Head of Service Mental Health, Learning Disability and Opportunities Together NEW Stockport Cou[...]

Stockport Clinical Commissioning Group; Stockport; Hybrid; GBP 64,000 - 74,000; Full time

Job summary

An established local authority is seeking a visionary leader for the Head of Service role in Mental Health and Learning Disabilities. This pivotal position involves shaping inclusive adult social care services, fostering collaboration among various sectors, and driving innovative practices that empower individuals. The ideal candidate will possess extensive experience in leadership within adult social care, a strong commitment to inclusion, and a professional qualification in a relevant field. Join a progressive team dedicated to transforming lives and enhancing community support in Stockport.

Benefits

Generous annual leave allowance

Flexible working arrangements

Employee engagement networks

Support for volunteering

Learning and development opportunities

Discounts on various services

Access to an employee support hotline

Local Government Pension Scheme

Qualifications

• Extensive leadership experience in adult social care.
• Strong understanding of safeguarding and regulatory frameworks.
• Proven success in service innovation and transformation.

Responsibilities

• Lead strategic development of services for mental health and learning disabilities.
• Drive integration with health and social care partners.
• Manage performance and ensure compliance with standards.

Skills

Inclusive Leadership

Collaboration

Strategic Vision

Transformation Leadership

Understanding of Legislation

Education

Professional Qualification in Social Work

Professional Qualification in Nursing

Professional Qualification in Occupational Therapy

Job description

Head of Service Mental Health, Learning Disability and Opportunities Together

Stockport

Full Time

Permanent

Expires 01/06/2025

About the Role

Head of Service Mental Health, Learning Disability and Opportunities Together
MB1 (£64,690 £73,364)
37 hours, Full-Time
Permanent
Hybrid: Stopford House, Community-Based Work and homeworking

Application Deadline: 1st June 2025, 11:59pm
Please be aware that we may close this vacancy early if a high volume of applications are received. We encourage you to submit your application as soon as possible to avoid disappointment.
Shortlisting Date: 3rd June 2025
Interview Date: 11th June 2025
Interview Type: Face to Face and presentation (topic given on the day)

Your Role

At Stockport Council, we’re on a mission to ensure every person in our community can live a gloriously ordinary life.

We want a leader to lead with impact and shape the future of modern inclusive adult social care in Stockport

We are now seeking a transformational leader to take up the role of Head of Service for Learning Disability, Mental Health, Autism & Opportunities Together. If you're a visionary, values-led professional who thrives on innovation, collaboration, and systems leadership this is your opportunity to make a real difference at the heart of a progressive local authority.

As Head of Service, you will:

• Lead the strategic development and operational delivery of services for people with learning disabilities, mental health needs, and autism, as well as our Opportunities Together internal provider.
• Foster and support a culture of inclusive and collaborative leadership
• Drive integration with health, social care, and voluntary sector partners to ensure seamless, person-centred support.
• Champion strength-based approaches that promote independence, recovery, and belonging.
• Lead on innovation, transformation, and inclusive practice across your service area.
• Manage performance, budgets and ensure compliance with all statutory and quality standards.

Your leadership will be key to delivering joined-up, ambitious support that empowers people to thrive in their communities.

About You

• Proven successful experience of inclusive and collaborative leadership
• Extensive leadership experience within adult social care, ideally across learning disability, mental health, or autism services.
• A strong understanding of relevant legislation, safeguarding, and regulatory frameworks.
• Demonstrable success in leading transformation, service innovation, and working across complex systems.
• Strategic vision, operational grip, and a deep commitment to inclusion, co-production, and human rights.
• A recognised professional qualification in Social Work, Nursing or Occupational Therapy and current registration with a professional body (Social Work England or HCPC).

About Us

This is an exceptional opportunity for a senior leader who believes in building services around people. Adult Social Care is Stockport is transforming the way we work.

At Stockport Council we are one ambitious team on a mission to create opportunities for everyone who lives, works and spends time in the borough. Working at Stockport Council means contributing to one of the most thriving towns in the North. We’re keen to recruit people with the right values and behaviours that can help us ensure our workplace values are at the heart of everything we do.

