Assistant Director of Quality and Improvement

Job Title: Assistant Director of Quality and Improvement
Contract Type: Permanent
Salary: £88,219.95 per annum (£92,604.32 achieved after 18months in role)
Working Hours: 37.5 Hours per week
Working Pattern: Monday-Friday/Hybrid
Location: This is a national role and can be based anywhere in the UK
Interviews will take place Thursday 17th Sept in person in Arlington, Camden
The difference you will make as the Assistant Director of Quality and Improvement
As Assistant Director of Quality and Improvement, you’ll be a key strategic partner to the Chief Care & Support Officer, driving excellence across our services. You’ll lead a high-performing team to embed a culture of continuous improvement, ensure our people are equipped to deliver safe, high-quality support, and use data-driven insights to shape better outcomes. Your leadership will help keep our customers and colleagues safe, while ensuring their voices are central to everything we do.
The post holder will participate in the senior management on call rota
Why Riverside?
At Riverside, we’re a housing association with a difference – enhancing the everyday for all our customers. For 90 years, we’ve been revitalising neighbourhoods and supporting communities by providing the homes they need to live full, fulfilling and rewarding lives.
We have a portfolio of over 75,000 affordable residential and retirement homes across the UK. Our work ranges from homelessness services to social care, employment support to retirement living, and we need the best people on board to help us.
Working With Us, You’ll Enjoy

• Competitive pay & generous pension
• 28 days holidays plus bank holidays
• Flexible working options available
• Investment in your learning, personal development and technology
• A wide range of benefits

