At a Glance
- Tasks: Lead and support multiple children's residential homes, ensuring high-quality care and compliance.
- Company: A historic organisation dedicated to transforming childhoods and supporting vulnerable children.
- Benefits: Competitive salary, generous leave, excellent pension, and discounts at various retailers.
- Other info: Flexible working opportunities and extensive career progression available.
- Why this job: Make a real difference in children's lives every day while leading compassionate teams.
- Qualifications: Significant management experience in children's services and strong leadership skills.
Location: Coalville, Leicestershire
Salary: £44,807 - £50,741 per annum
Hours: Full Time | 37 hours per week
Contract: Permanent
Lead Outstanding Children's Residential Services
For more than 150 years, this employer has been transforming childhoods and changing lives by supporting children, young people and families when they need it most. Their belief is simple: every child deserves the best possible start in life, regardless of their background or circumstances. Today, that commitment remains at the heart of everything they do.
An exciting opportunity has arisen for an experienced and passionate Operational Children's Services Manager to provide operational leadership across a diverse portfolio of children's residential homes throughout Leicestershire. If you're an inspiring leader who is committed to delivering exceptional care, supporting high-performing teams and helping children thrive, we'd love to hear from you.
About the Role
This is a varied and rewarding leadership role where no two days are the same. You'll provide operational oversight across several specialist residential services, working closely with Registered Managers and senior leaders to ensure homes consistently deliver safe, nurturing and high-quality care while maintaining full regulatory compliance.
You’ll oversee a range of specialist services, including:
- Emotional Wellbeing Homes
- Assessment Services
- Family Assessment Provision
- Contextual Safeguarding Services
- Complex Mental Health Residential Services
- Overnight Short Break Services
You’ll be a visible leader within the homes, offering practical support, mentoring managers, responding to operational challenges and driving continuous improvement to help achieve Outstanding outcomes.
Key Responsibilities
As Operational Children's Services Manager, you will:
- Lead and support multiple children's residential homes across Leicestershire.
- Provide operational leadership to Registered Managers and their teams.
- Ensure homes remain compliant with Ofsted regulations and children's legislation.
- Coordinate recruitment, staffing and workforce planning.
- Lead on quality assurance, audits and service improvement.
- Support services following critical incidents, including debriefing and action planning.
- Coordinate mandatory training and professional development.
- Build positive relationships with commissioners, partner agencies and senior stakeholders.
- Monitor performance, produce operational reports and drive continuous improvement.
- Step into Registered Manager responsibilities where required, including supporting Ofsted registration during management vacancies.
- Champion safeguarding, positive outcomes and a culture of excellence across every service.
About You
We’re looking for someone who leads with compassion, confidence and integrity. You’ll ideally have:
- Significant management experience within children's residential services.
- Strong knowledge of Ofsted regulations, safeguarding and children's legislation.
- Experience managing or supporting multiple services.
- Excellent leadership, coaching and people management skills.
- Experience working alongside local authorities, commissioners and multi-agency professionals.
- Strong organisational, project management and problem-solving abilities.
- Experience managing budgets, quality assurance and service performance.
- The confidence to lead during challenging situations and make sound operational decisions.
- A recognised qualification relevant to children's residential services.
- A genuine passion for improving the lives of children and young people.
Why Join?
This organisation has spent more than 150 years supporting vulnerable children and young people, continually adapting to meet society's changing needs while remaining true to one core belief: Every child deserves to feel safe, supported, valued and full of hope for the future. You’ll become part of a service where collaboration, compassion, inclusion and continuous improvement are genuinely embedded within the culture. If you’re looking for a role where your leadership will directly change lives every single day, this is an opportunity to make a lasting difference.
What’s on Offer
- Salary of £44,807 - £50,741
- 26 days annual leave, increasing with length of service
- Opportunity to purchase additional annual leave
- Excellent pension with employer contributions
- Life assurance
- Enhanced family-friendly policies
- Employee Assistance Programme
- Health Cash Plan
- Cycle to Work Scheme
- Discounts at hundreds of retailers, supermarkets and leisure venues
- Extensive learning, leadership development and career progression opportunities
- Flexible working opportunities where operationally appropriate
Who We’re Looking For
This role would suit professionals currently working as:
- Operations Manager
- Area Manager
- Responsible Individual
- Children's Residential Service Manager
- Multi-Site Registered Manager
- Regional Manager
- Senior Children's Services Manager
Ready to Change Lives?
