Children's Placements And Quality Assurance Manager

Service Care Solutions; Wokingham; On-site; GBP 80,000 - 100,000; Full time

Job summary

A local council in England seeks an experienced Children's Placement & Quality Assurance Manager for a 3-month contract. The role involves establishing a new Children's Placement Commissioning function and developing a quality assurance framework. Ideal candidates will have a strong understanding of SEND needs and experience in children's placement commissioning. This is an exciting opportunity to make a significant impact in children's services.

Qualifications

• Proven experience in Children's placement commissioning and quality assurance.
• Strong understanding of SEND placement needs.
• Ability to work at pace and build effective relationships.
• Strong analytical, organisational, and leadership skills.

Responsibilities

• Help establish a new Children's Placement Commissioning function.
• Develop operational model to meet SEND placement needs.
• Design and implement a quality assurance framework.
• Support the development of sufficiency strategies.
• Contribute insights to the Strategic Placement Board.

Skills

Children's placement commissioning

Quality assurance

Analytical skills

Organizational skills

Leadership skills

Job description

Overview

Children's Placement & Quality Assurance Manager – Location: Wokingham | Contract: 3 months (initial) | Hours: 37 per week | Rate: £513 per day (umbrella) / £390 PAYE per day

About the Role

Following increased investment and internal changes, Wokingham Borough Council is seeking an experienced Children's Placement & Quality Assurance Manager to join on an interim basis for 3 months while a permanent appointment is made. We are a small but busy Children\'s Team, and we need someone who can hit the ground running, building effective relationships with social workers, managers, providers, partners, and staff across children\'s services and the wider council. This is an exciting time for the team as we work to integrate Independent Non-Maintained Special School placements into our remit. Candidates with relevant experience — or strong ideas about how this can be achieved — will be particularly welcome.

Key Objectives

• Help establish a new Children\'s Placement Commissioning function, including supplier relationships, brokerage, contract management, and quality assurance.
• Develop an operational model to meet SEND placement needs.
• Design and implement a placement Quality Assurance framework across Children\'s Social Care and SEND placements.
• Support the development of sufficiency strategies.
• Contribute to the work of the Strategic Placement Board by developing insights into placement usage, cost, and impact for children.
• Establish reporting mechanisms and embed a clear, information-led approach across the team.

About You

• Proven experience in Children\'s placement commissioning and quality assurance.
• A strong understanding of SEND placement needs and associated operational models.
• The ability to work at pace and build effective working relationships across multiple stakeholders.
• Strong analytical, organisational, and leadership skills.
• A commitment to improving outcomes for children and young people.

How to Apply

If you are an experienced Children\'s Placement professional ready to make an immediate impact, we\'d love to hear from you. Apply today and help shape the future of placement commissioning and quality assurance at Wokingham Borough Council.