Deputy Head of Service Commissioning for Older People

Job Title: Deputy Head of Service Commissioning for Older People
Starting Salary: £59,537
Hours: 37 hours per week
Location: Farnham House, Stevenage and hybrid working from home
Contract Type: 12 Month Fixed Term Contract or Secondment opportunity
Directorate: Adult Care Services

About the team

An exciting opportunity to lead a team of experienced social care commissioners to deliver a programme of contracting, procurement, and transformation work for older people's care services (support at home, extra-care housing and residential/nursing home care).

The team commissions care services for more than 6000 older people with frailty and dementia care needs with a total annual spend of more than £150 mn. The team is working to an established plan to improve outcomes for people who need a range of services and to achieve value for money for the Council at a time of significant budgetary pressure. With the next 12 months the team will deliver several significant projects to improve support at home, extra care, day care and care homes services whilst managing the day to day contract work.

About the role

The role is one of two Deputy Head of Service roles reporting to the Head of Service and will mainly focus on commissioning of care home services. Key responsibilities will include:

• Ensuring that staff within team are effectively managed and develop to support service aims.
• Ensuring that care contracts are effectively managed and deliver Value for Money and good outcomes for people.
• Ensuring that important projects are delivered efficiently and on time. Current projects include preparatory work for a tender for Discharge to Assess services, a review of Hertfordshire's care home Dementia Care Accreditation, and a review of commissioning arrangements for people with enhanced dementia care needs (including one to one care).
• To lead care provider engagement on improving access to nursing care in localities experiencing supply shortfalls.

About you

Essential:

• Educated to degree level
• High ambition on outcomes for older people and understanding of social care for older adults with conditions such as frailty and dementia
• Specialist knowledge of frailty, dementia and care in older age gained in social care of related field.
• Ability to ensure that the work of the team achieves Value for Money for the Council, including in areas of major spend.
• Professionally curious and able to manage, coach and develop commissioning staff (including those with line/project management responsibilities themselves).
• Ability to summarise complex information (including in formal reports) for a range of audiences.
• Ability to lead work with stakeholders of all backgrounds and levels of professional seniority to manage services and effect change.
• Ability to ensure that the projects being delivered by the team achieve good results.

Desirable:

• Experience of leading major/high value strategic commissioning and procurement gained in social care or related field.
• Experience of major programme delivery in social care or related field.
• Experience of major partnership development in social care or related field.

We welcome applications from candidates who currently reside in the UK with established proof of right to work documentation. We are not able to offer sponsorship at this time for this role.

This job role is within the Health and Social Care Services, level HSC14 job profile. Please locate this via:

Job profiles - Health and social care

To hear more about this opportunity please contact kristian.tizzard@hertfordshire.gov.uk for an informal discussion about the role.

Interview Date: 14 May 2025

Benefits of working for us

How to apply

As part of your application, please upload your most recent CV. Ensure your CV is up to date with your employment history (including any employment gaps), and including any training/qualifications. We encourage you to include examples of where you have demonstrated the requirements/criteria in the advert / job profile to allow the panel to fully recognise your skills and abilities. You will have the opportunity to include a short covering paragraph within your application to give us a little more information about your skills, knowledge, and experiences.

Secondment
This position is open to secondments. If you work for HCC or any other Local Authority and would like to be considered as a Secondment contract, please ensure you complete the Secondment Form as part of your application. If you do not, your application will be considered as a Fixed Term Contract only.

Disability Confident
We are proud to be a Disability Confident employer and guarantee an interview to anyone disclosing a disability whose application meets the minimum criteria for the post.

Safeguarding
This role has been identified as requiring a Disclosure & Barring Service (DBS) check.

English Fluency
The ability to converse at ease with members of the public and provide advice in accurate spoken English is essential for the post (for those whose language is a signed language the provision of a sign language interpreter who speaks English to the necessary standard of fluency will be required). Further information about the legal requirement can be found here.