Team Manager | Fostering Assessment Team

Lancashire County Council; Preston; Hybrid; GBP 53,000 - 57,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Induction programme

Ongoing training and development

Advanced Practitioners support

Research and evidence-informedpractice

Leadership development

Job summary

Lancashire County Council is seeking an experienced social work leader to join as Team Manager in the Fostering Assessment Service in Preston, Lancashire. You will guide a skilled team, promoting high-quality fostering assessments and best outcomes for children and families, with hybrid working and supportive management.

The role emphasizes leadership, professional development, and collaboration with partners to safeguard children and secure appropriate homes, with DBS and SWE registration

Qualifications

• Experience leading social work teams.
• Strong leadership and management capability.
• Commitment to strengths-based and relationship-focused practice.
• Ability to drive continuous improvement and high standards.

Responsibilities

• Lead and develop a high-performing Fostering Assessment Team.
• Promote high-quality, strengths-based fostering assessments.
• Support applicants through assessment for best outcomes.
• Foster a positive, reflective team culture with coaching and supervision.
• Collaborate with partners to safeguard children and ensure suitable homes.

Skills

Leadership

Management

Child welfare

Relationship-based practice

Education

Registered Social Worker

Job description

Job-ID: 21637Category: Social Care

• ChildrenLocation: Preston, Lancashire, United Kingdom; Lancashire, United KingdomSchedule: Full timePosted: 2026-11-03Closes: 2026-11-16| Salary 53,051-57,447, Per annum | Permanent, Full Time, 37 hours per week | International Sponsorship: This role is not open to international sponsorshipLead Outstanding Practice.

Inspire Positive Change.

Are you an experienced and motivating social worker ready to take the next step in your career? Lancashire County Council is seeking a passionate and ambitious Team Manager to lead one of our successful Fostering Assessment Teams in Lancashire.

This is an exciting opportunity to join a service that is committed to strengths-based practice, relational social work, and delivering outstanding outcomes for children and families.

As Team Manager, you will lead a dedicated team within our innovative Fostering Assessment Service, creating the conditions for excellent practice, strong professional development, and finding the right homes for children in our care through fostering assessments.

The work will predominantly focus on assessments of Kinship arrangements, but could include oversight for fostering assessments with prospective or existing mainstream foster carer.

About the Role

You will play a pivotal leadership role, providing direction, support, and challenge to a team of skilled practitioners while ensuring children remain at the centre of everything we do.

Key responsibilities include:

• Leading and developing a high-performing Fostering Assessment Team.
• Promoting high-quality, strengths-based fostering assessments.
• Supporting applicants through assessment to ensure the best possible outcomes for children and families.
• Creating a positive, reflective, and learning-focused team culture.
• Driving practice excellence through coaching, supervision, and professional development.
• Working collaboratively with partners to safeguard children and ensure we find the right homes for children at the right time.
• Ensuring effective performance management and service delivery.

Why Join Lancashire?

You’ll be joining an established Fostering Service in Lancashire where senior leaders are committed to investing in staff, supporting professional growth, and enabling excellent social work practice. As the fourth largest local authority in England and the largest in the North, Lancashire County Council serves over 1.2 million residents and delivers innovative services that make a real difference to people's lives. We understand that exceptional outcomes for children are achieved when practitioners feel valued, supported, and empowered to do their best work.

That’s why we have created a positive culture where staff wellbeing, learning, and development are prioritised.

What We Offer

• Comprehensive induction programmes for new starters.
• Ongoing training and development opportunities.
• Support from experienced Advanced Practitioners.
• Access to the latest research and evidence-informed practice.
• Continuous opportunities to enhance leadership and management skills.

Career Development

As a large and progressive local authority, we offer:

• Excellent progression opportunities.
• Access to specialist training and qualifications.
• Leadership development programmes.
• Opportunities to influence and shape service delivery.

Flexible and Supportive Working

We are committed to helping our staff thrive by providing:

• Flexible and hybrid working arrangements.
• Equipment to work effectively from home.
• Strong management support.
• A focus on staff wellbeing.
• Practitioner forums and professional networks to collaborate and share best practice.

What We’re Looking For

We are seeking an experienced social work leader who:

• Is passionate about improving outcomes for children and families.
• Has experience of working with children and families, and ideally an insight or experience in working in fostering.
• Demonstrates strong leadership and management capability.
• Can inspire, develop, and motivate teams.
• Is committed to strengths-based and relationship-focused practice.
• Has the ability to drive high standards and support continuous improvement.

This post is subject to an enhanced DBS check under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975, as amended.

Social Work applicants must be registered with Social Work England (SWE) to be appointed as a Social Worker or have applied to register with SWE.

For this role you are unable to commence post without Registration.

Lancashire County Council offers an excellent range of employee benefits available on the LCC Vacancies website.

We reserve the right to close this vacancy early if sufficient applications are received.

If you are successful in your application, you will initially join Lancashire County Council. However, as part of the planned transition, your employment will transfer to one of the new unitary councils from April 2028, subject to the implementation of the reorganisation and relevant employment legislation. Throughout this period, our focus remains on delivering excellent services to our communities.

Job Description and Person Specification