days’ paid holiday, comprising 28 days plus 8 bank holidays
- Private medical care
- Life insurance scheme
- Employee Assistance Programme
- Healthcare cashback scheme
- Employee discounts and benefits platform
- £250 fuel allowance for authorised travel between homes
- Company-funded Level 5 qualification, where required
- Management CPD and professional development
- Dedicated Ofsted preparation support
- Management development and future progression opportunities
- Company-funded DBS renewals
- Free meals and activities on qualifying shifts
- Guaranteed birthday day off
- Attendance and Reliability Bonus of up to £1,500 per year, subject to eligibility
- Length of Service Benefit of up to £1,000 per year after one year’s service, subject to eligibility
- Access to employee recognition awards, including the Employee of the Year holiday prize
Who we are looking for
We are looking for a serious and highly capable senior leader who combines strategic judgement with detailed operational credibility. You will be commercially focused, confident with systems and data, and uncompromising about safeguarding, care quality and management accountability.
You will need:
- A strong and successful track record in senior leadership within residential children’s care.
- At least two years’ experience in a senior leadership role such as Responsible Individual, Regional Manager, Operations Manager or equivalent.
- Previous experience as a Responsible Individual or Ofsted Registered Manager, supported by a history of Good or Outstanding inspection outcomes.
- Experience overseeing multiple children’s homes or services.
- A Level 5 qualification in Leadership and Management for Residential Childcare, or equivalent.
- Strong safeguarding expertise, including DSL Level 5 or equivalent knowledge and experience.
- Detailed knowledge of the Children’s Homes Regulations, Quality Standards, Ofsted inspection framework and multi-agency safeguarding processes.
- Experience managing investigations, allegations, complaints and regulatory scrutiny.
- Strong commercial awareness, including budgets, staffing expenditure, occupancy and service-growth planning.
- Experience mobilising and registering new residential children’s homes.
- Excellent IT, systems, analytical and written communication skills.
- The ability to implement change quickly, work through periods of crisis and make clear, proportionate decisions.
- A full UK driving licence and flexibility to travel across Nottinghamshire and the wider East Midlands when required.
Location and working requirements
The role is based in Nottinghamshire and requires regular travel between children’s homes and office locations. This is an on-site senior leadership role with direct access to the Directors and includes participation in the senior on-call rota.
The appointment is confidential. Full details about the organisation, portfolio, reporting lines and growth plans will be shared with shortlisted applicants.
Apply
- Suitable applicants will be contacted directly by a Company Director.
Pay: £100,000.00-£120,000.00 per year
Work Location: In person
