Recruitment & Marketing Manager Black Country Fostering Hub in Walsall

Are you an innovative, insight-led marketing and recruitment professional who wants to make a real difference for children and young people across the Black Country? We are looking for a confident, creative and results-driven Recruitment and Marketing Manager to lead the marketing, communications and recruitment strategy for the Black Country Fostering Hub. This is a unique opportunity to help shape a new regional approach to foster carer recruitment, using digital innovation, community insight and data-led campaigns to increase the number, diversity and retention of foster carers.

Working across Walsall, Wolverhampton, Sandwell and Dudley, you will position the Hub as a trusted and recognisable regional fostering brand. You will lead a multi-disciplinary marketing and recruitment team, driving targeted campaigns, strengthening digital engagement and improving the experience of prospective foster carers from their first enquiry through to the early stages of their fostering journey.

About the role

This is not a traditional marketing role. You will be joining the Hub at a formative stage and will have the opportunity to design new approaches, test what works, and use evidence to continuously improve how we attract, engage and support prospective foster carers. Your work will directly contribute to improving placement sufficiency, reducing reliance on external placements and helping more children live safely within their local communities.

You will lead the development and delivery of a regional fostering marketing and communications strategy, using audience segmentation, campaign analytics, CRM, automation, social media, community engagement and performance intelligence to deliver measurable impact. You will work closely with operational colleagues to ensure marketing activity is fully aligned with recruitment capacity, applicant experience and the wider ambition of the Hub.

What you will bring

• Significant experience of leading strategic marketing, communications or recruitment campaigns that deliver measurable outcomes.
• A strong digital-first mindset, with the ability to use data, insight and analytics to improve reach, engagement, conversion and return on investment.
• Creativity, curiosity and confidence to test new ideas, challenge traditional approaches and remove barriers to fostering recruitment.
• Experience of leading teams, managing workloads and developing high-performing people across digital, community and recruitment activity.
• Strong influencing and partnership skills, with the ability to work across local authorities, senior leaders, community networks and external suppliers.
• A clear commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion, ensuring campaigns reach underrepresented communities and reflect the authentic voice of foster carers, children and young people.

Why join us?

The Black Country Fostering Hub is a new and ambitious regional partnership, led by Walsall Council with Wolverhampton, Sandwell and Dudley as key partners. It brings together local knowledge, regional collaboration and innovative practice to improve the way we recruit and support foster carers. This role offers the chance to be at the forefront of that change, leading a high-profile function where marketing is recognised as a strategic driver of better outcomes for children.

If you are ready to use your marketing expertise to build something new, influence regional change and help more children grow up in safe, stable and loving foster families, we would welcome your application.

Closing Date: Wednesday 26th August 2026

This post is covered by the Government’s Code of Practice on the English Language Fluency Duty for public sector workers. The post holder will be required to communicate verbally with customers and provide advice and/or information in accurate spoken English.

Walsall Council takes seriously the responsibility to safeguard and promote the welfare of all the children, young people and vulnerable adults entrusted to our care and it is our expectation that all staff will share this commitment. We will ensure continuous development and improvement of robust recruitment processes and procedures that promote a culture of safeguarding amongst our workforce.

Completion of an enhanced Disclosure & Barring Service (DBS) check is a requirement for working with children, young people and vulnerable adults.

Note: Applicants appointed to posts that require an enhanced DBS clearance must declare any periods of time that they have lived, studied or worked abroad and be prepared to provide an Overseas Criminal Records Certificate (OCRC) or a Statement of Good Conduct (SOGC) relating to anytime they were overseas.

At Walsall Council, we appreciate that AI can be a useful tool for ideas or guidance. However, we encourage you to make sure your application reflects your own voice and experiences. Over-reliance on AI can make responses feel less personal, and we really want to understand what makes you unique. Your experiences, skills, and perspective are what set you apart, so please ensure your application as a whole - particularly your 'Supporting Information' - reflects your own voice.

Walsall Council's Children's Services are the only Ofsted 'Outstanding' local authority in the Black Country. During a visit in May 2025, Inspectors described Walsall Council as a place where children were at the heart of. The council's journey of continuous improvement started in 2017 and has since transformed into a service with a clear vision, clear priorities and a clear plan, all informed by the views of our staff and children. Staff are at the core of delivering great outcomes for children and young people in Walsall, which is underpinned by our Walsall Right 4 Children vision. The latest Ofsted inspection demonstrated that staff in children's services are proud to work for Walsall Council and feel supported to do great work.