Deputy Manager
Residential Child Care, Cove Child Care
Are you an accomplished and dedicated leader committed to providing exceptional care for children and young people? If so, we invite you to explore a rewarding career as a Deputy Manager with Cove Child Care.
About the home
Nova House is a new children's home operated by Cove Child Care and is currently in the final stages of Ofsted registration. We are recruiting now so that the team is trained, settled and ready before the first child arrives. As an early member of that team you will have real influence over how the home runs, how the team operates, and how we deliver for the children in our care.
All offers of employment are conditional on Ofsted registration being granted. Start dates will be confirmed once the registration certificate is issued, and we will keep successful candidates updated throughout the process.
Your role and responsibilities
We are looking for a Deputy Manager who can provide leadership, support and direction for the home, and carry the company's ethos through into everyday practice.
If you have a passion for working with children who have not had the easiest start in life, then please join us in making that positive change. Our aspirations for our children are high in all aspects of their lives, and we aim to provide a homely environment where children feel safe, loved and nurtured.
We specialise in working with children and young people aged 7 to 18 years. The children and young people have suffered early life trauma, neglect or abuse, and as a result have emotional and behavioural difficulties. The Deputy Manager role is therefore both rewarding and demanding. It asks for skill, patience, resilience, and the ability to lead a team through complex situations.
Leading the shift
- Plan and lead shifts, taking responsibility for the standard of practice on your shift and for a clear, thorough handover to the incoming team.
- Support the Registered Manager with the overall running of the home, and deputise during their short-term absence.
- Take a share of the on-call rota alongside the Registered Manager, providing out of hours advice and support to the team, and attending the home where a situation requires it.
- Manage risk in line with Cove Child Care policies and procedures, and take responsibility for the health and safety of all children, staff and visitors on your shift, reporting hazards immediately.
- Address standards of behaviour from adolescents in a calm, non-confrontational and constructive manner.
- Respond effectively to complex and challenging behaviour, using de-escalation as the primary approach and physical intervention only as a safe last resort.
Care planning and records
- Act as case holder for designated children, supporting their allocated key worker and making sure each young person's voice shapes their plans and records.
- Set up, co-ordinate and review children's files, including care plans, risk assessments, behaviour management plans, health care documentation, missing from home documentation and physical description records, agreements and incentives.
- Produce accurate written reports and documentation that genuinely reflect each child's progress, for planning meetings, reviews, educational meetings and other multi-agency forums.
- Embed a consistent, trauma informed approach by implementing and monitoring behaviour management plans and therapeutic interventions.
- Hold ambition for each young person, helping them work towards their goals, prepare for adulthood, develop practical and emotional resilience, and engage with education, training or employment.
- Empower young people to take an active part in decisions about their lives, reinforcing their rights at every step.
Leading the team
- Lead by example, setting the standard for practice, conduct and record keeping across the team.
- Deliver monthly supervision, complete probationary reviews, and support recruitment, vetting and induction in line with safer recruitment practice.
- Act as a positive role model in staff meetings, children's meetings and direct work sessions, and contribute to individual and group direct work to achieve the best outcomes.
- Foster a positive, transparent and respectful team culture, and pull together with colleagues through challenging times.
- Undertake any training deemed appropriate to the position, and support the development of others.
Quality and compliance
- Keep the home inspection ready, building evidence against Ofsted's nine Quality Standards and working effectively with external partners to promote good outcomes.
- Contribute to oversight, auditing and action planning following internal audits or external inspection.
- Maintain a working knowledge of all home policies and procedures, and apply them consistently in practice.
- Keep the home well presented, clean, hygienic and homely, and personalised so that it reflects the young people living there.
The age requirement is to be over the age of 21. This is an occupational requirement under Schedule 9 of the Equality Act 2010.
What we offer you
Your salary is between £38,000 and £44,000 per annum, depending on experience, qualifications and training. Pay is reviewed annually, with progression linked to performance and any change in responsibilities.
- 37.5 hours per week worked on a rota. As a senior member of the team you will be expected to work across the full pattern of the home, including evenings, weekends and bank holidays. The role also carries a share of the on-call rota, published in advance alongside the shift rota. Flexibility can be considered and we will discuss the pattern with you at interview.
- 32 days annual leave per annum.
- Funded support for relevant and essential qualifications.
- Business vehicle provided where necessary.
