Service Manager

Family Action, The post holder will share and embrace the vision of ‘Early Help’ in Birmingham, putting the well-being of all families, children, and young people at the heart of its work and leading to systemic and transformative change for individuals and the community.

Summary of job

You will play a key role in leading the day-to-day delivery of the service, providing effective management and leadership to a team of Early Help support workers and Early Help Development Workers. As the Service Manager, you will work in partnership with the Operational Manager to support the strategic development of the integrated service offer for children and families living in the West of Birmingham, working closely with stakeholders and actively engaging in local and district meetings, including with Birmingham Children’s Trust. You will be accountable for the quality standards in the service, building and sustaining professional relationships with all stakeholders.

Key tasks and responsibilities

• Provide direct line management and leadership to a staff team, including performance management, reflective practice supervision and robust monitoring of service provision.
• Hold regular staff engagement meetings to maintain effective communication within the service and provide a forum to share best practices and raise concerns.
• Ensure all appropriate staff development and core training requirements are fulfilled in the team and contribute to wider training plans for the locality, fostering a culture of continuous development.
• Oversee and support the planning, delivery and coordination of the Early Help Service, involving stakeholders and staff in decision-making processes.
• Support the Operational Manager in all aspects of delivery, including developing new workstreams and facilitating transformational change of the provision while managing relationships with key stakeholders.
• Prioritise referrals, manage work allocations and ensure effective deployment of workers to ensure service users receive a timely and effective service.
• Lead safe, reliable, high-quality services across the district that integrate with existing provisions, ensuring services are not duplicated through mutual trust and respect.
• Contribute to monitoring and performance reports as directed, implementing revisions to service delivery and ensuring a well-coordinated delivery plan that supports the vision for the service.
• Ensure service delivery meets Family Action’s Quality Assurance Framework, developing, implementing and reviewing quality assurance activity, including case reviews and observations.
• Ensure accurate case recording and safeguarding practice, providing monitoring reports such as quarterly performance reports and joint scorecards, and responding appropriately to safeguarding concerns in line with Family Action’s and Birmingham’s Right Help, Right Time procedures.
• Act as a safeguarding Lead for the district, ensuring compliance with relevant local and national legislation.
• Have an overview of the support needs of all families across West Birmingham and influence service planning, ensuring a clear, consistent approach to monitoring and evaluating work with children and families.
• Plan, monitor and review the Early Help Service, supporting development across the locality in line with priorities and anticipated outcomes, fostering strong collaborative relationships with local VCSE organisations and community groups.
• Develop and maintain productive working relationships with partners, and act as an advocate for service user participation and involvement, promoting service users’ influence on service design, development and delivery.
• Implement Family Action’s Equality Diversity and Inclusion Policy and Ethical Policy in every aspect of work and promote these principles among colleagues, service users and the community.
• Participate in Family Action’s formal appraisal and supervision processes, respond to critical challenge, advice, feedback and direction, and take responsibility for personal professional development.
• Lead recruitment, selection, induction, supervision, appraisal, staff development, motivation, training and disciplinary processes as necessary, in partnership with HR, ensuring appropriate resourcing at all times.
• Work closely with the Data, Impact and Finance Officer to collect, analyse and manipulate data for reporting and planning, as well as manage local budget and expenditure, highlighting risks as they arise.
• Contribute to the organisation’s growth and development, gaining knowledge of Family Action’s portfolio of services and acting as an ambassador for the work.
• Collaborate with Business Development colleagues to provide expertise on practice to support tenders.

Commitments

• Comply with Family Action’s Health and Safety and Data Protection policies and protect the health, safety and welfare of all.
• Work flexibly as required by the needs of the service and carry out any other reasonable duties as required.
• Evidence Family Action’s values at all times, which underpin the mission of ‘building stronger families’ by being people-focused, reflecting a ‘can-do’ approach, striving for excellence, and maintaining mutual respect for everyone involved.