Team Manager - Children's Specialist Support Team

Bracknell Forest Council; Bracknell; On-site; GBP 45,000 - 60,000; Full time

Job summary

A local authority in the UK is seeking an experienced manager for their Children’s Specialist Support Team. The role involves leading a skilled team to deliver statutory services for children with disabilities, providing leadership and support to staff. Candidates should be registered Social Workers with significant supervisory experience in children's social care. This position offers opportunities for professional development and a collaborative work environment.

Qualifications

• Minimum of four years' supervisory experience in children’s social care.
• Experience managing services for children with disabilities.
• Significant post qualifying experience working with children and families in the statutory sector.

Responsibilities

• Manage the delivery and performance of the Children’s Specialist Support Team.
• Lead within a secure base model to foster good social work practice.
• Ensure provision of statutory functions for children.

Skills

Supervisory skills

Strong leadership

Assessment and analytical skills

Collaboration

Education

Registered Social Worker with Social Work England

Job description

Overview

We are seeking an experienced manager with a minimum of four years' supervisory experience in children’s social care, including working with and managing services for children with disabilities, to join our Children’s Specialist Support Team and help make a lasting difference in the lives of children and young people.

To learn more about what it is like to work with us, take a look at our team's video.

If you would like an informal chat or a tour of the office prior to submitting your application, please contact [e-mail] to arrange a suitable time.

About you

You will need to be a registered Social Worker with Social Work England and have significant post qualifying experience working with children and families in the statutory sector.

You will deputise when required for the Head of Service and work closely alongside them to deliver our vision and strategic values.

You will have direct line management responsibility for Assistant Team Managers, Social Workers, including newly qualified Social Workers, students and support staff. You will provide strong leadership by fostering a supportive and collaborative working environment, promoting high professional standards, and guiding and motivating team members to achieve their goals.

Working alongside your Assistant Team Managers, you will oversee the day-to-day operations of the team, offering supervision and support to Social Workers in managing their caseloads. You will step in where necessary to ensure appropriate plans are in place and that needs-led services and interventions are provided to children and families.

You will be able to build effective relationships, demonstrating strong assessment and analytical skills, planning and intervention, and work effectively as part of a management team.

About the team

The Children’s Specialist Support Team (CSST) is a highly skilled team working with children who have disabilities and/or complex health needs. We are an experienced, friendly and supportive team who focus on ensuring that children are at the centre of all we do. We provide a range of services for children with additional needs and those who are assessed to have additional vulnerabilities. This includes the council’s statutory responsibilities for disabled Children in Need in the community (including care packages and short breaks).

The team is comprised of different disciplines and service areas covering a wide breadth of work with children with disabilities, occupational therapy, short breaks (including Larchwood, our short break respite unit), taking a child first and social model approach to disability. Partnership and collaborative working is the key to our success.

We are a small, welcoming and friendly local authority. We are proud of our connected and inclusive culture, with a strong focus on wellbeing, which provides our workforce with a strong sense of belonging.

You can read what our team have to say about working at Bracknell Forest via this link: Children's social care jobs | Bracknell Forest Council

Key responsibilities

• To manage the delivery and performance of the Children’s Specialist Support Team, including retention and recruitment; workload allocation and management; induction; supervision and development of staff; disciplinary and capability performance management and succession planning.
• To lead within a secure base model and to support and encourage a culture where good social work practice can flourish. Providing a secure physical and psychological base from which to work safely and effectively thus reducing the risk of harm to children and increase and improve their long-term outcomes.
• To ensure the provision of statutory functions are discharged effectively with the specific aim of reducing immediate and emerging risk and escalating the needs of the children to provide the best possible opportunities for all ages and stages of life.
• To promote and support the council’s policies and procedures for safeguarding, ensuring children are at the centre of all decisions, and the social model of disability is respected in all work.
• To ensure arrangements for regular engagement and participation with children and young people and parents and carers, by all staff within the service, and to lead on investigations and response to complaints from service users, relatives and carers.
• To lead on strategy discussions, Child in Need meetings, professional meetings and other forums, working together with partner agencies to conclude with safe and proportionate threshold decision and planning.
• To undertake regular reviews of, and track, performance data completing audits and contributing to audit programmes and frameworks.
• To develop and maintain effective internal and external working relationships, ensuring a positive working culture within the team, and working collaboratively with multi-agency partners, including chairing reviews, planning meetings, strategy discussions and other professional and network meetings.
• Providing high quality, reflective supervision (in line with the supervision policy) including providing feedback and analysis of performance.
• To develop and maintain accurate case records and comply with the department's policies, procedures and guidelines including data protection and GDPR.

Interview date

Interviews will be held on Monday 13th October 2025.

Interviews will be conducted in person, providing candidates with the chance to personally meet the team and experience our work environment.

No agencies please.