Are you ready to make a lasting difference in the lives of children and young people?
If yes, we have the perfect opportunity for you!
We’re seeking a dedicated and passionate Service Manager to join our Care and Permanence Service as we continue our improvement journey toward delivering an outstanding service for all children in our care.
This is an exciting opportunity for a driven and compassionate Social Work Manager to truly make a difference. If you share our vision and bring the energy and determination to meet the challenges of high demand and complex needs, we’d love to hear from you.
About the Role:
As a Service Manager, you will provide strong, creative leadership to the Care and Permanence Service. You’ll be responsible for planning, organising, and managing your teams, offering clear operational oversight and effective support. By delegating effectively to your Team Managers, you’ll drive high performance and ensure timely, positive outcomes for children.
You will work closely with the Head of Service to deliver on our service plan and overall vision of excellence. Your role will also include oversight of recruitment, service development, quality assurance, and the casework undertaken by your teams.
While you report to the Head of Service, your ultimate accountability is to the children and young people we support - ensuring they receive the outstanding service they deserve and that their needs and rights are upheld at every stage.
For detailed qualifications and requirements, please review the job description and person specification located at the bottom of the advert.
About You:
We’re looking for a visible and inspiring leader - someone who sets high standards, drives results, and is fully committed to improving outcomes for children and young people.
You’ll be passionate about relationship-based practice, bringing energy, empathy and confidence to your leadership. You’ll support and challenge your teams in equal measure, fostering a reflective and creative culture where high performance is the norm and children are always at the centre.
We’re looking for someone who can demonstrate:
About Us:
At Southwark, we are committed to being the best possible Corporate Parent for our children in care. Our focus is on securing permanence for those who cannot live with their birth families, while building strong, nurturing relationships with every child and young person we support.
We take pride in our passionate, ambitious approach to achieving the best outcomes. Our teams work hard to navigate the challenges that can arise in alternative care settings, always striving to provide compassionate, consistent support to children, young people and their carers.
Additional Information:
Contact Information:
For an informal discussion about the role, please contact Elaine Reid at Elaine.Reid@southwark.gov.uk
Benefits and more information:
https://jobs.southwark.gov.uk/why-us/
Recruitment Timeline:
The closing date is given as a guide. We reserve the right to close this vacancy once a sufficient number of applications has been received. We strongly advise you to complete your application as soon as possible to avoid disappointment.
We are an organisation who is passionate about our people and understands that richness of diversity is a requirement to provide the best possible services to our communities. This is demonstrated through our council-wide ambitious commitment to tackle racial inequality in our communities and workforce through our Southwark Stands Together initiative. We particularly welcome applications from members of the black, Asian and ethnic minority communities to increase representation at senior management level in the Council.
We are the largest local authority social landlord in London, managing 55,000 homes lived in by 40% of Southwark’s residents. We are home to over 18,300 businesses including iconic London venues and social enterprises and we have a young, diverse and growing population.
At Southwark we are committed to making our borough just and fair and are taking positive action to tackle inequalities.  Our residents and communities are our greatest asset and the passion we have for Southwark is shared by millions of Londoners who enjoy our outstanding cultural offer, use our hospitals and attend our universities. Our refreshed borough plan and focus on Southwark Stands Together, (which is our work with Southwark’s communities and the council’s staff to tackle racism, injustice and inequality) underpins all that we do.
At Southwark Children’s Services, we pride ourselves on doing our vital job differently. Our systemic, holistic, family-centred approach sits at the core of our values. And our endlessly supportive, collective, culture underpins everything we do to protect vulnerable children across our borough.
Southwark is a great place to grow and develop as a social worker. We continue to provide fantastic career progression opportunities. Supported by great partnerships and resources we are always growing and developing what we do through innovation, investment in our workforce and, most importantly, listening to children and families, and those that work with them.
Our offer to staff includes:
competitive remuneration packages
the opportunity to work in a vibrant borough in the heart of London with excellent access to Central London and easy transport links to the South East
a multi-cultural and diverse working environment, which provides excellent opportunities for enhancing your skills
modern digital plan with technology to support flexible working arrangements
professional development and Continuing Professional Development (CPD) opportunities through an established and extensive learning and development plan and opportunities.
opportunities to train as a Practice Educator and develop experience with student
clinical practitioners attached to every team to support you as an individual and your work with children and families.
culture of innovation and a ‘can do’ approach to problem solving in Social Care
stable, supportive leadership; Southwark has a lower ratio of workers to managers than most local authorities
small teams with supportive managers and manageable caseload
travel season ticket loans, cycle scheme, essential user care parking permits and local government pension
family friendly, flexible and agile working, from home or on-site
wellbeing programme, HSF Health plan and eye care scheme, EAP employee assistance programme, confidential counselling and support, and access to subsidised HSF health plan
If you are interested in having an informal discussion about this role, or working in children’s social care in Southwark, please contact Dan Comach, our Principal Social Worker at daniel.comach@southwark.gov.uk