Family Hub Manager Children and Young People Disabilities

We are looking for a unique and exceptional Manager to lead our Children and Young People with Disability Community Hub. We pride ourselves on our relationship-based approach to social work and ensure that our children and young people are at the heart of all we do. Based in Dagenham, our specialist Family Hub for Children with Disabilities is the centre of our early help offer to families caring for a child with additional needs.

Our vision is for the Hub to be a centre of excellence, a place where children and their parents/carers feel valued, supported and encouraged, a hive of activity and fun for our most vulnerable children. The Hub currently offers group activities for different age groups, parenting support, drop-in sessions, fun holiday activities, and a sensory room. We have good relationships with voluntary sector partners and are looking to develop our short breaks offer further.

Our Hub team is made up of Early Intervention Workers who deliver the group work and also hold small caseloads of early help assessments and interventions. Your role will be to manage the team, allocate work, oversee planning and outcomes for individual children, quality assure the group activities, and develop the Hub offer, responding to the needs of the local community. You will liaise with multi-agency partners and build relationships to support joint working. You will monitor outcomes and ensure value for money, producing data-driven and analytical reports for senior managers to evidence the work of the team. You will respond to safeguarding concerns and take action as required to ensure that children are protected from harm. In all your work, you will make sure that children’s voices are heard and recorded consistently.

The CYPD Family Hub is part of our wider CYPD Service, which includes a Short Breaks Team, Portage Team, and a social work team. You will be part of the CYPD Service Management Team, covering colleagues as required.

We welcome applications from qualified and experienced candidates. You will need to have a Social Work degree and have completed your ASYE. You will need to hold Social Work England registration. This post is exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 and a comprehensive screening process will be undertaken on successful applicants including an Enhanced Children’s Department of Barring Services check.

You will be a social work qualified team manager with significant experience in working with children and young people with disabilities, able to manage in a busy environment and prioritise work to ensure key performance targets are met. You will have excellent communication skills, both verbal and written, and will be confident in presenting information to senior managers. You will have an awareness of the particular challenges faced by children and young people with complex needs and disabilities.

You will have experience of devising and implementing care packages and short breaks, always focusing on the child’s lived experience. You will have experience of budget management and be aware of the need to secure value for money through utilising a diverse range of local resources. You will ideally have experience of managing a Community Centre/Children’s Centre or similar resource and an understanding of premises management including health and safety. The work involves liaising with partners both within and without the council as necessary to ensure that services are provided efficiently and effectively and always focus on the best outcome for the child or young person.

We are putting the heart back into social work, supported by our relational practice model where we ensure the child’s lived experience takes centre stage. Ours is a culture of high support, high expectations and fair challenge. We need committed individuals to support us in the delivery of these aims and to become part of our team to make a difference to our children and families. In return, we offer a competitive pay package, generous pension and relocation package, annual leave up to 27 days, excellent opportunities for career progression, whether you want to broaden your experience as a social worker or step into management, investment in your learning and development as well as a commitment to your wellbeing.

We are currently reviewing our pay and benefits offer. The details in this advert reflect the offer that is in place at the time of this recruitment campaign.