Area Manager in Newcastle upon Tyne

Salary: Up to £62,300 (dependent on experience)

Location: Newcastle-upon-Tyne

Contract/Hours: Permanent/Full Time – 37 hours per week

Benefits:

• Over 7 weeks inclusive paid leave and the option to buy or sell leave
• Excellent training and the opportunity to undertake professional training for some roles
• Flexible maternity, paternity and adoption packages
• Up to 5% employer contribution and life assurance cover
• Blue Light Card eligibility with discounts at 15,000 national retailers

At Action for Children, we offer more than just a job. Join us and you’ll be part of a team dedicated to giving children safe and happy childhoods. See how your skills can make a real difference, helping solve the problems children and young people face every day.

A bit about the role:

As Area Manager, you’ll provide inspiring, child-centred leadership across our four children’s homes in Newcastle, Gateshead and Northumberland. You’ll act as the Responsible Individual and work closely with our experienced Registered Managers to maintain the highest standards of care. You’ll be a visible and proactive presence, carrying out regular visits to each home to offer hands-on support, coaching and guidance to staff. Your role will involve maintaining a positive culture, whilst ensuring full compliance with all relevant regulations and embedding strong safeguarding practice throughout the service. All four homes currently hold Good or Outstanding Ofsted ratings, and you’ll play a key role in sustaining and building on this success. Above all, you’ll advocate for the children who live with us, promoting their rights, wellbeing and aspirations. You’ll help our already high-performing homes continue to thrive.

About our homes:

Our homes care for children who have experienced trauma in their lives. Through comprehensive training and therapeutic support, our teams work incredibly hard to create warm, safe and loving homes where children can truly feel settled. We focus on building a genuine home-from-home environment, where everyday life feels familiar, comforting and full of the small moments that matter. Our staff bring the homes to life with theme nights, takeaway nights, celebrations, shared meals and fun routines that help young people feel that this is their space, not just a residential service. We are determined to offer our children the best childhoods possible and work tirelessly to advocate for them, champion their voices, and collaborate with the adults who are important in their lives to support their development.

What you do could make a difference:

• Ensure service delivery meets all regulations and performance standards, supported by regular visits to each home to maintain visibility and provide hands-on guidance.
• Act as the Responsible Individual for the home, offering strong leadership and accountability.
• Promote robust safeguarding practices and advocate for children and families at every level.
• Work closely with business development, fundraising and wider colleagues to strengthen the service.
• Build and maintain positive relationships with commissioners to support placements and service growth.
• Contribute to tenders and grant applications that help expand and enhance our provision.
• Implement necessary changes and oversee resource planning to ensure our services continue to thrive.

Let’s talk about you:

Are you resilient and have a positive approach to change and challenge? We are looking for someone with a ‘can do’ attitude to join our team. Ideally you will have:

• A proven track record of managing and developing high-quality residential services.
• Level 5 Leadership qualification or an equivalent qualification demonstrating strong professional foundations.
• Skilled at leading people, building confidence and creating a positive, supportive culture.
• Able to develop and maintain strong networks with professionals, partners and external agencies.
• Comfortable managing placements and meeting the expectations of commissioning bodies.
• A clear understanding of regulatory standards and what it takes to achieve and sustain high ratings.

Why Action for Children?

Every child should have a loving home, food, warmth, the chance to grow and learn - the support to cope with life’s challenges. But too many children don’t. By bringing your passion and unique skills and experience, you’ll help us change that where it really matters. We’ve been driven by love to take action for children for over 150 years, giving them the protection and practical help they need. A lot has changed since 1869. But what children really need hasn’t. So as long as children need us, we’ll be here. Will you join us?

Help with your application:

Please note, we are unable to offer sponsorship for this role. If you require any support with the application process, please contact the recruitment team at recruitmentservice@actionforchildren.org.uk, quoting reference 13301.

Diversity, equality and inclusion:

At Action for Children, we’re committed to creating a workplace where everyone feels respected, valued, and able to thrive. We know that racism and discrimination create barriers, and we’re taking active steps to challenge these inequalities in our organisation and in the communities we serve. We strongly welcome applications from Black, Asian, or other racialised and ethnically marginalised communities, as well as disabled people, who are currently under-represented in our workforce. We are committed to removing barriers in our recruitment processes and ensuring fair access to opportunities. We also encourage applications from men, who are under-represented in our Children’s Services roles. We recognise that people hold multiple identities, and we value the richness this brings to our team.