Service Manager

DOLPHIN HOMES GROUP; Littlehampton; On-site; GBP 35,000 - 50,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading care provider is seeking a Service Manager in Littlehampton to oversee the management of a new service opening in 2026. This role involves ensuring high-quality support and care for individuals with complex needs. The ideal candidate will have substantial supervisory experience in nursing or residential settings, particularly for individuals with acquired brain injury, and will play a key role in ensuring compliance with health and safety regulations. The manager must demonstrate strong leadership and effective communication skills.

Qualifications

• Substantial experience in a supervisory or management capacity in a nursing/residential environment.
• Commitment to continuous professional development.
• Ability and willingness to travel overnight.

Responsibilities

• Manage resources to ensure exemplary support and care.
• Provide leadership and direction in service delivery.
• Monitor and develop performance of staff.
• Ensure compliance with regulatory bodies.

Skills

Leadership skills

Communication skills

Financial data analysis

Health and Safety understanding

IT skills (Microsoft)

Education

Level 5 Diploma in Leadership for Health and Social Care

Job description

Service Manager - Littlehampton

Purpose Of The Job

To be responsible and accountable for the overall management of our new Service due to open in February 2026. The Manager will directly manage resources to ensure exemplary support and care to people who use our services whilst ensuring budgetary compliance.

Key Responsibilities

• To provide leadership, management and clear direction in the delivery of all services within your defined area of responsibility.
• To develop the growth of the setting in line with organisational targets and grow the organisations reputation as a leading/outstanding provider to people with complex needs and acquired brain injury.
• Work in partnership with the recruitment and operations team to ensure, selection and on-going training, development and performance of all staff.
• To monitor and develop the individual and team performance of all members of staff to achieve optimum performance within defined organisational policy requirements.
• To ensure that disciplinary matters, grievances and whistle blowing issues are dealt with promptly and professionally in accordance with organisational procedures.
• To develop and implement service training plans in consultation with the Learning and Development team.
• To implement systems and procedures that monitor, maintain and, where appropriate, challenge and improve standards within your service, ensuring that standards are regularly reviewed to achieve high quality services.
• To ensure that complaints and compliments are handled effectively in accordance with organisational policies ensuring prompt and professional actions in order to minimise conflict.
• To develop and involve your team in exploring innovative ways of improving and delivering services to enhance organisational performance and share these ideas as best practice developments.
• To effectively deploy all resources to ensure you achieve Dolphin Cares vision, mission and values.
• To liaise with all regulatory bodies to ensure their requirements are implemented, monitored and maintained.
• To support the referrals and admissions manager in negotiating with local purchasers to secure appropriate funding.
• To use technology effectively to monitor and understand KPIs, to manage day to day service delivery and to support and enhance your role.
• To work closely with professional colleagues to develop, agree, monitor and effectively manage your service budgets and report on progress.
• To ensure that people using the service receive support in line with agreed plans and expectations.
• To provide safe systems of work within all areas of responsibility in accordance with Dolphin Cares health and safety policies and procedures.
• To comply with Dolphin Care and any local safeguarding and mental capacity act (MCA) policies and procedures.
• To take appropriate actions following recommendations from health and safety inspections and other internal audit processes.
• To ensure service provision to agreed KPIs.
• To undertake any other duties as requested.
• To take part in an on-call rota.

Safeguarding Responsibilities

• To ensure a culture within the service where peoples rights are respected and that they are protected from all forms of harm, abuse and neglect, through strong and positive leadership.
• To fully implement the organisations safeguarding and whistleblowing policies, ensuring the staff team know them, know where to find them and that they follow them.
• To ensure that where any harm is experienced by a person, they are made safe immediately and it is reported to the local authority safeguarding team without delay.
• To ensure the service is running on a safe staffing level.
• To thoroughly, and openly, undertake section 42 investigations when required.
• To attend and take part in safeguarding strategy meetings with external professionals.
• To ensure the next of kin of the person supported who is the subject of safeguarding is informed as soon as possible.
• To ensure that all safeguarding alerts are reported onto CQC using the correct notification.
• To ensure staff are adequately inducted in relation to safeguarding and whistleblowing.
• Promote an open culture where staff and people supported feel safe and comfortable to report concerns without the fear of any reprisals.
• Ensuring each case goes onto central safeguarding database and is reported to the Area Managers.
• Ensure that the Dolphin Homes Fundamental standards are read through to all staff and then signed during their inductions and a signed copy saved on the server.
• To ensure that all new staff receive safeguarding training within the first 6 weeks of employment.
• To ensure that staff training is current and up to date for all staff.
• To ensure that each safeguarding case that occurs in the service is reflected on and lessons learned and that those lessons are shared with the rest of the team.
• To refer proven neglect and abuse cases to ISA without fail.
• To follow the Duty of Candour.

Person Specification Essential Requirements

• Level 5 Diploma in Leadership for Health and Social Care or equivalent qualification as required for registration with the relevant inspectorate.
• Substantial experience of operating in a supervisory or management capacity in a nursing/ residential environment for people with acquired brain injury and neurological conditions.
• Demonstrate a commitment to continue training and developing professionally maintain your competence as a manager, including keeping up to date with your knowledge of standards and legislation.
• To be able and willing to travel and stay away overnight if required.

Desirable Requirements

• Minimum of three years management in a neurological or acquired brain injury setting.
• Forward thinking and innovative.

Key Competencies And Skills

• Strong people and communication skills.
• A thorough understanding of financial data with the ability to set and manage budgets, understand and analyse spreadsheets and make effective saving.
• Understanding of employment practice and Health and Safety legislation.
• Clear understanding of and ability to deliver to the regulatory framework and legal environment in which we work.
• To have highly developed IT skills in standard Microsoft packages.
• Demonstrate partnership working with a variety of stakeholders. Ability to negotiate with stakeholders.
• To negotiate with commissioners to ensure that the package of care sufficiently meets the persons needs and negotiate the fees where necessary.
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