Service Manager in Colchester

The Service Manager is responsible for the day-to-day operational management of supported living services. Lead and manage the Supported Living service, ensuring adherence to all relevant regulatory and legislative requirements. Provide effective leadership to the staff team, promoting Harley House's values, policies, and procedures. To ensure that the workforce possesses the skills, competencies, and knowledge necessary to enable the people we support to lead as independent and fulfilling a life as possible. To report to the Registered Manager on matters of regulatory compliance and support with mock inspections as appropriate.

This job description lists the main areas in which you will be expected to provide support. We may need to add more specific tasks to this description based on the individual's needs and preferences, thereby supporting their right to control their own lives.

Main Duties and Responsibilities

• Ensure that effective support plans are in place for all individuals we support, tailored to their specific needs, risks, and wishes, and developed in collaboration with them through co-production. These plans should be updated at least monthly or as needs change.
• Promote independence, positive risk-taking, and embracing Equality and Inclusion to enable the people we support to live their best possible lives, ensuring consistent compliance with The Mental Capacity Act and Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (in situations where this applies).
• Ensure that rotas reflect individual hours and recognize the skill mix of the workforce, ensuring safe and adequate staffing levels to support people in living the life they want.
• Ensure that there is evidence of effective handovers, planning of the day-to-day activities, and ensuring staff are following support plans and relevant policies and procedures.
• Oversee and monitor accidents or incidents, ensuring these are documented to the Registered Manager and relevant safeguarding or CQC notifications have been raised or escalated to the Quality and Governance Lead.
• Monitor and oversee the interactions, performance, and conduct of staff on duty, and respond to instances of poor or inappropriate practice.
• Ensure that safeguarding concerns are reported to the Local Authority and liaise with the Registered Manager / Quality and Governance Lead immediately in response to serious incidents.
• Provide effective supervision to support staff.
• Ensure all staff are up to date with their mandatory training and address noncompliance with individual staff.
• Provide on-call phone advice, guidance, and support to the workforce.
• Ensure that medication is administered in a timely fashion and that any medication errors or discrepancies are reported.
• Develop an open, transparent culture that strives for continuous improvement, the well-being of the staff team, and a culture that learns lessons, and where the workforce feels valued.
• Lead on safer recruitment with the Registered Manager / HR Dept.
• Develop strong relationships with service users and their families, ensuring regular monitoring of care and support delivery.
• Ensure concerns and complaints are acted upon promptly.
• Ensure new care and support packages are communicated clearly to the staff team, ensuring everything is in place to deliver safe, effective care based on the needs and wishes of the service user.
• Ensure all the people we support have a robust support plan which accurately reflects the needs and risks, and ensure this is updated regularly and in coproduction with the people we support.
• Ensure regular audits and spot checks are undertaken to monitor care delivery, staff competency, and service user satisfaction.
• Be a positive role model and lead the team, ensuring annual leave, payroll, recruitment, invoices, and rotas are managed effectively.
• Ensure all information is kept up to date in accordance with GDPR legislation.
• Undertake regular supervisions and commit to the development of all staff.
• Lead on initiatives to market the service and attract new referrals and inquiries. Support and lead on new referrals, transitions, and assessment processes.
• Develop key relationships with local authority, health professionals, and other key stakeholders.
• Foster an open and transparent culture that encourages staff to raise concerns confidently and ensures clear evidence of lessons learned following incidents and near-miss events.
• Plan and lead an on-call rota, ensuring staff have access to clear advice, guidance, and support in case of any emergencies.
• Commit to the development, knowledge, and skills of the staff team, ensuring that mandatory training is up to date and that opportunities are identified for additional training according to service user needs and individual staff development.
• Carry out investigations when there have been care or conduct concerns, liaising with our relevant HR partners as necessary.
• Act swiftly on performance and capability concerns.
• Liaise with relevant health professionals in relation to the people we support.
• Ensure all new staff have an induction and regular meetings during their probation period.
• Address concerns with staff performance, competency, and skills, always following relevant policies and procedures, and with support from the Registered Manager.
• Ensure robust handovers are carried out between management.
• Carry out any additional tasks or duties according to your Service Manager's responsibilities and within your scope of competence.

Quality and Governance

• Follow the Governance calendar, ensuring all relevant systems and processes are undertaken.
• Ensure all audits are undertaken as per the Quality Assurance framework, and actions are added to the Continuous Improvement plan.
• Complete all accidents and incidents, and they are recorded, signed off accordingly, and key performance indicators are escalated to the Registered Manager, Operations Manager, and Head of Care.
• Carry out regular observations and audits of staff interactions with people we support.
• Ensure that competencies are undertaken in key areas.
• Attend the bi-monthly Quality and Governance meetings, providing feedback on trends and incidents in your service.

Other duties

• Support the Registered Manager in marketing the service, developing key relationships with commissioners, and ensuring that vacancies are communicated and assessments are undertaken in a responsive manner.
• Act as an ambassador for the service, ensuring that, as the Service Manager, you maintain professionalism and integrity at all times.
• As a Service Manager in the service, you refrain from befriending staff or service users on social network sites.
• Always act in the best interest of any person who may lack the capacity to make decisions.
• Ensure that the safeguarding of the people we support is always a priority.
• Be aware of, and follow the procedure for, reporting any safeguarding concerns or incidents.