Residential Services Manager

Job Advert

Midlothian is expanding its children’s residential provision and with this comes an exciting opportunity to build and lead a brand-new service.

Are you an experienced and passionate manager who is ready for an exciting new challenge? Do you have the necessary managerial experience, vision and the leadership skills required to build a children’s residential service from the ground up?

We are looking for an ambitious, motivated and experienced children’s residential services manager to take the lead in developing, establishing and managing two new houses as part of our residential expansion.

The successful candidate will play a pivotal role in building the new service, creating a positive culture, recruiting and developing a strong staff team and ensuring the houses provide a safe, nurturing and therapeutic environment where children and young people can thrive.

We are looking for a leader who wants to create a service that makes a genuine and lasting difference to children’s lives.

You will be responsible for:

• Leading the development and establishment of two four bedded houses
• Managing Care Inspectorate registration and ensuring the service operates within regulatory requirements and is fully prepared for inspection
• Implementing policies. procedures and operational systems
• Recruiting, leading and developing a skilled motivated and dedicated staff team
• Creating a strong, child centred culture that promotes safe, nurturing and high-quality care
• Building effective relationships with families, professionals and other stake holders
• Ensuring that children receive individualised care, support and opportunities to achieve positive outcomes
• Managing day-to-day operational and financial performance of the service

We are looking for someone who can demonstrate:

• Proven managerial experience of leading, managing and developing residential care teams
• Previous experience of successfully developing and establishing a new service
• A sound understanding of Care Inspectorate regulations and Quality Standards
• The ability to turn a vision into a fully operational, high-quality residential service
• A genuine passion for making a positive difference in the lives of children and young people.

KNOWLEDGE

The post holder will be the Registered Manager of the service under the Care Inspectorate and in keeping with regulatory function under Public Service Reform (Scotland) Act 2010.

Jobholders require to hold a minimum of a degree in a relevant discipline recognised by the SSSC plus a post graduate Management Award in Social Services. In addition you must have previous proven experience at Senior Level of leading a team, supervising front line managers, managing a budget and delivering services for young people with complex social, emotional and behavioural difficulties, implementing and developing care planning and care plans.

Travelling is integral to this role and you will be required to travel across Midlothian either using public transport, or your own car if appropriate, as required

CLOSING DATE – Sunday 29th November 2026

INTERVIEW DATE - Wednesday 9th December 2026

Vacancy Information

Position Title: Residential Services Manager

Directorate: Children, Young People and Partnerships

Location: Hawthorn Childrens Centre

Contract Status: Permanent

Hours of Work: 36 per week

Working Pattern: Mon-Thurs 9am – 5pm, Friday 9am-3:30pm

Weeks per year: 52

Please note that it is Midlothian Council's policy that successful applicants will be appointed to the first point on the salary scale.

Based on you working 36 hours over 52 weeks per year, the minimum actual salary for this position is £56,391.97 per annum.

Requirements

This post is considered Regulated Work with Children under the Protection of Vulnerable Groups (Scotland) Act, 2007. Therefore, it is an offence to apply if you are barred from working with children.

Successful candidates will require PVG Scheme membership for Regulated Work with Children, You will be required to join the Scheme or undergo a PVG Scheme Update check prior to commencing employment with Midlothian Council, the cost of which will be met by you. For further information on the PVG Scheme please visit www.disclosurescotland.gov.uk

Once you have submitted your application and this has been processed you will be notified by email from Disclosure Scotland that your certificate is available to view. Once you have viewed your certificate you will be allowed to share this with your employer and it is only available for 14 days from the first day you have viewed the certificate. If you do not grant access to Midlothian Council to view before access is removed, a further application will need to be generated, and this will incur an additional cost.

Please note: If you have spent more than 3 months working or living outwith the UK in the last 5 years then you will also 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.

SSSC registration 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, you will be required to apply for registration within 3 months of your start date to ensure that you are registered within the required 6 months.

Additional Information

If you have difficulty applying for this post or accessing attached documents, or if you have a disability and reasonable adjustment is required, please email recruitment@midlothian.gov.uk to discuss with member of the Recruitment Team stating the post reference number.

Midlothian Council is currently undergoing a period of transformation, changing and improving the way it delivers services in Midlothian. As a consequence, there are a number of existing employees for whom we are committed to seeking suitable alternative employment within the Council in accordance with our legal obligations. Candidates are advised that, for some vacancies, internal candidates in this situation will be interviewed before the wider selection pool and a slightly longer delay may be experienced before application outcomes can be advised to you. Thank you for your patience in this matter.

If you are a trainee of a Midlothian Council Training Programme, have a disability or you are a care experienced young person who has previously been a looked after child, you are eligible for a guaranteed interview if you meet the essential criteria for the post.

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.