Principal Service Lead - Through Care in Dudley

This is an exciting opportunity for a proven leader in children’s social care to play a pivotal role improving outcomes for vulnerable children and young people at scale, while leading complex transformation. As Principal Service Lead – Through Care, you’ll lead some of the most important services in Children’s Social Care — shaping the experiences and outcomes of children in care, care experienced young people, fostering, residential homes, placements and emotional wellbeing services across Dudley.

This is a role with genuine influence: leading strategic improvement while maintaining a strong operational grip on quality, safeguarding, permanence and stability for children and young people with complex needs. Working as part of the Children & Young People Leadership Team, you’ll help drive the Council’s improvement journey, embedding trauma‑informed, child‑centred practice and ensuring services deliver consistently high standards.

You’ll work across the wider system — partnering with education, health, providers, elected members and social care leaders — to modernise services, strengthen corporate parenting and build sustainable, high‑performing teams. From developing fostering sufficiency and improving placement stability to overseeing residential provision and supporting care leavers into adulthood, this is a rare opportunity to shape services that have a lasting impact on children’s lives.

Who we’re looking for: We’re looking for an exceptional, values‑led leader at Head of Service level who can combine strong statutory grip with big ambition for children’s lives. You will bring credibility in children’s social care leadership and the ability to drive improvement across Through Care, strengthening fostering, residential provision, placements, and emotional wellbeing support so that children experience real stability, not just services.

You’ll understand regulation and quality inside‑out (including safeguarding responsibilities and the operational discipline needed to meet statutory and governance requirements), and you’ll use that knowledge to enable great practice rather than constrain it. Above all, you will be relentless in building the conditions for children to thrive growing our foster carer community, shaping, and delivering plans that bring children closer to home, and developing stable, nurturing homes where care is consistent, relationships are prioritised, and love is felt in everyday practice.

If you are the kind of leader who can hold risk, inspire teams, and turn strategy into lived experience for children creating stability built on love, belonging and high expectations then we would be delighted to hear from you.

Why join Dudley MBC? Joining Dudley Council is an opportunity to play a leading role in a borough‑wide improvement journey where your expertise, leadership and ideas will genuinely shape the future of Children’s Services. Alongside the opportunity to lead strategically and make a visible impact, Dudley offers a highly competitive package, access to the Local Government Pension Scheme, generous annual leave entitlement, flexible working opportunities and ongoing investment in leadership development and professional learning.

You’ll join an organisation that values inclusive leadership, wellbeing, collaboration and continuous professional development, while offering the scale and complexity needed to further develop your career at senior leadership level.

For further details and to apply please click the apply button. The closing date for applications is Midnight, Sunday 7th June 2026. The Council is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of vulnerable groups and expect all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and vulnerable adults; therefore, the post is subject to medical clearance and an enhanced DBS check.