Associate Director of Operations

HCRG Care Group; Chelmsford; Hybrid; GBP 60,000 - 70,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading community health provider in the UK seeks an Associate Director of Operations for Children's and Family Services. This pivotal role involves senior operational leadership across a £50 million multi-commissioner contract and requires substantial experience in children's services and strong financial acumen. The successful candidate will manage a diverse portfolio while building relationships with multiple stakeholders. The position is hybrid, requiring regular on-site presence across Essex to engage with staff and ensure high-quality service delivery.

Benefits

NHS Agenda for Change Band 8d salary with group pension

Access to discounts and cashback offers

Wellbeing support services

Professional development opportunities

Innovation funding for ideas

Qualifications

• Substantial senior leadership experience within children's services or related multi-agency environment.
• Strong financial management experience with large, complex budgets.
• Proven track record of leading multidisciplinary teams.

Responsibilities

• Provide senior operational leadership across children's and family wellbeing services.
• Oversee delivery of a £50 million multi-commissioner contract.
• Build strong relationships with commissioners and community stakeholders.

Skills

Leadership

Financial acumen

Communication

Relationship building

Emotional intelligence

Education

Masters level or equivalent

Job description

As an Associate Director of Operations for Essex Children's and Family Services, you'll be part of our valued leadership team at HCRG Care Group.

Responsibilities

• Provide senior operational leadership across a large and diverse children's and family wellbeing portfolio, ensuring safe, high‑quality and responsive service delivery.
• Strategically oversee the delivery of a £50 million multi‑commissioner contract with 12 separate budget lines and ensuring strong financial stewardship, robust forecasting and effective resource allocation.
• Work closely with our strategic delivery partners including Barnardo's, to lead integrated approaches that improve outcomes for children, young people and families across Essex.
• Build strong, trusted relationships with multiple commissioners, system partners, local authority leaders, safeguarding boards and community stakeholders.
• Provide visible strategic leadership to a workforce of approximately 800 colleagues, empowering and inspiring senior managers and frontline teams to deliver high performance and continuous improvement.
• Ensure all services operate effectively within multi‑agency safeguarding frameworks, promoting a strong culture of safety, accountability and professional curiosity.
• Drive operational excellence by using data, insight and performance frameworks to identify pressures, risks and improvement opportunities across the service.
• Lead the development and delivery of performance recovery plans where required, ensuring services remain compliant with contractual, regulatory and quality standards.
• Support innovation and service transformation, developing new and creative approaches that enhance the experience of children, families and professionals.
• Act as a senior ambassador for HCRG Care Group within Essex, contributing to system‑wide priorities and representing the organisation at key strategic forums.
• Maintain high visibility across the county, working regularly from service locations to engage colleagues, respond to operational issues and maintain strong relationships.

Qualifications

• Substantial senior leadership experience within children's services, family wellbeing, social care, community health or a related multi‑agency environment, with the credibility to operate confidently across a complex system.
• Experience working with multiple commissioners and navigating competing priorities, performance frameworks and governance requirements.
• Strong financial acumen, with experience managing multiple complex budgets and contributing to or leading performance recovery plans within large, complex services.
• A proven track record of leading large multidisciplinary teams of ideally 150‑500 colleagues through senior managers and service leads.
• A deep understanding of multi‑agency safeguarding frameworks, statutory responsibilities and best practice in the delivery of children's and family services.
• Experience of service redesign, transformation or improvement programmes that have delivered measurable impact.
• The ability to build strong relationships at all levels, from commissioners and system partners to frontline teams, using excellent communication, negotiation and influencing skills.
• High levels of emotional intelligence, resilience and autonomy, with the ability to make sound decisions in a fast‑paced environment with competing demands.
• A values‑driven leadership approach, aligned to our organisational values of We Care, We Think and We Do, and a passion for improving outcomes for children, young people and families.

Desirable

• Educated to masters level or equivalent in Leadership, Commissioning, Management or related specialist field.
• Coaching or Mentoring qualification.
• Involvement in Business development, tendering or supporting contract growth.
• Knowledge of population health, systems level transformation and integrated care models.
• Awareness of emerging trends impacting children's services and the wider public service landscape.

About HCRG Care Group

At HCRG Care Group, we believe that exceptional outcomes for children, young people and families are achieved through outstanding leadership, strong partnerships and a commitment to delivering safe, high‑quality services. We are now looking for an experienced operational leader to join us as Associate Director of Operations for Essex Children's and Family Services, taking on a role of significant scale, influence and complexity at a pivotal time for the service. This is an exciting opportunity to lead one of our largest and most diverse portfolios – a £50 million multi‑commissioner contract delivered through a wide range of children's and family wellbeing services across Essex. You'll work closely with our senior clinical and operational leaders, as well as our strategic delivery partners such as Barnardo's, to ensure services are high‑performing, responsive and deeply rooted in the needs of local communities. No two days will look the same. One week you may be working with commissioners on service development and future priorities; the next you'll be supporting and coaching leaders across Essex as they lead a workforce of around 800 colleagues delivering early help, family support, health visiting, school nursing and other essential children's services. You'll thrive in a role that requires visibility, relationship‑building, and confident decision‑making across a complex system with competing priorities. Although the role is hybrid, it requires regular weekly on‑site presence across Essex to build strong relationships, engage with staff and partners, and maintain high visibility across services. You'll be someone who leads with integrity, connects easily with people at all levels, and brings the operational grip and strategic perspective needed to deliver consistently excellent services. If you are a senior leader with experience in children's, family, community, social care or related pathways and the credibility to operate confidently in a complex, multi‑agency environment, then this is your opportunity to make a meaningful impact at scale and shape the future of children's and family services across Essex.

We change lives by transforming health and care. Established in 2006, we are one of the UK's leading independent providers of community health and care services, working with health and care commissioners and communities to transform services with a focus on experience, efficiency, and improved outcomes. Across England, we support communities of many millions and directly help more than half a million people each year – guided by our simple values: we care, we think, we do. We are a Disability Confident, Committed company, so we work to provide facilities, work environment adjustments and technical solutions to be as inclusive of everyone. While it doesn't happen often, sometimes a role is very popular, and we'll need to close it earlier than the date we've shown here. If you’re keen to join our team, we’d love to hear from you so please apply as soon as you can. As you'd expect, safeguarding and protecting the children, young people and vulnerable adults that we work with is of the utmost importance so we have policies and procedures in place to promote safeguarding and safer working practices and everyone who joins the team is subject to a safer recruitment process, including the disclosure of criminal records and vetting checks.

Benefits

• NHS Agenda for Change Band 8d salary with group pension
• Membership of My Reward Hub, giving you discounts on everyday purchases, plus cashback and voucher offers for treats and essentials
• Access to your wages as you earn them, helping cover life's emergencies and avoid overdraft fees or high‑interest borrowing
• Online and in‑person wellbeing support, including mental health services, activity challenges, financial wellbeing tools, coaching and counselling
• Access to e‑learning, bespoke career pathways and opportunities for professional development through our 'Outstanding' Learning Enterprise team
• An open, just culture where you're encouraged to contribute ideas that help us deliver our purpose of changing lives through transforming health and care – backed by ringfenced innovation funding each year
• The pride of working for an organisation committed to the highest clinical and quality standards, with the majority of our rated services holding "Good" or "Outstanding" ratings from the Care Quality Commission