Service Manager - Strengthening Families Service

At Sandwell Children’s Trust we strive for excellence to improve the lives of children. Our‘Sandwell Deal’, brings together our new improved offering that make Sandwell Children’s Trust a great place to work; it also sets out our expectations of you as a member of staff.

What we can offer you:

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• Generous annual leave of up to 31 days, plus 5 additional days for long service recognition.
• Your birthday off paid in addition to annual leave entitlement and 8 Bank Holidays, plus a concessionary day at Christmas.
• You will receive a generous local government career average pension scheme with employer contributions of 21.6%.
• We recognise individual loyalty with service awards from 2, 5, 10 and every 5 years onwards.
• Flexible working patterns that suit you and all of our roles have well-defined career progression.
• We provide competitive expenses for both mileage (55p per mile) and subsistence, plus access to a comprehensive employee benefits scheme.

Please visit The Sandwell Deal via this hyperlink:

Band J SCP 48 – 51 (£60,194 - £63,832 per annum) dependent on experience

Full-time 37 hours per week

12 months fixed term contract

This is an exciting opportunity to lead and shape our borough-wide Strengthening Families service, delivering targeted early help interventions that prevent escalation, strengthen family resilience, and improve outcomes for children and young people across Sandwell.

You will play a pivotal role, leading the Strengthening Families service through the implementation of the Families First national reforms, driving innovation and ensuring strong partnership working across statutory, voluntary, and community sectors to deliver a whole-system approach to early help.

Our Strengthening Families service consists of six locality-based Strengthening Families Teams and the Young Parents Service. Our teams also include Early Help Health Visitors, Domestic Abuse Practitioners, Police Offers and Employment Advisors.

• Provide leadership and supervision to Team Managers within the Strengthening Families service.
• Support and lead the service through a period of significant change, embedding the Families First approach and implementing national reforms to strengthen outcomes for children and families
• Facilitate multi-agency collaboration, strengthening partnerships with schools, health, and community organisations.
• Champion early intervention and prevention, ensuring families receive the right help at the right time.
• Demonstrate excellent organisational skills and the ability to manage complexity while improving services.
• Monitor performance and ensure the delivery of high-quality, child-centred practice across the borough.
• Contribute to the Trust’s strategic priorities, ethos, and values, ensuring continuous improvement in practice and outcomes.

• An experienced leader with significant experience in early help services and/or children’s social care
• An inspirational leader with proven management skills and the ability to motivate and develop teams.
• Strong communication skills with the ability to engage effectively with families and partners.
• Skilled in performance management and committed to delivering high-quality, evidence-based services.
• A good understanding of national reforms, and skills in supporting services and teams through change.
• Knowledge of financial and resource management.

Interviews to be held on 6th and 13th February 2026

This is a fantastic opportunity to influence service design and delivery at a time of national change, ensuring Sandwell Children’s Trust remains at the forefront of innovation and best practice.

If you would like to discuss this opportunity further, please contact Natalie Sanders – Head of Service – @sandwellchildrenstrust.org

When people join the team at Sandwell they say it feels like they become part of the family…they have #Come Home To Sandwell . With the work that we have done so far and with the ambitions we have for the future, it’s a really exciting time to join Sandwell Children’s Trust and to become part of our Family.

So, if you think your future could lie with Sandwell Children’s Trust, then we’d love to hear from you.

Sandwell Children's Trust is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of vulnerable groups including children and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. Completion of an enhanced Disclosure & Barring Service (DBS) check is a requirement for working with children and young people. If you require further information on the role or working for us please email  and a member of our Recruitment Team will be happy to give you a call.

Please click on the link below to complete an application form and view The Sandwell Deal