We are proud to be recognised under the Good Employment Charter as an organisation committed to the wellbeing of our colleagues. As members of the charter, we have been recognised as a great place to work for all colleagues and pledge to pay the real living wage, engage staff in key decisions and endorse fair and flexible working conditions.

We actively welcome candidates from all backgrounds, especially those with lived experience of disability, neurodiversity, or mental health.

Click here to find out more about the Employee Benefits you will receive when you join our team!

If you would like to find out more about the role please contact Amardeep Grewal on [e-mail] for an informal discussion about the role

The successful applicant’s appointment will be subject to satisfactory pre-employment clearances including a Disclosure and Barring Service check.

This post is politically restricted under the terms of the 1989 Local Government and Housing Act. This dictates that you must seek the council’s permission before taking up any additional appointments or positions.

Stockport Council holds a Visa sponsorship licence but this can only be used for certain roles and this campaign does not currently qualify.

Please note that we have made a commitment to improve the employment opportunities for people with disabilities, care leavers and ex-military personnel. As part of the Guaranteed Assessment Scheme you will therefore be guaranteed an interview if you meet both the criteria for the scheme and the essential job role criteria.

Follow our recruitment team on X , Instagram and Facebook for updates on our vacancies and recruitment events.

Stockport Council is committed to promoting a diverse and inclusive workforce culture - a place where we can all be ourselves and succeed. We welcome applicants from all backgrounds and communities to join our workforce.

We want our employees to have a good work life balance and in many job roles we can offer a range of flexible/hybrid working arrangements. We also have inclusive employment policies and staff engagement forums to support our diverse workforce. We will listen to, learn from, and develop our workforce.

Piccadilly, Stockport, SK1 3XE, United Kingdom

A generous annual leave allowance, up to 30 days annual leave dependent on grade and length of service, plus bank holidays with the option to purchase additional annual leave

Work and personal life balance. Many jobs include part time working, flexi-time and homeworking

Employee engagement networks to support colleagues and create opportunities to feed into both workforce and borough strategies

Support for volunteering by allowing up to 4 hours per month (pro rata) to carry out any duties associated with this

Learning and Development

A suite of learning and development opportunities, from important data protection training to all level apprenticeships

Discounts

A huge range of discounts via an easy to use portal, including: Gym memberships, restaurants, events, travel, cycle to work scheme, home electronics and more.

Access to an employee support hotline, available 24 hours a day, 365 days of the year.

Pension Scheme

Option to join the Local Government Pension Scheme and give your pension a boost by enrolling into a salary sacrifice scheme.

Our Recruitment Journey

Seen a job you’re interested in but want to understand more about our recruitment process?

1

Application stage

When you have seen a job, you are interested in you can submit your application online by clicking ‘Apply Now’, some vacancies will ask you to complete a supporting statement where you should address the About You section of the Job Profile for the role. Other vacancies will ask you to upload a CV.

2

Shortlisting

In keeping with our commitment to inclusion, recruiting managers take an anonymised approach to recruiting when shortlisting your application form. They will use the supporting information section of your application and your work history to assess your suitability for the job. You'll be notified of the outcome of your application form via email and if successful you'll be invited to book an interview slot.

3

Interviews

When preparing for the interview, you should familiarise yourself with the job profile. The About You section of the job profile contains the criteria that will be assessed at interview stage. You can prepare for interview by ensuring that you have clear examples relating to how you have met these criteria. If you require any reasonable adjustments because of a disability under the Equality Act, to assist you during the selection process we would be pleased to discuss them with you on [e-mail]

4

Offer stage and pre-employment checks

Offer stage and pre-employment checks If you're offered the job after interviewing, you'll be sent a conditional offer detailing your new role. Along with the conditional contract and offer letter, our team will be in touch regarding your pre-employment checks.

The pre-employment checks that you will need to undertake will depend on the role that you've applied for. These checks may include:
• right to work in the UK
• Disclosure and Barring Service checks.

The information provided will be dealt with in accordance with the DBS Code of Practice
• gaps in employment
• reference checks. We will request references prior to issuing your conditional contract
• pre-employment health declaration
• qualification checks