Service Manager - Children's Services

Vacancy Information

Hourly rate of pay: £31.24 - £35.15

Days and Hours of Work:
Monday - Friday, 09:00-17:00
Flexi time is applicable, and starting and finishing times are flexible.
To start October 2024.

East Lothian Council has an exciting opportunity to join the senior leadership team for Children’s Services to ensure the high-quality delivery of social work services in line with the principles of The Promise. Applicants should have extensive experience and a passion for children’s social work as well as a proven track record in leading people and turning vision and strategy into action.

This service manager post will be responsible for three children’s social work teams including the line management of three team leaders. The post holder will have responsibility for the Disability team, the Throughcare and Aftercare team and the Wellbeing and Justice team. The post holder will also lead on our corporate parenting work and have responsibility for working with the Home Office to ensure safe solutions for our unaccompanied asylum seeking children.

Applicants should have knowledge about the complex policy and legislative landscape for children with disability, through care and aftercare provision and youth justice interventions within a children's social work setting. You should also have an acute understanding of the impact of trauma and be a champion of relationship-based practice and nurture.

East Lothian are hugely proud of the services and interventions we provide for East Lothian’s children and families. This is an excellent opportunity to lead improvement and development work to make sure our social work practice is progressive and keeps children, young people and their families at the heart of everything we do.

You will contribute to development of social work practice and support the General Manager in the delivery and leadership of key work streams. The successful candidate will be an experienced leader who understands the importance of empowering the workforce and who can ensure that the principles of compassion, kindness and integrity underpin everything we do. We are keen to recruit leaders who are passionate about achieving the best possible outcomes for children, young people and their families.

We are committed to promoting open and trusting culture at all levels of the organisation and prioritise continuous professional development and learning. Our staff are our greatest asset and our leadership team strive to be supportive, inclusive and child centred by prioritising effective supervision, manageable caseloads and a healthy work life balance. Our leadership team are committed to recruiting the best people to compliment the wide range of knowledge and experience that exists throughout the service.

Our vision is to support children and young people to live with their families when it is safe to do so. We have redesigned our services to ensure that the right support is offered at the right time and our staff are involved in developing services and implementing improvement activity around this goal.

If you wish to discuss this vacancy please contact Jen Fraser, General Manager on jfraser@eastlothian.gov.uk or Lindsey Byrne, Head of Children’s Services on lbyrne@eastlothian.gov.uk

Home Working Consideration
Applications for homeworking or hybrid working will be considered for this post, subject to a trial period and in accordance with East Lothian Council’s Home Working and Worksmart Policies which can be found here. Home or Hybrid working options can be discussed with candidates invited for interview. All applicants must live in the UK and will be expected to attend Council offices from time to time as required.

Job Details

To manage and develop the delivery of Children and Young People Services for children and families in East Lothian. The post holder will, as part of a team of four Service Managers working to a General Manager, deliver services as defined by legislation, specified standards and within approved budgets. The areas of responsibility will include supporting employees, managing budgets and ensuring the efficient delivery of quality services to clients.

To support professional leadership and assure governance standards for all employees in the Service.

To lead on development and implementation of GIRFEC strategies, policies and priorities across East Lothian Council and within community planning arenas, through effective multi-agency partnership working. 

Please download the Job Outline/Person Specification (available under 'Job Attachments') for the full range of tasks and duties associated with this job. You will need to refer to these in order to complete the application form. You must ensure you meet every 'essential' criteria stated on the Person Specification to be considered for interview.

The ‘East Lothian Way’– values and behaviours we expect our employees to demonstrate in their everyday work. Should you be invited to interview, you may be asked questions based on these behaviours. Please refer to the document via the link to familiarise yourself with them.

Job Requirements

Relevant Qualifications
Degree or equivalent level of training and experience in social work.

Relevant postgraduate award e.g. Certificate in Child Welfare and Child Protection OR Practice Educator.

Recognised postgraduate management qualification e.g. MBA or MSc or equivalent evidenced senior management skills.

Evidence of continuous and recent professional development.

SSSC registration - Social Worker: is an essential requirement of this role. If you are appointed and are not already a member of the relevant section of the SSSC Register and you are starting your first position in Scotland, you will be required to apply for registration as soon as possible and this must be achieved within three months of your start date. If you have previously registered as a Social Worker with the SSSC then you must re-register before commencing employment.

Driving Licence
As the duties of this role require you to effectively travel to successfully undertake the full remit of the role, you must hold a current driving licence and have access to a vehicle.*
(*Where a disability precludes you from obtaining a driving licence, ELC will take into account its responsibility to make reasonable adjustments to allow for your disability.)

PVG Membership
This post is considered as Regulated Work with vulnerable children and/or protected adults, as specified in the Protection of Vulnerable Groups (Scotland) Act 2007.

All preferred candidates for posts carrying out regulated work with these groups will be required to become a PVG Scheme member, or undergo a PVG Scheme update if they are already a member, prior to any formal offer of employment being made by East Lothian Council.

Please note: PVG member’s records are constantly updated with any new vetting information that arises. Any information that is disclosed on a PVG membership or update check, if relevant to the post being applied for, will be discussed with the applicant and investigated prior to any formal offer being made.

Please note:
If you have spent more than 3 months working or living outwith the UK in the last 5 years then you will be required to present a copy of an overseas criminal record check. Details of how to apply and contact details can be found on the GOV.UK website.

Additional Information

For additional East Lothian Council employment information please click on the following link: www.eastlothian.gov.uk/nonteachinginfo

If you have any difficulties creating an account on MyJobScotland or applying for this post please contact the MyJobScotland support team via this link https://www.myjobscotland.gov.uk/contact-us.

If you require further information about this vacancy, please call 01620 827868, or email us on recruitment@eastlothian.gov.uk

Please note: We do not accept CV's (either electronically or by mail). All our vacancies must be applied for by fully completing the on-line application form. Although there is an ‘import data from my CV’ function on MyJobScotland, this only imports very limited data and should not be relied upon to complete the application form.