Operation and compliance coordinator

Children's Residential Care

Hours: Full Time – 40 hours per week, Monday to Friday

Location: 360 Brighton Road, South Croydon CR2 6AL

Requirement: Must hold a full UK driving licence, have access to your own vehicle, and hold business insurance for work travel (mileage reimbursed)

£25,000 – £30,000 per annum, depending on experience | Full-time

About the Role

We're a growing children's residential care organisation, currently running two homes, opening our third, with plans for a fourth. As we move into a larger office, we're looking for an Operations & Compliance Coordinator to join our team and help build the operational foundations of the organisation as we scale. This is an exciting time to join us, with lots of ideas in motion and real opportunity to make a difference. We're looking for someone who takes ownership, sees things through and gets genuine satisfaction from a job well done.

You'll work closely with the leadership team and Registered Managers, helping them stay on top of compliance, property requirements, training, recruitment and day-to-day operational priorities. After your initial induction, we want you to become someone the team can rely on: confident, organised, capable of making sensible decisions and able to take pressure off busy managers. Most importantly, we support some of the most vulnerable children in the country. Everything we do needs to reflect this. We're looking for someone compassionate who genuinely cares about the quality of life and experiences of the children in our care, rather than someone simply looking for an administrative role.

Key Responsibilities

• Property and compliance: identify and assess potential properties, support renovation projects, coordinate contractors and maintain property compliance including gas safety, EICRs, emergency lighting, fire safety and statutory servicing. Maintain live trackers to ensure certificates and inspections remain up to date and properties are always inspection and Ofsted ready.
• Staff training: coordinate mandatory and specialist training across our homes, including safeguarding, first aid, medication and physical intervention. Maintain accurate training records, monitor completion and renewal dates, and work with Registered Managers to identify and address training requirements.
• Supporting Registered Managers: assist with compliance checks, audits and preparation for regulatory inspections. Identify compliance gaps early and help resolve them before they become problems, becoming a trusted source of operational support for managers across the homes.
• Children's activities and enrichment: support managers in organising trips, activities and experiences that improve outcomes and quality of life for the children. This may include independently arranging transport, accommodation and itineraries while working with managers on risk assessments and safeguarding considerations.
• Budgeting and suppliers: support budgeting and cost tracking across properties, projects and staff expenses. Source quotes, manage supplier and contractor spend, negotiate where appropriate and identify cost-effective solutions without compromising quality.
• Recruitment and people: support recruitment campaigns, shortlist candidates, assist with interviews and manage onboarding, safer recruitment checks and compliance documentation for new starters.
• General operations: act as a key problem-solver across the organisation, manage multiple sites and priorities, follow tasks through from concept to completion, identify opportunities for improvement and introduce practical solutions that add value.

About You

We're looking for someone who is organised, proactive and comfortable taking ownership. You should be able to work independently, manage competing priorities and remain calm under pressure. Ideally, you'll have experience in property management, facilities, compliance or operations within a regulated environment. Experience within children's residential care, social care or a similar setting would be advantageous. You'll need to be confident managing contractors and suppliers, negotiating professionally, working with budgets and numbers, and keeping detailed records. A strong understanding of property compliance requirements is beneficial, although we're also open to someone who is a quick learner and genuinely committed to developing their knowledge.

We're particularly interested in someone who is:

• Compassionate and genuinely committed to improving outcomes for children and young people.
• A natural finisher who follows tasks through rather than leaving things half complete.
• Confident, practical and capable of making sensible decisions independently.
• Comfortable holding contractors and suppliers to account professionally.
• Highly organised with excellent attention to detail.
• Able to manage multiple properties, projects and priorities simultaneously.
• A quick learner who can settle into a growing organisation and become a dependable member of the team.
• Able to contribute ideas and improvements rather than simply following instructions.

Recruitment or interviewing experience would be an advantage. A full UK driving licence and access to your own vehicle are essential, as the role involves regular travel between properties and visits to potential new sites.

What We Offer

• £25,000 – £30,000 per annum, depending on experience.
• Mileage covered for business travel.
• Supportive leadership team with a strong focus on your development.
• Real autonomy and trust once you are settled into the role.
• The opportunity to help shape the operational infrastructure of a growing organisation.
• Career progression as the organisation expands from two homes to four and beyond.
• A varied role with genuine responsibility and the opportunity to make a meaningful difference.

If you're someone who takes ownership, enjoys solving problems, cares about quality and wants to play an important role in a growing children's care organisation, we'd love to hear from you.