- Annual discretionary bonus.
- Referral bonuses.
- Mileage reimbursement for business use, not for commute or personal leisure.
- Ongoing CPD and training, with the detail discussed at interview.
- Paid DBS check.
- Laptop for home use.
- Birthday day off.
- Long service awards, cash or gift rewards at milestones such as 5 or 10 years.
- Kids retreat activities paid for staff.
- Other non-financial perks.
What we expect
This is a senior practitioner role, so the standards are correspondingly high. We expect a Deputy Manager who can:
- Work within all relevant legislation and statutory guidance, including the Children's Homes (England) Regulations 2015, the Children Act 1989, Working Together to Safeguard Children 2023, the Data Protection Act 2018 and the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974.
- Safeguard and protect children from harm as the first priority of the role, and act promptly and confidently when concerns arise.
- Communicate effectively with the team coming onto shift, making sure a thorough account of the shift's events has been handed over.
- Hold colleagues to account fairly and constructively, and refer any concerns about conduct through the correct route.
- Promote equality, diversity and inclusion through anti-oppressive practice, in both conduct and culture.
Essential qualities that we look for
- Previous experience in an Ofsted regulated residential children's home, in a Team Leader or Senior capacity as a minimum.
- Level 3 Diploma for Residential Childcare, or an equivalent qualification relating to children and young people in residential care. This is essential.
- Level 5 Diploma in Leadership and Management for Residential Childcare. If you do not already hold it, we will fund it and you will be expected to begin working towards it on appointment.
- The ability to work on a shift rota.
- The ability to work as part of a cohesive team.
- A friendly and nurturing attitude and outlook.
- A willingness to learn, develop and remain reflective in your practice.
- A desire to work with vulnerable children, and to hold consistently high aspirations for their achievements.
- Self awareness and personal resilience, with the ability to remain calm in challenging situations and use your own initiative.
- A full UK driving licence and reliable access to a vehicle. This is an essential car user post and reasonable adjustments will be made for disabled applicants.
Knowledge and experience
- Knowledge of the Children's Homes (England) Regulations 2015 and the Social Care Common Inspection Framework.
- Demonstrable knowledge and understanding of operational management within service provision.
- A working understanding of relevant legislation and policies, including the Children and Families Act 2014, the Health and Social Care Act, safeguarding frameworks and person centred planning.
- Knowledge of care standards and the requirements of Ofsted.
- Experience of oversight and auditing, and of contributing to action plans following internal audits or external inspection.
- Experience of promoting equality, diversity and inclusion through anti-oppressive practice.
How you will work with us
Beyond the technical aspects of the role, we expect every member of the Cove Child Care team to bring the following to their work. As Deputy Manager you will be expected to model them for the rest of the team.
- Excellence - You aim for uncompromising quality in the care you provide. You take pride in your work, keep a child centred approach at all times, and bring a proactive, can-do attitude to the day.
- Simplicity - You communicate clearly and openly, without unnecessary complication. You focus on what genuinely matters for children and colleagues, and help the team work smarter rather than harder.
- Trust, respect and safety - You act with professionalism, empathy and integrity. You protect confidentiality, value differing perspectives, and model the behaviours that create safe, respectful, inclusive environments.
- Working together - You collaborate well with colleagues, children, families and external partners. You share information appropriately and draw on the strengths of the whole team so children receive coordinated, high quality care.
- Responsibility - You own your actions, decisions and professional standards. You are reliable, accountable, and follow through on what you commit to.
- Connection -You build strong, meaningful relationships with children and colleagues. You take time to understand each child's needs, experiences and identity, so they feel valued and invested in.
Right to work in the UK
This is a full time post and we are not able to offer it on a part time basis. We are also not able to offer visa sponsorship for this role.
All applicants must already hold the right to work in the UK with no restriction on the number of hours they are permitted to work, and must be able to evidence this before an offer is confirmed. Every appointment is subject to a right to work check.
Safeguarding statement
Cove Child Care is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people, and we expect every member of staff to share fully in that commitment. All offers of employment are conditional on satisfactory pre-employment checks, including an enhanced DBS check with the children's barred list.
Pay: £38,000.00-£44,000.00 per year
Benefits:
- Additional leave
- Casual dress
- Cycle to work scheme
- Free parking
- On-site parking
Work Location: In person
