Service Manager - Careers Enterprise and Employment

London Borough of Hounslow; Hounslow; On-site; GBP 45,000 - 60,000; Full time

Job summary

A local government authority in Hounslow is seeking a Service Manager for the Careers, Enterprise & Employment Service. You will lead a team to develop targeted employment support programs and establish strong relationships with local employers to enhance job opportunities for residents. The ideal candidate will possess leadership skills and significant management experience, focusing on service efficiency and community engagement.

Qualifications

• Significant strategic and operational management experience required.
• Ability to develop partnerships and manage employment support programs.
• Strong focus on resident needs and service improvements.

Responsibilities

• Lead the Careers, Enterprise & Employment Service.
• Develop and maintain partnerships with local employers.
• Manage targeted employment support and skills programs.
• Ensure good work outcomes for young people and adults.

Skills

Leadership

Analytical skills

Project management

Stakeholder engagement

Education

Degree in a relevant field

Job description

About Us

We’d love you to join us at the London Borough of Hounslow! Our people are deeply committed to providing excellent services to our residents, doing all we can to make lives as good as they can be.

We are an outstanding council, serving an outstanding borough. With brilliant, visionary leadership, a dynamic Cabinet and a can-do culture, we’ve built strong partnerships which have transformed how we serve one of London’s most diverse boroughs. Hounslow is the world in one place and full of potential. We are stepping up for our residents like never before.

Diversity and Inclusion

We live by five core values: Lead with Heart, Do New, Pass on the Power, Harness the Mix and Be a Rock. All our work has equality, diversity and inclusion at its heart, best articulated in “Harness the Mix”. It is about breaking down barriers between our parts and people and unlocking the problem-solving power of our amazing mix of minds. We serve a diverse community, we have a diverse workforce and we are committed to being an inclusive employer.

We work hard to create representation across our workforce and leadership community, we have thriving employee network groups and our learning and development programmes help us lead, model and breathe ways of working that eliminate inequality, inequity, injustice and bias.

As part of this and under our commitments as a Disability Confident Employer, we make reasonable adjustments to accommodate our candidates. There’s space for you to tell us what you need within our application form.

Benefits

About The Role

This is an exciting opportunity to lead the Careers, Enterprise & Employment Service, helping to realise the ambition of our ‘Limitless’ Strategy. This role will be pivotal in delivering our aspiration for all Hounslow residents to be able to engage in, and benefit from good work opportunities in our local economy.

You will lead, manage and develop the Careers, Enterprise and Employment Team. Responsible for the development and delivery of targeted employment support programmes, careers advice and guidance for young people and adults, skills, enterprise and employment activity and our social value work.

You will develop and maintain strong strategic and operational partnerships with key local employers, other stakeholders and LBH teams. You will lead the delivery of targeted employment and skills support and a young people’s careers and enterprise offer. You will ensure a strategic and co-ordinated approach across these areas in order to maximise our resources and ensure good work outcomes for young people and adults in Hounslow.

As part of the Lifelong Learning, Skills & Employment division within Children’s and Adults Services you will bring significant strategic and operational management experience to the Senior Leadership Team of the Skills, Careers & Employment Pillar.

The Team You Will Be Working In

The Lifelong Learning, Skills & Employment division provides a range of statutory and community services, regulated and non-regulated.

Our vision is for a thriving community where all our residents can engage in and benefit from lifelong learning opportunities - for personal growth, health and wellbeing and economic success.

The division, which sits within the Children’s & Adults Services Department, is organised into four operational service areas, each led by a Head of Service, and each contributing to achievement of the Borough’s ‘limitless’ Lifelong Learning Strategy.

This role will report to the Head of Service for Skills, Careers & Employment.

As a Service Manager, you will be a member of our extended Hounslow Leadership Team who play a key role in delivering high-quality, resident-focused services.

About You

You oversee daily operations of a critical service area, ensuring efficiency and delivery of borough priorities. You manage service improvements and resources, and harness innovation to maintain cost-effectiveness and responsiveness. Through collaboration with your Head of Service and other leaders and stakeholders, you contribute to an integrated approach across departments, supporting governance and compliance with policies.

You maintain a strong focus on the needs of Hounslow’s residents, ensuring your service is responsive, accessible, and aligned with their expectations.

Your role involves establishing performance targets, managing risks, and providing regular updates on outcomes to your Head of Service and as an effective leader you promote a positive, inclusive culture, championing staff development and continuous improvement.

Top Five Things About You

• You will be a role model for our values, providing confidence to your service and creating the conditions for our people and residents to succeed.
• You will work proactively with stakeholders across the council and partner organisations, representing your service at a senior level.
• You are organised and analytical, able to take complex information, interpret and present it to your Head of Service/AD, colleagues and your service.
• You are self-motivated and able to manage your own time effectively working to your own and others’ deadlines.
• You can deliver through significant change, working with your Head of Service to make improvements across your service and teams.

If these points resonate with you, we’d love you to put in an application.

Interviews and Contact

The key information you need about the role should be in the job description, but if you have any further questions about the role, please contact:

Email: [e-mail]

Interviews for this job will be held during week commencing 5th January 2026.