Leading our four bed Leiston home and its established team, accountable to Ofsted for the quality of its care, with a structured bonus, clinical supervision and the Level 5 funded.
£55,000 to £65,000, plus annual performance bonus
Here at Able Health Care, we put children at the heart of everything we do. We run three registered children's homes across Suffolk, Liberty Lodge in Ipswich, Fern Lodge in Leiston and Oak Tree House in Sudbury, with further homes in active development as part of a planned expansion.
Every home is built on the same foundation: consistent leadership, a therapeutic culture and management stability. We invest in permanent staff, keep agency use to a minimum, and promote from within: our current Operations Managers were appointed from inside the group.
Every appointment is made under safer recruitment procedures, including an enhanced DBS check. We aren't just filling shifts; we are looking for dedicated, empathetic people ready to bring their hearts to work and make a lasting difference.
Fern Lodge is a four bed home in Leiston, Suffolk, caring for young people aged 9 to 18 with emotional and behavioural difficulties and associated needs. It was judged Good in all three areas at its most recent full Ofsted inspection in September 2025, and Good at every full inspection before that.
This is a home for a manager who wants to lead directly. Four beds and an established core team mean the Registered Manager is visible, close to the children, and able to set the standard in person rather than through layers of supervision. The casework is complex: the home holds young people presenting with missing episodes, exploitation risk and significant challenging behaviour, and the manager is supported to hold that complexity properly, with clinical supervision from an external consultant clinical psychologist and direct access to the Operations Manager and the Responsible Individual.
The right candidate will take a Good home and build the evidence base for Outstanding.
Full time, 40 hours per week. Permanent. Relocation support is available for candidates moving into the region.
Reporting line
The Registered Manager reports to the Operations Manager and is accountable to the Directors and the Responsible Individual.
Safer recruitment
Able Health Care is committed to safer recruitment and to safeguarding the children and young people in our care to the highest standard. All appointments are made using robust recruitment procedures, including an enhanced DBS check with a check of the children's barred list, full employment history, and satisfactory references. This post is exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 under the Exceptions Order 1975, and the successful candidate will be required to complete an Ofsted fit person interview as part of their registration.
We welcome applications from all backgrounds and are committed to building a workforce that reflects the communities we serve.
Key responsibilities
Care and safeguarding
- Delivering high quality care to every child at Fern Lodge, with each placement plan fully and consistently implemented
- Ensuring compliance with the Children Act 1989, the Care Standards Act 2000 and the Children's Homes (England) Regulations 2015
- Managing all child protection matters in line with current legislation and best safeguarding practice, including prompt and accurate notification to the relevant authorities
- Ensuring accurate assessment and recording of need, including missing episodes and exploitation risk, and coordinating health, education and therapeutic support for each child
Leadership
- Providing visible, hands on leadership and coaching in day to day childcare practice
- Leading, developing and holding to account the Deputy Manager and senior staff
- Taking stewardship of Able Health Care's therapeutic philosophy and practice framework, and ensuring policies are applied consistently across every shift
Regulatory and home management
- Owning quality assurance and all duties associated with regulatory compliance, including the inspection process
- Completing Regulation 45 quality of care reports, ensuring monthly Regulation 44 visits take place, and actioning recommendations within agreed timescales
- Owning the home's development plan, informed by quality assurance outcomes
- Managing the home's budget, rota, recording systems, administration and premises to a consistently high standard
- Ensuring appropriate matching of referrals to the home and the existing peer group, and maintaining full occupancy
Team
- Delivering consistent, recorded supervision that supports both practice and individual development
- Building individual training plans, including support for staff working towards the Level 3 Diploma for Residential Childcare
- Completing probationary and annual appraisals, and maintaining a full complement of suitably qualified staff
- Implementing health and safety policy, risk assessments, incident reporting and fire drills in line with procedure
Required skills
- A Level 5 Diploma in Leadership and Management for Residential Childcare, or equivalent, or a firm commitment to complete it within the required timescale
- A minimum of four years' residential childcare experience, including proven management or supervisory experience
- A track record of managing to a Good or Outstanding standard sustained across more than one inspection cycle
- Direct experience of managing high complexity EBD/SEMH presentations, including missing episodes, exploitation risk and challenging behaviour
- Strong, hands on team leadership: the ability to set standards and build trust with a small, established staff group through consistent personal presence
- Sound working knowledge of the Children Act 1989, the Children's Homes (England) Regulations 2015, safeguarding procedures, children's rights, and indicators of child criminal and sexual exploitation
- Confident written and verbal communication, including report writing for Ofsted and local authorities
- Confident budget, rota and project management
- A full UK driving licence and use of a vehicle. This is a requirement of the role: Fern Lodge is rurally located, public transport does not support shift patterns, and the post involves transporting children
Nice to haves
- A diploma or degree in therapeutic work, or a Social Work qualification
- Experience of leading a home through a period of heightened risk or significant change
- Experience in a rural or geographically dispersed setting
- Financial management and management information reporting experience
- Experience of training delivery, or of devising and implementing policy
A manager who wants to lead in person. You set standards by being present, you build trust with a small established team through consistency, and you are comfortable holding complex casework with proper clinical backing behind you. You have run a home to Good or Outstanding across more than one inspection cycle and you want to take a Good home and build the evidence base for Outstanding.
What you get
Structured annual bonus
Level 5 fully funded
- A structured annual bonus scheme measured against defined targets, not a discretionary gesture
- Relocation support for candidates moving into the region
- Clinical supervision from an external consultant clinical psychologist, and an in house therapeutic offer under development
- Fully funded professional development, including Level 5 where not already held
- Direct access to the Operations Manager, the Responsible Individual and the Directors. Decisions are made quickly and locally
- Real progression: as the group expands towards ten registered provisions, senior operational roles are filled from within wherever possible
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