Continuous Improvement Partner

Staffordshire County Council; Tamworth; On-site; GBP 125,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

A local authority in Tamworth is seeking a Continuous Improvement Partner to shape the Best Start in Life ambitions for children and families. This role involves leading improvement initiatives, facilitating change collaboratively with partners, and ensuring high-quality support is available for families during early childhood. The ideal candidate will demonstrate strong project management, analytical, and communication skills, fostering a culture of learning and innovation within teams. You will play a crucial role in enhancing how families experience support in the community.

Qualifications

• Strong understanding of local authority departments and their interactions.
• Experience in managing teams and supporting colleagues' development.
• Solid knowledge of performance management and data insights.
• Extensive experience in training and workshops facilitation.
• Excellent communication skills for stakeholder engagement.

Responsibilities

• Lead and prioritise improvement initiatives aligning with the BEST START strategy.
• Support partners in delivering change initiatives.
• Champion co-production and equity in improvement activities.
• Manage and mentor team members to cultivate a strong culture of improvement.
• Oversee governance processes, including reports and inspection preparations.

Skills

Project planning and delivery

Data interpretation

Leadership and motivation

Business planning

Analytical skills

Job description

Join us in shaping a brighter future for Staffordshire's children. We're looking for an enthusiastic and experienced Continuous Improvement Partner to develop and deliver our Best Start in Life ambitions. Within this role, you'll help transform how families experience support from pregnancy and through early childhood. Working closely with partners and frontline teams, you'll champion co-production, strengthen support within communities and ensure services are designed around what children and families need to thrive. You'll drive forward improvement projects, guide and coach colleagues, use data and insight to influence planning and decision-making, embedding a culture of learning and innovation across our early years system. Your leadership will help ensure every family receives timely, high-quality support that gives children the best possible start.

• Passionate about early years, family support, and the role of prevention
• Skilled in project planning and delivery, with experience coordinating activity across teams and partners.
• Skilled at interpreting data and translating insight into practical change
• Able to lead cross‑functional projects and motivate others
• Committed to equity, co‑production, and shaping services alongside families

If you share our ambition to improve outcomes through accessible, responsive, and effective support - and want to make a real difference for local families - we'd love to hear from you.

Responsibilities

• Lead and prioritise improvement and innovation activity, aligning objectives with the overall BEST START improvement strategy and act as a thematic lead.
• Support and guide partners to deliver change initiatives that meet organisational goals.
• Champion co‑production and equity, ensuring children, families, staff, and partners shape improvement activity.
• Manage, mentor and develop team members, promoting a strong continuous improvement culture.
• Oversee governance processes, including forums, reports, and preparation for inspections.
• Investigate key issues affecting Children and Families and design evidence‑based, innovative solutions through research and collaboration.
• Facilitate improvement interventions using continuous improvement tools and methodologies.
• Provide oversight of projects and resources, linking data, insights and improvement plans; ensuring risks, dependencies and benefits are understood and managed.

What You’ll Need

• Strong understanding of local authority departments, ICB, Provider Trusts, Health Services, and the voluntary sector, with the ability to work effectively across these systems.
• Demonstrate experience in managing teams, motivating colleagues, and supporting people to reach their full potential.
• Solid knowledge of business planning, performance management, and the ability to link data, insights and improvement plans.
• Extensive experience in designing and delivering training, presentations and workshops, including facilitating co‑design with senior leaders and front‑line staff.
• Highly developed analytical skills, able to interpret complex information, evaluate options and translate findings into practical, evidence‑based advice.
• Excellent communication skills, both written and verbal, with the ability to produce high‑quality reports and engage confidently with stakeholders at all levels.
• Strong project and time management skills, with the ability to work across organisational boundaries, influence others, and meet deadlines in a complex environment.
• Effective problem‑solving, negotiation and interpersonal skills, including working with O365 systems, chairing meetings, and developing innovative solutions.

Our Values

The core of who we are as an organisation. Just like we all have personal values that shape our thoughts and behaviour, organisational values drive how we think and act collectively. Our values were created and shaped by colleague feedback and national best practice and they sit at the heart of People Strategy: We have a real sense of community spirit that brings our people together. This feeling of belonging means we are all connected to what we do and take pride in the difference we make every day for Staffordshire people. We are ambitious and our sights are set firmly on a better future. We look forward and race ahead – that goes for your career too.

Benefits

We recognise that it is our employees that are central to everything we do. We aim to create a supportive working environment where employees can achieve their full potential and achieve a healthy work‑life balance. In addition to your salary, as a member of staff, you will have access to our rewards and benefits – Careers at Staffordshire.