Director of Family & Children's Social Care

This senior post heads children's social care, family help and prevention across Cheshire East Council. The job centres on statutory children's social care duties, multi-agency safeguarding and driving service improvement, while embedding the national Families First reforms. Working with partners and elected members, the post manages significant budgets, with a standard 37-hour week and hybrid working where possible. Applicants must be qualified social workers registered with Social Work England.

• Lead the council's statutory children's social care functions and safeguarding responsibilities
• Provide strategic leadership for family help, prevention and early intervention services
• Lead service transformation, innovation and improvement to achieve strong outcomes for children and families
• Lead multi-agency safeguarding arrangements and build a culture of continuous improvement
• Work with health, education, police, the voluntary sector and wider public services to drive effective partnership working
• Oversee performance, quality assurance, workforce development and professional standards across children's services
• Develop and deliver strategic plans that improve children's wellbeing and support family resilience
• Manage significant budgets and resources to secure value for money and sustainable delivery
• Advise elected members and senior leaders on children's social care policy, strategy and performance

• Recognised social work qualification
• Completed structured management development programme

• Registered with Social Work England

• Strategic leadership and management in children's services, including expert advice in a political environment
• Managing services that safeguard and promote the wellbeing of children, particularly the most vulnerable
• Managing the interface between service provision and the regulatory framework
• Service and business planning, leading change or redesign, and financial and budgetary responsibility
• Managing a large service with complex, competing demands and challenging performance when needed
• Working across organisational boundaries and in partnerships at local, sub-regional, regional and national level

• Understanding of the policy and legislative background to services for children and families
• Building highly effective teams and collaborating with colleagues and partners
• Developing innovation in challenging environments, resolving complex problems and facilitating change sensitively
• Strong planning, research, organisational and decision-making skills, with the ability to analyse data and present to a wider audience
• Representing the council externally
• Leading individuals with genuine concern, accessibility, encouragement and professional curiosity

• Enhanced annual leave of 34 days including bank holidays from day one, rising to 39 days after five years
• Option to purchase up to 10 extra days of annual leave each year, pro-rata for part-time staff
• Standard 37-hour week with flexi-time and hybrid or remote working where possible
• Salary sacrifice schemes for a green car lease and white goods
• Enhanced career average public pension, accruing at 1/49th of pensionable pay
• Cycle to work scheme
• Free, confidential employee assistance programme
• Discounted corporate gym membership with Everybody Leisure