Specialist Children's Registered Manager in Lowestoft

Lead a specialist children's home with purpose, support and the opportunity to shape what comes next.

Job Title: Specialist Registered Manager

Salary: up to £55,000 per annum, plus potential specialist complexity supplement depending on experience

Contract Type: Permanent

Working Pattern: 37.5 hours per week, full-time

Closing Date: Sunday 4 October 2026*

At JMR Healthcare, we believe every child deserves a safe, supportive and highly individualised home.

We are looking for an experienced and confident Registered Manager to lead Airey Close, one of our specialist children's homes in Lowestoft.

This is a role for someone who wants more than a standard Registered Manager post. Airey Close supports young people with complex emotional, behavioural, mental health and safeguarding needs, and we are looking for a leader who can bring calm, professional judgement, strong safeguarding practice and a genuine commitment to child-centred care.

You will have the opportunity to lead a specialist service, develop a skilled and reflective team, and help shape the next stage of the home's development.

What we can offer you

We know that leading a children's home is demanding, especially when supporting young people with complex needs. That is why we are committed to making sure our managers have the support, structure and professional backing they need.

In this role, you will benefit from:

• a salary of up to £55,000 per annum, plus potential specialist complexity supplement;
• regular supervision and support from experienced senior leaders;
• a supportive residential leadership team;
• reflective practice and access to specialist input where required;
• the opportunity to shape and develop a specialist service;
• support with quality assurance, Ofsted readiness and service development;
• a culture that values collaboration, professional curiosity and doing the right thing for children.

You will not be expected to lead in isolation. You will be part of a wider team that is committed to safeguarding, quality, reflective practice and positive outcomes.

About the role

As Registered Manager, you will be responsible for the safe, effective and compliant running of Airey Close.

You will provide strong, visible leadership to the home, supporting your team to deliver consistent, nurturing and trauma-informed care. You will make sure that care planning, safeguarding, risk management and day-to-day practice are centred around the needs and experiences of each child.

You will also play an important role in developing the service, strengthening practice and helping the home continue to grow in a safe, thoughtful and well-supported way.

You will be responsible for:

• leading and supporting the staff team;
• maintaining high standards of safeguarding, care and compliance;
• preparing for and leading Ofsted inspections;
• embedding trauma-informed, relational and least-restrictive practice;
• supporting robust care planning, risk assessment and matching decisions;
• working closely with social workers, commissioners, families, education, health and safeguarding partners;
• creating a home environment where children feel safe, understood and supported.

About you

You will be an experienced children's residential leader who is confident managing complexity and supporting teams through challenge.

You may already be a Registered Manager, or you may be an experienced Deputy Manager or senior residential leader ready for the right opportunity.

You will need:

• experience within children's residential care;
• experience supporting young people with complex emotional, behavioural, mental health or safeguarding needs;
• strong knowledge of Ofsted, Children's Homes Regulations and Quality Standards;
• confidence in safeguarding, risk assessment, care planning and quality assurance;
• the ability to lead, develop and support a team;
• strong communication skills and confidence working with professionals and families;
• Level 3 Diploma/NVQ in Health and Social Care, Children and Young People, or equivalent;
• Level 5 Diploma in Leadership and Management for Residential Childcare, or equivalent, or willingness to complete this where appropriate;
• the ability to meet the requirements of Regulation 28 of the Children's Homes Regulations 2015.

Experience of specialist provision, Positive Behaviour Support, trauma-informed care, restrictive practice, deprivation of liberty arrangements or complex multi-agency working would be particularly valuable.

Our values

Our values shape how we care, lead and make decisions.

Compassion — we act with empathy and care.

Excellence — we continuously develop ourselves, our people and our services.

Integrity — we do what we say we will do and hold ourselves accountable.

Courage — we speak up, challenge where needed and work to improve outcomes.

For this role, those values matter every day. You will need the compassion to understand each child's experience, the excellence to maintain high standards, the integrity to make safe decisions, and the courage to lead confidently in complex situations.

In addition to a competitive salary, we offer:

• Health Cash Plan through SimplyHealth, including 24/7 GP access;
• discounted gym membership;
• money back on eligible health costs;
• high street and online shopping discounts;
• life cover protection of 3x salary;
• Employee Assistance Programme;
• 28 days' holiday entitlement, increasing up to 33 days including bank holidays;
• salary sacrifice pension scheme;
• regular company events, including our Summer Fun Day and Annual Christmas Awards Evening.

Ready to join us?

If you are an experienced children's residential leader looking for a specialist Registered Manager role with purpose, complexity and support, we would love to hear from you.

Essential information for candidates

JMR Healthcare LTD and JMR Recruitment LTD are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people, and we expect all staff to share in this responsibility.

All offers of employment are subject to an Enhanced DBS check with Adult and Child barred list checks, alongside other pre-employment checks to confirm suitability to work with children and young people.

This post is exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974.

Please note, we do not offer sponsorship.

*We will review applications as they are received and reserve the right to close this advert early.