Diversity And Inclusion At Riverside
We are inclusive. At Riverside, we value diversity in all its forms. We foster a workplace where all individuals are respected, empowered, and heard. Our commitment to inclusivity drives our success and enriches the lives of our customers and colleagues.
Riverside is a Disability Confident Employer and operates a Guaranteed Interview Scheme for any applicant who declares they have a disability. If the applicant meets the minimum requirements for the role (as set out in the role profile and/or person specification) they will be guaranteed an interview.
This role also falls under our Ethnic Diversity guaranteed interview scheme. If you are Ethnically Diverse and demonstrate you meet the minimum criteria for the role you will be guaranteed an interview.
Applications may close before the deadline, so please apply early to avoid disappointment.
Role Responsibilities
Leadership
Build a high performing, customer focused Quality & Improvement team that:
Sets high quality standards in line with regulatory requirements
Provides assurance that the business is meeting quality standards, and is operating safely and effectively
Promotes a culture of quality – providing advice and support where required and continuously seeking to improve in response to challenges and opportunities
Collaborates with centres of excellence across the business to deliver efficient and best practice services that meet business needs
Work alongside the C&S Committee and Executive Team to support the development of the C&S Strategy, and to deliver objectives related to Quality and Improvement
Quality Management
Lead and own the quality management framework and service audit programme for all C&S services, ensuring adherence with regulatory quality frameworks (e.g. for CQC or other regulatory quality frameworks) or setting high-quality internal standards (for non-regulatory frameworks)
Ensure quality management tools and systems are reviewed regularly and that customers and colleagues are involved in reviews
Develop and present reports to the C&S Committee, Executive teams, and Riverside Board as required. Provide expert advice, updates on any regulatory or sector developments and ensure senior managers and the governance community are informed of any audit requirements trends and performance
Engage with peers across the sector, including through the facilitation of peer review groups, to enable effective collaboration and to drive improvements within C&S
Performance Data and Analysis
Work in conjunction with internal experts across the wider business to:
Ensure a framework of business intelligence/insight channels is in place to gather feedback in line with quality standards, and to enable continuous learning and improvement. Channels include audit findings, system-based intelligence, best practice groups, reflective practice, customer involvement forums and satisfaction surveys
Maintain an accurate and useful C&S information dashboard and coordinate the completion of commentary for the group’s performance metrics dashboard, ensuring that senior colleagues across Riverside are appraised of performance
Undertake internal and external reporting to include Business Information, KPI’s and contractual returns
Co-produce with customers and act as C&S lead on the completion of an annual satisfaction survey for supported customers. Ensure survey methods are fit for purpose and enable C&S customers to provide meaningful feedback on the services that they receive
Provide The Committee, C&S Executive Team And Managers With
Accurate and comprehensive performance information for C&S, including in relation to empty homes, cash leakage and other performance data including support metrics and service outcomes
Analyses that identify issues, trends and potential improvements
Ensure C&S data quality is maintained and improved where required
Continuous Improvement
Embed a culture of continuous improvement in C&S, ensuring the right tools, skills and learning (inc. policies, procedures, training, coaching, reflective, clinical and therapeutic practice) are in place to enable colleagues across C&S to work safely, effectively and to meet quality standards
Deliver a service improvement planning and implementation cycle to meet customer and service needs, ensuring customer involvement and co-production is an intrinsic part of the process
Coordinate development and improvement of all C&S policies and procedures in line with learnings and business insights. Ensure they are up to date, compliant and reflect positive psychological approaches
Identify best practices and continuously review any regulatory or sector developments that may impact us, reflecting this in relevant policies, processes and practices
Work in conjunction with relevant teams across the wider business to ensure the requirements of C&S are represented in broader policies, procedures and IT system improvements
Safeguarding, Risk and Assurance
Manage safeguarding, risk and assurance activities. Ensure Care and Support services are fully compliant within the relevant regulatory, quality and performance frameworks
Act as the liaison between C&S and Riverside’s Internal Audit Lead, ensuring an effective programme of audits are in place and that actions are completed
Maintain oversight of regulatory registrations (including CQC and Ofsted) and relevant accreditations to maintain and enhance service delivery, including ISO9001 and EROSH
Act as the Centre of Excellence for CQC, including clinical governance and psychologically informed services
Other
Role model Our Riverside Way, ensuring our ways of working are embedded in all we do and supporting the delivery of our aspired culture
Create a positive, customer focused team culture where individuals can thrive and reach their full potential
Build strong and productive working relationships with members of the wider business, promoting the interests of C&S and cross-organisational collaboration
Ensure customer involvement and co-production are an intrinsic part of our approach, ensuring customers are provided with opportunities to influence and shape the services that we deliver
Person specification
Knowledge & Experience
Track record of success in a strategic senior level role meeting demanding objectives and delivering business performance that exceeds expectations.
Knowledge of regulatory and legislative frameworks in relation to the social housing sector and CQC.
Understanding of the social housing, care and supported housing sectors and the risks that they face.
Experience of data analysis and using data to deliver continuous improvement in a complex organisation.
Evidence of strong customer focus, active listening and responding to business needs in a complex service delivery environment.
Experience of building and managing effective relationships with a range of stakeholders, both internal and external.
Experience of implementing and overseeing a quality management framework in a housing setting.
Experience of delivering service improvement projects in a large organisation with successful outcomes.
Skills & Capabilities
(Essential Criteria)
Effective communicator and influencer, who instils confidence with peers, colleagues, boards, and stakeholders.
Proven leadership skills that both engages and inspires colleagues, with the ability to embed a vision and culture that demonstrates consistent and quality driven outcomes.
An ability to collaborate with a range of stakeholders, some of whom may have conflicting objectives and priorities.
Excellent analytical, strategic, conceptual thinking, strategic planning, and execution skills.
An ability to identify trends in relation to performance and recommend and deliver improvements where required.
Robust verbal and written communication skills including the ability to explain your area of work to the business, including colleagues from outside of your area of expertise, in a clear way.
A good understanding of current and emerging practices relating your area of expertise, including those related to social housing regulation, CQC and Ofsted.
Resilient, including the ability to work in a large, complex, and complicated group of businesses with different demands and tensions in a financially constrained environment.
Ability and willingness to work flexibly in a national role, including travel and overnight stays. #J-18808-Ljbffr