Children's Services Manager

Barnardo's; Strabane; On-site; GBP 42,000 - 54,000; Full time

Job summary

Barnardo's is looking for a passionate Children's Services Manager to lead the Strabane Sure Start project, which provides vital services to families with children aged 0-4. The successful candidate will supervise staff, manage substantial finances, and oversee service development. With a focus on collaboration and community, this role requires significant experience in management and promoting effective services for children and families.

Benefits

Contributory pension scheme

26 days annual leave plus bank holidays

Flexible working arrangements

Access to a Group Personal Pension

Death in service cover of 4x annual earnings

Discounts and cashback from various retailers

Free access to employee assistance program

Qualifications

• Proven management experience including safeguarding.
• Experience working with children aged 0-4 and families.
• Full UK driving licence and access to car for work.

Responsibilities

• Supervise and support staff, leading team meetings.
• Manage finances and oversee service delivery.
• Plan and coordinate service development.

Skills

Leadership

Management

Collaboration

Finance Management

Education

Degree or professional qualification in Social Work, Teaching or related fields

Job description

Are you passionate about making a difference in the lives of children? Join us at Strabane Sure Start as our Children's Services Manager and lead our dynamic multi-disciplinary team!

Strabane Sure Start is a large project which provides vital services to children aged 0-4 and their families across a wide geographical areavia a number of different sites. Our team of 44 dedicated professionals deliver various early intervention programs and we're looking for an experienced and talented leader to guide and inspire them.

As a Children's Services Manager, you will:

Supervise and support staff

Lead engaging team meetings

Collaborate with the Child Care Partnership and other key organisations

Monitor and manage substantial finances

Oversee service delivery and reporting

Plan and coordinate service development

Work closely with the Management Committee

Please ensure that you outline on your application how you meet the criteria below:

Essential Criteria:

• A degree or professional qualification* in Social Work, Teaching, Youth and Community Work, Nursing, Community Development, or Early Years (*BTEC Level 5 in Early Years or Leadership will be considered)
• Demonstrable experience of promoting and developing services for children and families
• Proven management experience, including managing and responding to safeguarding concerns
• Demonstrable experience of managing significant finance and budgets
• Senior management experience managing large teams of 10 and over
• Demonstrable experience and knowledge of issues facing children aged 0- 4 and their families
• Full UK driving licence, business insurance and access to a car for work purposes (this criterion will be waived for candidates with a disability who can demonstrate alternative means of meeting the mobility requirements of the post)

Desirable Criteria:

• Experience working directly with children aged 0-4 and their families
• Experience in a multi-disciplinary context, using community development approaches and interagency partnerships

The successful applicant for this post will be required to undertake an enhanced Access NI with Child Barred List check.

Barnardo's offers a reward package that includes a competitive salary, a contributory pension scheme, an additional holiday purchase scheme and staff discounts.

Location: Strabane Sure Start, Melmount

Contract 37 hours per week (Permanent)

Salary: £42,016 - £53,176

Closing date: Midnight, Wednesday 2 July 2025

Interview date: TBC

For any questions, feel free to reach out:

[e-mail]

A waiting list will be held in the event that similar vacancies arise during the next 12 months

Pay & Reward Framework

We know that our colleagues go above and beyond in delivering our vital work, driven by their passion and commitment to Barnardo's values. We also know that we can only realise our ambitions and achieve better outcomes for more children, thanks to the talent, hard work and creativity of our people.

For all these reasons, we are committed to a new approach to pay and reward, to ensure it is fair, attractive and progressive, which was rolled out in April 2023. This is a positive change for the charity, and a part of our People & Culture Strategy. It will assist us in supporting colleagues to belong, thrive and grow in their colleague journey at Barnardo's and in time will offer clear routes of progression for colleagues in both their career and their pay.

Whilst the full pay band and salary range is advertised, our approach to starting salaries is to appoint between the minimum to mid-point of the pay band – this ensures that pay steps are available to reward our colleagues annually based on their contribution to excellence and alignment to our values and behaviours. More details on Barnardo's pay framework can be found upon application.

Benefits

Workplace Offer: What it means for you

The world of work has changed. We are understanding of what works best for our colleagues both current and future as we look to embrace this new way of working. Our hybrid working initiative is based on trust, flexibility and empowerment. We understand our workplace offer means different things to different people, and we encourage those conversations. This may mean working at one of our stores, services, working at home, at one of our Collaboration Hubs or any combination of these.

• Barnardo's believe in creating equality of opportunity in the workplace and supporting people to manage their work-life balance; we are therefore open to offering flexible working arrangements.
• 26 days annual leave plus bank holidays, increasing after 5 years service
• The ability to buy up to another 5 days annual leave via our HolidayPlus scheme
• A host of family friendly leave options including company Maternity Paternity and Adoption pay; together with all family additional leave options
• Service related sick pay from day 1
• Access to a Group Personal Pension with a matched 4% or 6% contribution from Barnardo's. Ability to pay via salary sacrifice to garner both tax and NI savings on your own contribution
• Death in service cover of 4x annual earnings for all staff contributing to our Group Personal Pension
• Cycle2work scheme
• Interest free season ticket loans
• Discounts and cashback from at high street shops including major supermarkets, cinemas, gyms, leisure/theme parks, holidays and much more via our Benefit Portal
• 20% discount at Barnardo's stores
• Opportunity to purchase a health cash plan to claim towards dental, glasses, therapy etc
• Free access to round the clock employee assistance program for advice and support
• Access to Barnardo's Learning and Development offer

*T&C's apply based on contract

About Barnardo's

At Barnardo's we believe in children – no matter who they are, what they have done or what they have been through. Please read about our basis and values following the link below. You will be asked questions relating to them as part of the recruitment process for this role.

Our commitment to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) is reflected in our values and our practice, and we have invested in this area of our work to ensure that we can deliver on our commitments to be an inclusive employer. EDI is a key enabler of our purpose as a charity and we want to ensure that the diversity of our teams is reflective of the communities we serve and that we continue to learn and develop our work with a focus on inclusion. We particularly encourage applications from candidates from Black, Asian and Minoritised Ethnic Communities, candidates who are LGBT+ and Disabled candidates.

Our basis and values