Resource Review Officer

Surrey County Council; Horsell; On-site; GBP 36,000 - 43,000; Full time

Job summary

A local government council is seeking a dynamic Resource Review Officer to enhance the lives of children in care. The role involves undertaking provider visits across the UK to ensure children are placed in suitable homes, maintaining their quality of care. Candidates should have strong safeguarding commitments, excellent communication, and organizational skills. A unique opportunity to contribute positively to children's services and gain significant professional experience in a supportive team environment.

Benefits

28 days' holiday, rising to 31 after 5 years

Option to buy additional leave

Generous pension scheme

Employee Assistance Programme

Wellbeing and lifestyle discounts

Qualifications

• Strong commitment to safeguarding children and young people.
• Experience in supported accommodation, fostering agencies, or residential children's homes.
• Excellent communication and stakeholder engagement skills.

Responsibilities

• Undertake visits to providers ensuring suitable placements for children.
• Conduct quality assurance and contract management visits.
• Work in partnership with professionals to promote positive outcomes.

Skills

Communication skills

Organizational skills

Analysis and report writing

Stakeholder engagement

Resilience and motivation

Ability to prioritize and multi-task

Job description

• Category: Care - Children and Young People
• Contract type: Permanent
• Working hours: 36 hours per week
• Posted on: 14 January 2026
• Closing date: 8 February 2026
• Location: Victoria Gate Chobham Road Woking, Surrey GU21 6JD

Description

We are committed to the development of our workforce.This position is only available to applicants who already work for Surrey County Council.We thank you for your interest in our roles and would encourage you to review our vacancies which are open to all.

The starting salary for this position is £36,873 per annum based on a 36-hour working week.

Are you a dynamic, resilient, and motivated individual who is looking for an opportunity to develop your experience and knowledge in children looked after and care leavers services? If so, then this may be the ideal job for you.

We are looking for a Resource Review Officerin the Resource Review team which sits within the Gateway to Resources Service.

Our Offer to You

• 28 days' holiday, rising to 31 days after 5 years' service (pro rata)
• Option to buy up to 10 days of additional annual leave (pro-rata)
• A generous local government salary related pension
• Up to 5 days of carer\'s leave and 2 paid volunteering days per year (pro-rata)
• Paternity, adoption and dependents leave
• An Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) to support health and wellbeing
• Learning and development hub where you can access a wealth of resources
• Wellbeing and lifestyle discounts including gym, travel, and shopping
• A chance to make a real difference to the lives of our residents

About The Role

The Resource Review team is a supportive and developing team who work in partnership with other professionals and agencies to ensure that children and young people live in suitably matched placements that will achieve positive outcomes.This could be within foster care, children's homes or supported accommodation/semi-independent accommodation.The team undertake quality assurance and contract management visits to ensure that children and young people are properly safeguarded in the homes that they live in and that their outcomes are promoted.

As Resource Review Officer, you will be required to undertake visits to providers around the country where children and young people are living.

For this role, you will need a good understanding of the legislation and frameworks around regulated and unregulated providers along with an understanding of the needs and lived experience of Children Looked After and Care Leavers. Ideally, you will have worked within either fostering, children's homes or supported accommodation services.

You will need to have good organisational skills and able to manage your time effectively. You will need excellent communication skills as well as strong analysis and report writing skills. You will also need to possess the ability to work in partnership with a range of internal and external partners.

Your Application

In order to be considered for shortlisting, your application will clearly evidence the following skills and align with our behaviours :

• A strong commitment to safeguarding children and young people in all aspects of work.
• Experience in supported accommodation, fostering agencies, or residential children's homes, with knowledge of relevant legislation for Children Looked After and Care Leavers.
• Excellent communication and stakeholder engagement skills, alongside strong analysis and report writing abilities.
• Ability to prioritise, multi-task, and thrive in a high-pressure environment, with flexibility to travel and stay overnight when required.
• A motivated, solution-focused approach and understanding of the needs of children and young people, including how to meet those needs effectively.

To apply, we request that you submit a CV and you will be asked the following 4 questions:

• Please explain a scenario where you identified a safeguarding concern for a child or young person. Please evidence how you assessed their needs, and what actions were taken in line with statutory guidance. What skills did you use and what was the outcome?
• Describe a complex situation you handled that impacted services for children or young people. How did you coordinate with internal and external stakeholders, and how did your communication affect decisions or outcomes.
• Give an example of a time you had to produce a high-quality report under pressure. What information did you use, and what was the result?
• Based on the essential qualifications, experience, skills, and personal attributes outlined in the job specification, please describe any relevant skills and experience you have—whether from previous roles or other contexts—that would help you succeed in this role.

Before submitting your application, we recommend you read the job description & Our Life at Surrey handbook to get an insight into working at Surrey.

The job advert closes at midnight on Sunday 8th February 2026 with interviews week commencing 16th February 2026.

You will be required to complete a written exercise as part of the interview process.

An enhanced DBS 'Disclosure and Barring Service' check for regulated activity (formerly known as CRB) and the Children's and Adults' Barred List checks will be required for this role.

We look forward to receiving your application.

Surrey County Council is undergoing Local Government Reorganisation, moving from a two-tier system to new unitary councils in April 2027. Your role will transfer with current terms and conditions to one of these new councils, supporting local devolution and greater powers for our communities.

We are a disability confident employer which means if you have shared a disability on your application form and have evidenced you meet the minimum criteria, we guarantee you an interview.

Your skills and experience truly matter to us. From application to your first day, we're committed to supporting you with any adjustments you need, we value inclusion and warmly welcome you to join and help build a workplace where everyone belongs.