Area Director (Children and Families)

Hampshire County Council; Winchester; Hybrid; GBP 85,000 - 95,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive rewards package

Generous annual leave

Local Government Pension Scheme

Wellbeing and development options

Job summary

Hampshire County Council is seeking an Area Director (Children and Families) to provide strategic leadership across a broad portfolio of children’s services and drive improvement, innovation and transformation to secure outstanding outcomes for children, young people and families in Hampshire.

As part of the senior leadership team, you will lead services at scale, shape strategic direction, and build strong partnerships with education, health, police and the voluntary sector, ensuring

Qualifications

• Degree-level qualification required.
• Significant senior leadership experience in complex public sector/children's services.
• Ability to lead large-scale service transformation and improvement programmes.
• Experience managing substantial budgets and resources.
• Strong partnership working and cross-boundary influence.
• Excellent communication, presentation, negotiation and stakeholder management.
• Balance strategic leadership with operational delivery.
• Thorough understanding of legislative and policy context affecting children’s services.
• Commitment to delivering positive outcomes for children, young people and families.

Responsibilities

• Provide strategic leadership across Children's Services and contribute as a key member of the management team.
• Oversee operational delivery of services county-wide with focus on safety, effectiveness and timeliness.
• Lead performance management, quality assurance and use data to drive improvement.
• Lead partnerships across agencies to improve outcomes for children and families.
• Drive service transformation, innovation and continuous improvement.
• Inspire senior managers and multidisciplinary teams to build a high-performing culture.
• Oversee budgets and resources to ensure value for money and high-quality services.
• Champion early intervention and integrated service delivery.
• Ensure safeguarding and statutory responsibilities are fulfilled; prepare for Ofsted inspections.

Skills

Strategic leadership

Stakeholder management

Communication skills

Partnership working

Change management

Public sector leadership

Education

Degree-level qualification

Postgraduate management qualification

Job description

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Area Director (Children and Families)

Job Reference:HCC625387
Salary Range: £85,057 - £95,460 per annum
Work Location: Elizabeth II Court, Winchester (Hybrid Working)
Hours per week: 37
Contract Type: Permanent
Closing Date: 30 November 2026
Interview Date: 9 and 10 December 2026

The Role:

As Area Director, you'll provide strategic leadership across a significant portfolio of children's services, driving improvement, innovation and transformation to deliver outstanding outcomes for children, young people and families across Hampshire.

Working as part of the senior leadership team, you'll lead services at scale, shape strategic direction and build strong partnerships across education, health, police and the voluntary sector. You'll champion excellence, oversee continuous improvement and ensure children remain safe, supported and able to thrive.

What you’ll do:

• Provide strategic leadership across Children's Services and contribute as a key member of the Children and Families Management Team.
• Provide strong oversight of operational delivery of services across the county (covering Hart & Rushmoor, East Hampshire and the County Fostering Service), ensuring services are safe, effective and responsive, with emerging risks and pressures identified and addressed promptly.
• Lead a robust approach to performance management and quality assurance, using data, audit and practice insight to maintain a clear grip on performance, drive continuous improvement and secure consistently high-quality practice.
• Lead partnerships across agencies and communities to improve outcomes for children, young people and families.
• Drive service transformation, innovation and continuous improvement.
• Lead and inspire senior managers and multidisciplinary teams, creating a high-performing culture focused on excellence.
• Oversee significant budgets and resources, ensuring value for money whilst maintaining high-quality services.
• Champion early intervention and integrated service delivery.
• Ensure statutory responsibilities are fulfilled and safeguarding remains at the heart of all decision-making.
• Ensure the service remains ready for inspection (Ofsted) through proactive and robust internal scrutiny processes.

What we’re looking for:

• A degree-level qualification, ideally supported by a postgraduate professional or management qualification.
• Significant senior leadership experience within complex public sector or children's services environments.
• A proven ability to lead large-scale service transformation, organisational change and improvement programmes.
• Experience of managing substantial budgets and resources.
• A strong understanding of partnership working and the ability to influence across organisational boundaries.
• Excellent communication, presentation, negotiation and stakeholder management skills.
• The ability to balance strategic leadership with operational delivery.
• A thorough understanding of the legislative and policy context affecting children's services and safeguarding.
• A commitment to delivering positive outcomes for children, young people and families.
• A collaborative and resilient leader who can build high-performing teams, manage complexity, navigate challenge and inspire others through periods of change.

Take a look at our Candidate Pack for more information about the Area Director role, team and our values. The section‘About you’ explains what specific knowledge, skills and experience we want you to tell us about. Make sure you explain how you meet these requirements and demonstrate our values, in your application.

Why Hampshire?

Join one of the country's largest and most ambitious local authorities, where Children's Services are rated Outstanding by Ofsted and making a real difference for children, young people and families across Hampshire.

As Area Director, you'll shape strategic direction, lead transformational change and influence services at scale as part of a high-performing leadership team.

In return, you'll benefit from a competitive rewards package, including generous annual leave, occupational sick pay, access to the Local Government Pension Scheme, and a range of wellbeing and development opportunities. Find out more about our benefits and why Hampshire is a great place to work here .

If you are an inspiring leader with the ambition to influence beyond organisational boundaries, Hampshire offers the platform to do just that.

Applicants can expect to hear from us within two weeks of the advertised closing date.

Please note:We are unable to offer sponsorship for this role and therefore it is essential that you already have the right to work in the UK before applying.

Travel Requirements:
You will be required to travel to various locations within Hampshire, and it is essential that you have a current drivers’ licence and access to a reliable vehicle on a regular basis.

The post is subject to a Criminal Records Check. As such, please note that under safer recruitment requirements for Children’s Services, references will be requested prior to interview.

Contact Details for an Informal Discussion:

For an informal chat about the role, please contact please contact Kavitha Maxy, Deputy Director of Children’s Services on 07725 201019

Hampshire County Council is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and adults. We expect all employees, workers and volunteers to share this commitment. We will ensure that all our recruitment and selection practices reflect this commitment.

In order to combat discrimination, no unnecessary conditions or requirements will be applied which could have a disproportionately adverse effect on any one group. All sections of the population will have equal access to jobs. No applicant or employee will receive less favourable treatment because of age, disability, gender reassignment, race, religion or belief, sex, sexual orientation, marriage or civil partnership and pregnancy or maternity, unless a Genuine Occupational Requirement (GOR) applies.

We are a Disability Confident Employer - committed to ensuring that our recruitment and selection process is inclusive and accessible.