If you’re ready to join an organisation with a proud history of improving children's lives and want to lead services that truly make a difference, we’d love to hear from you. Apply today and help shape brighter futures for children and young people across Leicestershire.
Operational Children's Services Manager in Coalville employer: ZG Recruitment
Join a leading children's charity with over 150 years of experience in transforming lives, where your role as a Residential Children & Young Peoples Worker in Rothley will allow you to make a meaningful impact on the lives of children and young people with complex needs. Enjoy a supportive work culture that prioritises employee wellbeing, offers excellent benefits including a generous pension scheme, up to 30 days annual leave, and outstanding opportunities for personal and professional growth. With a commitment to safeguarding and nurturing relationships, you'll be part of a dedicated team that believes every child deserves the best start in life.
StudySmarter Expert Advice🤫
We think this is how you could land Operational Children's Services Manager in Coalville
✨Dive into Local Community Groups
Social work thrives on community connections, so get involved in local groups or forums specific to your interests. Whether it’s volunteering at local shelters or joining community action boards, these are great ways to boost your visibility and make direct contacts that could lead to opportunities like the one at ZG Recruitment.
✨Attend Social Work Events and Workshops
Keep an eye out for workshops, seminars, or conferences in social work. These events are fantastic for meeting professionals in the field, learning about emerging trends, and spotting job openings. Plus, you might just bump into someone from ZG Recruitment!
✨Showcase Your Passion and Expertise
Use platforms like Instagram or LinkedIn to share your journey and insights into the social work sector. Whether it’s writing about your experiences or sharing relevant articles, this helps to establish you as an engaged professional. Potential employers, like ZG Recruitment, will notice your enthusiasm!
✨Leverage Your Network
Don’t hesitate to reach out to professors, mentors, or even past colleagues who are in social work. They might have inside knowledge about openings at ZG Recruitment or be able to connect you with someone who’s hiring. Networking is key, especially in a full-time role where relationships matter.
We think you need these skills to ace Operational Children's Services Manager in Coalville
Some tips for your application 🫡
Show Your Passion for Social Work:In your cover letter, let us see your passion for social work shine through! Talk about the experiences that made you want to pursue this career—whether it’s volunteering, personal experiences, or academic projects. We want to know why this field matters to you.
Emphasise Relevant Qualifications:Make sure your CV highlights any relevant qualifications, like degrees in social work or certifications like a DBS check. If you've done any workshops or training, don’t forget to include those as well. We're keen to see your commitment to your professional development!
Detail Your Experience with Clients:Since this is a hands-on field, detailing any direct experience you have with clients is crucial. Whether it's internships, volunteer roles, or previous jobs, highlight those experiences in your CV to show us you've got the practical skills necessary for the job!
Tailor Your Application to ZG Recruitment:Before hitting send, make sure to tailor your application specifically to ZG Recruitment! Research our mission and values, and refer to them in your cover letter. This shows us that you understand our work and are genuinely interested in being a part of our team!
How to prepare for a job interview at ZG Recruitment
✨Understanding the Role of Empathy
In social work, understanding and demonstrating empathy is key. Be prepared to share personal experiences or scenarios where you effectively showed compassion and support. This helps show that you genuinely care about the well-being of others, which is crucial in social work.
✨Demonstrating Knowledge of Frameworks
Familiarise yourself with the frameworks and models used in social work, such as the Strengths-Based Approach or the Ecological Perspective. Be ready to discuss how these frameworks apply to your work, especially if you can tie them into real-world examples or case studies you've encountered.
✨Showcasing Your Multi-Disciplinary Skills
In a full-time social work role, you'll often collaborate with healthcare professionals, educators, and law enforcement. Be prepared to describe your teamwork experiences and how you've effectively communicated with other disciplines to achieve the best outcomes for clients.
✨Preparing for Scenario-Based Questions
Expect questions that put you in hypothetical social work situations, such as dealing with a crisis or managing a complex case. Think through your thought process for these scenarios beforehand, considering how you'd assess the situation and what steps you'd take, as this demonstrates your critical thinking and problem-solving abilities.
