Head of Service Early Help

Job title:

Head of Service Early Help

Company

West Sussex County Council

Job description

“Thank you very much for your interest in applying for this position. This is a great time to be joining West Sussex Children’s Early Help Service, which is very closely aligned to children’s social care under the shared responsibility of one Assistant Director. The service has undertaken significant transformation in the last 2 years and I am enormously proud of the service and how hard everyone has been working over the last few years to change and improve the way that we work with children and families.

We have fully launched the Family Safeguarding Model and now have multi-disciplinary teams embedded across our 3 social care areas, which are already having a positive impact on the children and families we work with and on the staff who work in those services. The 3 social care areas are aligned with our 6 geographically based Early Help Hubs. Having come through both our Ofsted ILACS and our SEND inspections in the past year we are excited about our plans to make further improvements and have created an environment in which every member of staff feels motivated and supported to do so.

I look forward to the possibility of you joining us on that renewed journey.”

Jenny Boyd – Assistant Director – Early Help & Children’s Social Care

The Opportunity

Salary: £71,190 TO £75,950 per annum

Contract: Permanent

Working Pattern: Full-time, with hybrid working

Location: Office Base – Chichester with a requirement for county wide presence.

Interview dates: Tuesday 5th March, with a potential date of 6th March.

Are you looking for a chance to truly make a difference in children’s, young people’s, and families’ lives? Are you looking for an organisation that cares about finding true work-life balance? Then joining us as a Head of Service for Early Help may be for you!

The Early Help Service is an integral part of the Children, Young People and Learning Directorate, working collaboratively with Social Care and Education and Skills so that all children and families are accessing the right help, co-ordinated support, and protection from the most appropriate part of Children’s Services.

You will join an experienced leadership team at a key time as we drive forward the ‘Children First’ Improvement Plan. We are focused on improved service delivery with measurable outcomes for children, families, and communities.

We’re looking for a dynamic, responsible, and passionate leader who isn’t afraid to take on a challenge. As Head of Service, you will be tasked with generating and nurturing high morale and maintaining high standards amongst your workforce. You will have a direct responsibility for a team of Service Managers, Team Managers and Early Help Professionals, inspiring confidence in yourself and the experienced, hard-working leadership team as well as motivating and recognising the pride and dedication your service has for ensuring better outcomes for children.

For further information about us and about working in Children’s Services at West Sussex County Council, please visit .

WHAT WE’RE LOOKING FOR

Key Skills:

• Ability to work independently, making sound pragmatic problem solving decisions, which will have a wider service impact, including devising solutions to specific problems of a programme, prioritisation, resource or performance related nature using significant professional judgement and evaluative skills to make effective decisions.
• Exceptional, highly developed communication skills to influence and persuade the actions of others in order to construct, evaluate and deliver effective solutions.
• Effective research and planning skills to construct highly effective complex business critical solutions.
• Ability to forward plan, continuously developing and reviewing the effectiveness of service.
• Ability to recognise where change is needed and to challenge existing practices, processes and activities and identify and deliver effective solutions which promote change.
• Strong partnership working skills with the ability to develop and manage highly effective relationships and co-ordinate a range of partners and stakeholders both internally and externally to successfully deliver objectives.
• Ability to use own judgement to identify, define and analyse alternative courses of action, thinking creatively to deliver innovative solutions to complex issues.
• Effective people management and performance management skills with the ability to lead and inspire, providing direction and support to individuals and teams.

Qualifications, knowledge and experience:

• Post graduate professional qualification relevant either to management or to the professional service specialism; or equivalent level of significant experience demonstrating comprehensive application of the above levels of knowledge in a relevant setting.
• Fellowship membership of a relevant professional body or equivalent high-level experience of involved practices.
• Self-sufficient expertise across the technical/professional specialism at the highest level of proficiency, with a comprehensive knowledge of complex practices and precedents built on concepts and principles.
• Practical and theoretical knowledge of the political environment of local government and partner organisations.
• Comprehensive operational and strategic experience appropriate to the business and the organisation.
• Experience of delivering an exceptional service to others through the management of a service, with considerable experience of managing and leading a business function or service with a number of integrated teams and effectively managing a budget and contributing to decision making on high level spending.
• Experience of developing policies and approaches to business which achieve corporate objectives.
• Exposure to shaping and supporting initiatives in a political environment.
• You will need to be able to travel independently around the county, including to areas that may not be easily accessible by public transport. Pool cars and pool bikes available.

WHY JOIN US?

You’ll have access to research communities including Research in Practice and Community Care Inform, flexible and mobile working opportunities, a minimum of 5 days CPD per year and a generous annual leave entitlement of up to 30 days, as well as the option to buy up to 3 additional days.

As an employer we recognise that it is our employees that are central to everything we do. We aim to create a supportive and dynamic working environment where employees can achieve their full potential, achieve a healthy work-life balance and are rewarded for the work they do. For a full list of the benefits offered to you as a West Sussex County Council employee, please visit our page.

FURTHER INFORMATION

The reference number for this role is CAFHE04995.

For an informal conversation or for further information regarding the role, please contact Jenny Boyd at .

For any enquiries relating to your application, please contact Elaine West at .

To apply, upload your CV and cover letter outlining the skills and experience you can bring to the role ensuring that any gaps in employment are covered in your CV. Please ensure you have saved the job description attached to the main advert on our website as, once the job has closed, you may not have the opportunity to download again.

We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults. This post is subject to Social Work England registration, an enhanced DBS check, 5 years referencing and a health check.

Equity, inclusion and accessibility is very important to West Sussex County Council. We welcome and encourage applications from everyone, as this helps us build a diverse and talented workforce, that reflects the communities we serve. We ensure our approach to recruitment is flexible and supportive to enable all applicants to be at their best and to ensure they have the best possible chance of success.

For information regarding your eligibility to apply for this role under our Disability or Veteran’s Guaranteed Interview Scheme, please visit our page.

Available documents

Expected salary

£71190 – 75950 per year

Location

Chichester

Job date

Tue, 13 Feb 2024 01:21:23 GMT

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