Referrals and placements manager

Sense; Birmingham; On-site; GBP 65,000 - 80,000; Full time

Job summary

Sense is a leading disability charity based in Birmingham, delivering personalised, flexible support for disabled people with complex needs. The Referrals and Placements Manager role is a permanent, hybrid position working from our Selly Oak office in Birmingham.

You will oversee referrals and placements across commissioned services, ensuring person-centred, safe and financially sustainable outcomes, while strengthening relationships with commissioners and funders.

Qualifications

• Significant senior-level experience in referrals, placements, commissioning, business development or commercial management in social care, specialist education, healthcare or complex support.
• Strong track record of improving referral pipelines, placement conversion, occupancy or income across multiple services.
• Experience building credible senior relationships with commissioners, local authorities, NHS or integrated care system partners, SEND teams or other funders.
• Practical experience of contracts, SLAs, placement agreements, pricing and fee negotiations.
• Sound understanding of person-centred support, safeguarding, quality and relevant regulatory requirements.

Responsibilities

• Lead and continuously improve Sense’s referral and placement pathway from initial enquiry through to service start.
• Take ownership of our central referrals pipeline and capacity data, using insight to improve conversion, occupancy and utilisation.
• Coordinate person-centred assessments, compatibility and capacity checks and multidisciplinary input.
• Work closely with operational, quality and finance colleagues to ensure potential placements are safe, appropriate and financially viable.
• Build strong relationships with commissioners, local authorities, NHS partners, SEND teams and other funders and referrers.
• Represent Sense externally and use commissioner and market insight to identify opportunities for growth.

Skills

Senior-level experience

Relationship building

Commercial acumen

Contract & SLAs

People-centred approach

Tools

CRM systems

Job description

We’re looking for an experienced Referrals and Placements Manager to lead and strengthen our approach to referrals and placements across Sense’s commissioned services. This is a permanent role working on a hybrid basis from our office in Selly Oak, Birmingham.

Working closely with operational, quality and finance colleagues, you will help ensure that each potential placement is person-centred, safe and financially sustainable. You will use insight from our referral pipeline to improve conversion, while building strong relationships with commissioners and identifying opportunities for sustainable growth.

You will also play an important role externally, developing relationships with commissioners and referrers and ensuring they understand Sense’s specialist services and the difference we can make for disabled people with complex needs.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead and continuously improve Sense’s referral and placement pathway from initial enquiry through to service start.
• Take ownership of our central referrals pipeline and capacity data, using insight to improve conversion, occupancy and utilisation.
• Coordinate person-centred assessments, compatibility and capacity checks and multidisciplinary input.
• Work closely with operational, quality and finance colleagues to ensure potential placements are safe, appropriate and financially viable.
• Build strong relationships with commissioners, local authorities, NHS partners, SEND teams and other funders and referrers.
• Represent Sense externally and use commissioner and market insight to identify opportunities for growth.
• Lead funding proposals, fee negotiations and commercial recommendations within delegated authority.
• Support the management of contracts and SLAs, including renewals, variations, pricing reviews and commercial risks.
• Provide clear forecasts and performance reporting to support decision-making and accountability.
• Identify and resolve barriers across the referral pathway, bringing together colleagues from across Sense to keep opportunities moving.
• Lead, support and develop referral colleagues, creating a collaborative and high-performing approach.

About you

You will have:

• Significant senior-level experience within referrals, placements, commissioning, business development or commercial management in social care, specialist education, healthcare or complex support.
• A strong track record of improving referral pipelines, placement conversion, occupancy or income across multiple services.
• Experience building credible senior relationships with commissioners, local authorities, NHS or integrated care system partners, SEND teams or other funders.
• Practical experience of contracts, SLAs, placement agreements, pricing and fee negotiations.
• Strong commercial judgement and an understanding of service viability and commercial risk.
• A sound understanding of person-centred support, safeguarding, quality and relevant regulatory requirements.
• Excellent influencing and negotiation skills, with the confidence to bring together senior operational, quality, clinical and finance stakeholders.
• Experience using CRM systems, performance data and forecasting to drive action and improve outcomes.

Experience of line management, tendering, mobilisation or cross-functional service development would be an advantage.

About Sense

Sense is a leading disability charity, here to break down barriers alongside disabled people with complex needs. We use our knowledge and expertise to deliver personalised, creative and flexible support at every stage of life. Together, we drive change, building a future where everyone has the power, choice and control to live the lives we choose.

We’re proud to be aDisability confident leaderand a charity where people can grow their skills and careers in a supportive, flexible environment.

Our values

Our values shape the way we behave and work alongside disabled people with complex needs to break down barriers.

• We're creating change
• We're always learning
• We're better together

Sense is here to break down barriers alongside disabled people with complex needs. That's why we're committed to increasing the number of disabled people working across our organisation and creating an environment where everyone can thrive.

We actively encourage disabled people to apply for our vacancies and believe that a diverse range of perspectives, experiences and talents makes us stronger.

We know there's always more we can do to become a truly inclusive employer, and we're working together to achieve that. Join us and help create the change thousands of disabled people with complex needs and families told us they want to see: a world without limits.

If you need us to adjust our recruitment process to help you access our vacancies, then please get in touch with a member of the talent acquisition team. We are a Disability Confident Leader and commit to interviewing disabled people who meet the minimum criteria for a role. More information on this can be found here Our commitment as an employer | Sense Careers