Head of Service - Corporate Parenting (Starting Well)

Grade 12- per annum - Grade 12 £73,311 - £82,326 + £10,000 Market Supplement subject to final confirmation.

Head of Service – Corporate Parenting (Starting Well) London Borough of Havering

Contract: Permanent

Message from the Director

Are you passionate about making a positive impact on the lives of children, young people, and families? Do you have a strong desire to be part of a transformative journey that will shape the future of Havering’s community? If so, we invite you to join us in our mission to elevate our local authority's Children's Social Care Services, situated within our Starting Well Department.

Following our recent inadequate Ofsted inspection, we are embarking on an improvement journey where we aim to re-establish and reinvigorate great practice across all our services delivered in Havering. As part of this journey, we are seeking dedicated and enthusiastic social care practitioners ready to make a meaningful difference, driven by a genuine desire to advocate for children, promote their well-being, and who are not afraid to take on the challenge of working for a local authority who have been inspected by Ofsted as inadequate.

In return, we want to offer you the opportunity to develop your skills through our dedicated 10 days of learning a year offer and access to our very own Social Care Academy and Systemic offer. We are committed to creating an environment where every child receives the best possible support and care, and all staff are supported to thrive and excel in safe, supported, and nurturing environments.

Our Senior leaders have worked on an improvement plan, and if you are ready to embrace this challenge and play a pivotal role in shaping our journey, we encourage you to apply.

We look forward to welcoming individuals who share our vision and drive.

About the Role

The London Borough of Havering is looking to recruit a Head of Service – Corporate Parenting (Starting Well) to contribute to the delivery of an effective children’s social care service as part of a social work team, improving outcomes for children and young people, and manage caseloads dependent upon experience, grade of post and complexity of cases, utilising specialist knowledge for appropriate interventions, needs and risk assessments, care planning and child protection investigations.

If successful in your application for the role of Head of Service – Corporate Parenting (Starting Well), London Borough of Havering, you will/will be:

• will be the operational lead for the delivery of statutory social work services that includes, but is not limited to children subject to Care Proceedings, Children in Care and Care Experienced Young People within the Corporate Parenting Service. 
• Responsible for delivering effective, inclusive leadership and management of the teams, ensuring high quality services against local and national indicators and targets.
• Responsible for ensuring practice is in line with current legislation and relevant guidance so that high quality, effective, assessments, plans and interventions are delivered to timescales, to meet children and family’s assessed needs and improve outcomes
• Has responsibility for budgets within the relevant services 
• Has responsibility for ensuring high quality, value for money services including in-house and commissioned providers, and contributes to budget setting, budget monitoring and delivery of services within budget targets
• Advise and contribute to regular reports to the DCS, the Lead Member, the Assistant Directors, other senior leaders, panels, committees and/or relevant boards on performance and practice matters as required
• Line manage the Fostering, Children in Care and Leaving Care Service Managers and hold overall management responsibility for the Corporate Parenting Services, and ensure delivery of good quality practice and continuous improvement through the relevant service plans

As one of the greenest boroughs in London, resourcefulness is in our nature. We don’t wait to be told, we take the initiative. We face the future head-on, embracing new challenges with open minds and fresh ideas. There’s lots of opportunities to progress here, and if you seize them we’ll support you all the way. Choose Havering and see the difference you’ll make to the people that live, work and learn here.

From caring for those who need it most, to ensuring our highways and streets are safe, providing a roof over the heads of our residents, providing excellent customer service or, enhancing our digital services for staff and residents, there are so many ways you can make a positive influence here. And, whether you’re outdoorsy, people-focused or analytical, we have a role that’s right for you.

Please view Job Profile here

For an informal discussion about the post, please contact Gary.jones@havering.gov.uk 

The closing date for the receipt of applications is 29th November 2024 however interest in this job may be high and we therefore reserve the right to close the vacancy early.

You will be notified if your application has been successful.  Interview dates to be confirmed

Should you require any help or advice with your online application, please contact the Recruitment Helpdesk on 01708 432770
 

Additional Information

We want everyone to choose Havering. When you apply for a job with us, your application is considered on its merits regardless of your age, disability, ethnicity, faith, gender identity or sexual orientation. Our residents and service users come from all walks of life, and so do our employees. Find out what it means to Choose Havering.

The London Borough of Havering has important responsibilities for safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults. If you are appointed to a job that involves working with these groups, you may be subject to a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check.

Please attach your supporting statement, explaining in no more than x2 A4 sides why and how you meet the criteria for this role.

We practice anonymised recruitment. Please ensure that you remove all personal information from any documents that you upload.