At Cheshire East we’re offering a rare opportunity to help shape the strategic direction of a system in transformation and to play a defining role in the next chapter for children and families in Cheshire East as we build something special, to last.
We have an exciting opportunity for a Director for Corporate Parenting, based at Delamere House, Crewe. Providing the strategic leadership for social work practice, workforce planning, quality assurance and professional development across Children’s Services.
In this role you will be professionally responsible for the leadership, strategy and effectiveness of the local authority’s children’s social care services including the safeguarding of children, family help services, including the supporting families grant including workforce development and compliance with professional standards.
You will secure the provision of services which address the needs of vulnerable children and young people and their families and carers.
You will ensure that effective systems are in place for discharging these functions, including where a local authority has commissioned any services from another provider rather than delivering them itself.
You will work closely with other local partners to improve the outcomes and wellbeing of vulnerable children and young people.
You will have responsibility for the performance of all local authority functions relating to the social care of children and young people.
In this role you will
- Lead the delivery of an integrated Children’s Service that seeks to provide the highest quality support and service provision to all of Cheshire East’s children, young people and families.
- Be responsible to the Executive Director, the Corporate Leadership Team, the Lead Member, and all the Elected Members for the delivery of key outcomes for children and young people within the directorate, the wider council, and within partnership structures.
- Provide clear and visible leadership for the service ensuring statutory responsibilities, and the corporate and strategic objectives of the local authority are embedded in service design and delivery within the context of both the Corporate Plan and the Children and Young People’s plan.
- Embed a strong leadership culture, through emphasising the importance of relationships, seeking to inspire and connect people to enable strong performance and to drive continuous improvement, encouraging creative and productive networks to form.
- Fully understand the boroughwide context for services to children and lead system change to enable deeper and more effective collaboration across the sectors towards improved outcomes and services closer to where children live, learn and transition.
- Provide vision and strategic direction for the directorate through significant change, within the context of the Corporate Plan and other relevant plans and strategies.
- Propose and implement policies and initiatives to improve the lives of children and families within Cheshire East.
- To drive the next phase of complex service transformation, structure redesign, efficiencies, and where appropriate investment and/or savings in relation to demand reduction and in line with the medium-term financial strategy (MTFS).
- To be responsible, in conjunction with colleague Directors, for the delivery of improved health, early years, prevention, early intervention and safeguarding services for children and families in Cheshire East.
- Develop new and innovative approaches to deliver integrated care services for children and young people with partners and other key stakeholders within legislative requirements and in compliance with council policies.
What you’ll bring
- Qualified social worker with a recognised qualification and registered with Social Work England
- Completion of a structured management development programme.
- Demonstrable experience of leadership and management at a strategic level in a complex and multi-functional public sector environment, working and providing expert advice in a political context and where appropriate experience at a senior level with the context of the services that the role is accountable for.
- Demonstrable experience of successful management of services designed to safeguard and promote the wellbeing of children, particularly the most vulnerable and marginalised in our communities.
- Demonstrable experience of successfully managing change and partnership working, including managing people at a senior level.
- Demonstrable experience of managing the interface between service provision and the regulatory framework.
- Demonstrable experience of service / business planning and of leading change / redesign programmes and financial / budgetary regimes.
- Demonstrable experience of advising and building effective working relationships with Elected Members, inspiring trust and confidence and demonstrable evidence of political awareness. Knowledge of local authority / NHS culture, procedures and systems including the political environments.
- Demonstrable evidence of developing and delivering innovation within challenging environments. Able to build a shared vision, develop partnerships, resolve complex problems and facilitate change sensitively.
In return we are able to offer:
- Enhanced annual leave - Start with an impressive 34 days of annual leave (including bank holidays) from day one, and watch it grow to 39 days after just five years of service
- Purchase of annual leave – Want more time off? You can purchase up to 10 extra days of annual leave each year, giving you the flexibility to balance work and life just the way you want (Pro-rata for part-time staff)
- Flexible working pattern - Enjoy a 37-hour standard full-time work week with the added perks of flexi-time and hybrid/remote working arrangements where possible. Your work-life balance just got a whole lot better
- Salary sacrifice green car scheme - Drive green and save green! Lease a brand-new electric or hybrid car through our salary sacrifice scheme. There’s no credit checks, no deposits, just significant savings and exclusive offers on a three-year lease
- White goods salary sacrifice scheme - Upgrade your home with ease. Purchase home and electronic items through our salary sacrifice scheme, spreading the cost of big-ticket purchases like appliances, computers, and tech gadgets directly from your salary
- Enhanced public pension - Secure your future with our career average pension, where contributions are built at a rate of 1/49th of your yearly pensionable pay
- Cycle to work scheme - Save up to 25-39% on the retail price of bikes and safety equipment through Income Tax and National Insurance savings. Get fit and save money!
- Employee assistance programme - Access a completely free and confidential assistance service to help manage, reduce, and overcome life’s challenges, both at work and in your personal life
- Discounted gym membership - Stay active and healthy with corporate membership prices for Everybody Leisure, including:
- Gym, Swim and Group Fitness at all 16 facilities
- Off-Peak Racket Sports
- Athletics Tracks
- Sauna/Steam/Spa
Join us and experience a workplace that truly values and supports you!
Organisation
Cheshire East Council
Job Category
Children and Young People Services
Grade
Senior Management (JNC/Chief Officer) - Director
Salary Min
£91,556 Per Annum
Salary Max
£123,477 Per Annum
Employment Type
Fixed Term
Contract Duration
2 Years
To join our team, simply click ‘Apply for this job’ at the bottom of the page. If you’d prefer an informal chat first or have any questions about the role, feel free to reach out to Janet Bullock at: [email protected] , they will be happy to hear from you! Please remember to include the job reference so we know which role you are interested in.
Once you’ve applied for the position, please keep an eye on your email inbox (including your junk and spam folders), as we’ll send any correspondence there to stay in touch with updates about your application.
If you haven’t heard from us within four weeks of the closing date, it likely means we weren’t able to move forward with your application at this time but please don’t let this discourage you as your interest means a lot to us, and we’d truly love to hear from you again in the future!
To arrange a confidential conversation about this post prior to application, please contact Karen Potts (executive assistant to Dawn Godfrey, Executive Director Children’s Service) on 01270 686275 or [email protected].
Cheshire East Council is committed to safeguarding children and vulnerable adults across the Borough. As such, any cautions, convictions, reprimands or final warnings that are ‘not protected’ as defined by the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) order 1975 (as amended in 2013) relating to the non-disclosure of spent convictions do not apply to this job. You must therefore, disclose whether you have any previous convictions where prompted to do so within the application process.
