Change Manager

Surrey County Council; Woking, Manchester; Hybrid; GBP 54,000; Full time

Job summary

A local government council is seeking a Change Manager to join their Children's Social Care Transformation Team. This full-time role offers a starting salary of £53,713 per annum with hybrid work options. The ideal candidate will lead significant change initiatives, ensuring alignment with strategic priorities while facilitating sustainable improvements in children's services. Various employee benefits are available, including generous holiday and well-being programs.

Benefits

26 days' holiday increasing with service

Option to buy additional leave

Local government pension

Carer's leave and volunteering days

Employee Assistance Programme

Learning and development resources

Wellbeing discounts

Qualifications

• Proven experience in leading change within complex public sector environments.
• Strong understanding of change management methodologies.
• Ability to manage multiple projects and priorities.

Responsibilities

• Planning and delivering change activities across multiple projects.
• Building relationships with operational teams and senior leaders.
• Monitoring and evaluating the impact of change initiatives.

Skills

Change management in public sector

Stakeholder engagement

Communication skills

Project management

Analytical skills

Job description

• Location: Woking, Surrey

Description

The starting salary for this full-time position is £53,713 per annum, based on a 36 hour working week.

This is a fixed-term contract until 31st March 2027.

We have a great opportunity for a Change Manager to join our fantastic Children's Social Care Transformation Team.

This position is open to hybrid working with at least two days per week based at locations across Surrey. This includes one day with the team in Woking and another spent elsewhere in Surrey, dependent on business requirements.

Our Offer to You

• 26 days' holiday, rising to 28 days after 2 years' service and 31 days after 5 years' service
• Option to buy up to 10 days of additional annual leave
• A generous local government salary related pension
• Up to 5 days of carer's leave and 2 paid volunteering days per year
• Paternity, adoption and dependents leave
• An Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) to support health and wellbeing
• Learning and development hub where you can access a wealth of resources
• Wellbeing and lifestyle discounts including gym, travel, and shopping
• A chance to make a real difference to the lives of our residents

About the Role

The Transformation Team leads a range of programmes and projects dedicated to shaping, driving, and facilitating sustainable change and improvement for children in Surrey. These projects range from implementing new technologies to reviewing and improving cross division processes.

This role will be part of a programme team, supporting the delivery of complex, multifaceted transformation in Children's Social Care and supporting our Directorate wide efficiencies programme.

This is an exciting opportunity to lead and deliver change initiatives within the Children's Social Care Transformation Programme, ensuring alignment with strategic priorities, embedding sustainable change, fostering a cultural shift towards new ways of working, and enabling improved outcomes for children, families, and practitioners.

Your key responsibilities as a Change Manager will include:

• P lanning and delivering change activities across multiple projects and workstreams
• B uilding strong relationships with operational teams, senior leaders, and external partners to co-design and implement change effectively
• Developing and executing change management strategies, including clear communication, training, and engagement plans
• Monitoring and evaluating the impact of change initiatives, using data and feedback to drive continuous improvement
• Identifying and managing risks and issues that may affect delivery, escalating them when necessary

As a Change Manager, you will be instrumental in championing a culture of innovation, collaboration, and ongoing improvement across Children's Services.

Your Application

In order to be considered for shortlisting, your application will clearly evidence the following skills and align with our behaviours :

• Proven experience in leading change within complex public sector environments, which could include children's services or social care
• Strong understanding of change management methodologies (e.g. ADKAR, Kotter)
• Excellent communication, facilitation, and stakeholder engagement skills
• Ability to work across strategic and operational levels
• Ability to manage multiple projects and priorities
• Experience in using data and insights to drive decision-making and measure impact
• Willingness and ability to travel around the county to meet the demands of the role and attend stakeholder meetings

To apply, we request that you submit a CV and you will be asked the following 4 questions:

• Please describe at time when you led a significant change initiative in a complex organisation. What approach did you take to ensure successful implementation, and how did you measure its impact?
• How have you built and maintained effective relationships with a diverse range of stakeholders to support a change programme? What challenges did you face and how did your overcome them?
• Please give an example of how you have used data and insights to inform a change initiative. What data did you use and how did it influence your decision?
• This role involves working across multiple projects and priorities. How do you manage competing demands and ensure delivery to deadlines?

Before submitting your application, we recommend you read the job description & Our Life at Surrey handbook to get an insight into working at Surrey.

The job advert closes at 23:59 on 8th December 2025 with interviews planned to follow.

Contact Us

Please contact us for any questions relating to the role. This could be to discuss flexible working requests, transferable skills or any barriers to employment. Please contact Bosede Lawal, Senior Programme Manager via email at Bosede [e-mail]

We look forward to receiving your application, please click on the apply online button below to submit.

A basic DBS 'Disclosure and Barring Service' check for regulated activity (formerly known as CRB) will be required for this role.

Local Government Reorganisation (LGR)

Surrey County Council is undergoing Local Government Reorganisation, moving from a two-tier system to two new unitary councils in April 2027. If you are employed by Surrey on 1st April 2027, your role will transfer with current terms and conditions to one of the new organisations, supporting local devolution and greater powers for our communities.

We are a disability confident employer which means if you have shared a disability on your application form and have evidenced you meet the minimum criteria, we guarantee you an interview.

Your skills and experience truly matter to us. From application to your first day, we're committed to supporting you with any adjustments you need, we value inclusion and warmly welcome you to join and help build a workplace where everyone belongs.