Children's Home Manager in Ruabon

Rooted in Care. Giving Change a Chance. At Arbour Healthcare Group, we provide specialist residential care for children and young people who need safe, consistent, nurturing and emotionally attuned adults around them. We provide support to young individuals with complex needs, such as emotional, behavioural, and learning disability needs, as well as trauma histories and experiences that may have influenced their perceptions of themselves, others, and the world. Our work is not about simply managing behaviour. It is about understanding the story behind it, creating safety, building trust and helping young people believe that change is possible. Guided by our RESET Care Model, we are relentless in our pursuit of positive outcomes. RESET means Reassure, Empower, Support, Educate and Transition. It is more than a model on paper. It is how we expect care, leadership and decision-making to show up every day.

As Registered Children’s Home Manager, you will be responsible for the safe, effective and compliant running of the home. You will lead your team to deliver high-quality, child-centred care that is aligned with CIW expectations, statutory requirements, safeguarding responsibilities and Arbour Healthcare Group’s values. You will be accountable for embedding the RESET Care Model, developing your staff team, maintaining high standards of care, driving quality improvement and ensuring every young person is supported to feel seen, heard, safe and understood. You will also be responsible for the operational, financial, regulatory and people-management duties that come with leading a residential children’s home. This is not a work-from-home leadership role. You will be present in the home, visible to your team, active in practice and confident leading from the front.

Key responsibilities

• Lead and manage the day-to-day operation of the residential children’s home
• Ensure the home is safe, nurturing, well-led and compliant with CIW standards
• Embed the RESET Care Model and ensure trauma-informed practice is reflected in daily care
• Champion safeguarding, child protection and professional curiosity across the service
• Lead, supervise, support and develop the Deputy Manager and Residential Children’s Support Workers
• Ensure care plans, risk assessments and placement plans are implemented, reviewed and kept up to date
• Promote positive outcomes for young people across emotional wellbeing, education, health, relationships, life skills and independence
• Build effective relationships with social workers, families, schools, health professionals, local authorities and external agencies
• Manage incidents, safeguarding concerns and crisis situations calmly, professionally and decisively
• Oversee rotas, staffing levels, supervision, appraisals, training and workforce development
• Maintain accurate records and ensure high standards of digital documentation
• Lead on quality assurance, audits, service improvement and preparation for inspections
• Participate in the on-call rota
• Role-model best practice on the floor and create a culture of accountability, learning and reflection

What we are looking for

We are looking for a strong, capable and values-led Registered Manager who understands the responsibility that comes with leading a children’s home. You will need to bring professional confidence, emotional resilience, regulatory knowledge and the ability to lead people through both progress and challenge. You will have:

• At least 2 years’ experience working with children in a residential care environment within the last 5 years
• At least 1 year’s experience in a senior role, such as Team Leader, Deputy Manager or equivalent
• Level 5 Diploma in Leadership for Health and Social Care and Children and Young People’s Services, or a commitment to work towards this (we will pay for your qualification)
• Strong knowledge of safeguarding, child protection and safer care practice
• A good understanding of Ofsted and/or CIW regulations, inspection frameworks and compliance expectations
• Experience leading, supervising and developing staff teams
• The ability to manage challenging situations, incidents and crisis responses safely and professionally
• Strong written and verbal communication skills
• Confidence using digital systems, including Word, Excel, PowerPoint and paperless care-recording systems
• A clear commitment to working flexibly, including some evenings, weekends, nights and on-call responsibilities where required
• The ability to lead with warmth, boundaries, consistency and accountability

What will make you successful

• You will be successful in this role if you can balance care with compliance, warmth with boundaries, and ambition with professional discipline.
• You must be able to hold the whole home in mind. That means the young person, the staff team, the rota, the budget, the records, the risks, the regulators and the outcomes.
• You will need to be the kind of leader who notices when standards drift, steps in when practice needs support and challenges anything that does not serve the best interests of the young person.
• You will also need to lead a Progress Project with or for a young person. This means driving a meaningful piece of work that shows clear evidence of a young person being challenged, supported and changed in a positive way.

What makes Arbour Healthcare Group different?

At Arbour Healthcare Group, our mission is clear: Rooted in Care. Giving Change a Chance. We believe every young person has the right to be seen, heard, safe and supported. Our RESET Care Model places healing, trust, emotional safety and human connection at the centre of our work. We do not simply manage behaviour. We seek to understand the unmet need, the story and the communication behind it. We also believe staff deserve strong leadership, clear expectations and the right support to do their jobs well. As a Registered Manager, you will play a key role in creating that culture.

Why join Arbour Healthcare Group?

• Permanent full-time leadership role
• Opportunity to lead a specialist solo-occupancy children’s home
• A values-led organisation with a clear therapeutic care model
• Leadership development and progression opportunities
• Bespoke training linked to trauma-informed care, safeguarding and residential childcare
• Enhanced annual leave allowance
• Company pension scheme
• Meals and essentials provided while on shift
• Supportive senior leadership structure
• A genuine sense of community and shared purpose
• A chance to shape a home, develop a team and change the direction of a young person’s life

Our expectations

This is a senior leadership role, and the expectations are high. You will be expected to be visible, proactive, organised and accountable. You will need to lead on the floor, not just from the office. You will need to own your service, understand your young person, develop your team and ensure the home is always inspection-ready. You will need to use digital systems confidently, as Arbour Healthcare Group operates paperless services. You will need to participate in the on-call rota and fully understand the needs of your service across all shift patterns. Most importantly, you will need to believe that change is possible, even when progress is not immediate.

Ready to give change a chance? If you are an experienced children’s residential leader who wants to build something meaningful, lead with purpose and help young people reset the direction of their lives, we would like to hear from you - so apply now.