Team Manager - Children We Care For and Children's Asylum Team

West Sussex County Council; England; On-site; GBP 36,000 - 40,000; Part time

Job summary

A local government authority in England seeks a qualified Team Manager for its Children's Asylum Team. This part-time position involves leading and mentoring a dedicated group of social workers. Responsibilities include ensuring vulnerable children achieve their potential, providing expert supervision, and adhering to statutory requirements. Candidates must possess a recognized Social Work qualification and have experience in management within a financially constrained environment. The role offers a competitive salary and opportunities for personal development.

Qualifications

• Experience in managing financial decision-making within constraints.
• Ability to establish working relationships with children and professionals.
• Must travel independently across the county.

Responsibilities

• Lead a team of social workers to support vulnerable children.
• Provide expert supervision and mentoring to staff.
• Ensure compliance with statutory requirements for children's safety.

Skills

Problem-solving

Interpersonal skills

People management

Innovation in practice

Communication skills

Education

Degree in Social Work or equivalent

Post qualifying award in Social Work

Job description

The Opportunity

Salary: £60,562 to £64,711 per annum, (pro rata £36,991 to £39,526) including market supplements. Contract Type: Permanent. Working Pattern: Part time (22.60 hours per week). Location: Horsham area.

Are you a qualified Social Worker? Do you have management experience and can support and nurture a team of social workers? Are you passionate about positive outcomes for children and young people? If so, this might be the role for you.

Our Children's Asylum Team has a passion for making a difference to children's lives and positive growth within their communities. We work with children from multiple cultural backgrounds and must recognise the trauma, challenges and loss these children have been through in order to support their ambitions for their future.

As a Team Manager you will be passionate about ensuring our most vulnerable children and young people are supported to achieve their full potential. You will be responsible for leading a team of passionate social workers and support staff by motivating and inspiring, providing expert supervision and championing best practice. Providing mentoring, coaching and supporting the development of reflective and relationship‑based practice.

You will be able to build positive working relationships with children and young people, professionals, partner agencies and carers as well as respectfully challenge when appropriate. You will have an excellent understanding of the statutory requirements relating to looked after children and keeping children safe.

Rewards and Benefits

As an employer we recognise that it is our employees that are central to everything we do. We aim to create a supportive and dynamic working environment where employees can achieve their full potential, achieve a healthy work‑life balance and are rewarded for the work they do. Upon joining us you will have access to a range of benefits including:

For a full list this can be found at our Rewards and Benefits page.

About Us

To be successful in this role you will have:

• Ability to make sound pragmatic problem‑solving decisions, which will have a wider service impact.
• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills with the ability to influence the actions of others and communicate information which may be complex and contentious.
• Effective people and performance management skills and the ability to provide direction and motivate and inspire the team to deliver quality professional practice.
• Able to reflect on practice and identify innovative solutions within the required framework.
• A recognised Social Work qualification e.g. Degree in Social Work, DipSW, CQSW or equivalent as recognised by the relevant professional body.
• A recognised post qualifying award in Social Work or demonstrable evidence of continuous professional development at a similar level.
• Experience of managing and/or contributing to financially related decision making and operating within financial constraints.
• You will need to be able to travel independently around the county, including to areas that may not be easily accessible by public transport. Pool cars and pool bikes are available.

For more information on the Key Skills as well as the Qualifications and/or experience required, please refer to the Job Description attached.

Further Information

The reference number for this role is CAFHE06099.

For an informal conversation or for further information regarding the role, please contact Melanie Bowley (Service Manager).

To apply, please follow the links below to upload your CV and Cover Letter. In your cover letter please outline your motivations for applying, explaining the skills and experience you can bring to the role and how you feel you can successfully meet the needs of the role (please refer to the key skills) ensuring that any gaps in employment are covered in your CV. Please ensure you have saved the job description attached to the main advert on our website as, once the job has closed, you may not have the opportunity to download again.

We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults. This post is subject to Social Work England registration, an enhanced DBS check, 5 years referencing and a health check.

Equity, inclusion and accessibility is very important to West Sussex County Council. We welcome and encourage applications from everyone, as this helps us build a diverse and talented workforce, that reflects the communities we serve. We ensure our approach to recruitment is flexible and supportive to enable all applicants to be at their best and to ensure they have the best possible chance of success.

We operate a guaranteed interview scheme for applicants that have a disability, are a veteran or are a care leaver. More information can be found on our application help page.