Service Delivery jobs in United Kingdom

At HCRG Care Group, we believe great outcomes for children, young people and families are built on strong leadership, trusted partnerships and high-quality care. We’re looking for an experienced operational leader to join us as Associate Director of Operations for Essex Childrens and Family Services, at an exciting stage of growth.

You’ll lead one of our largest portfolios, a £50 million, multi‑commissioner contract delivering a wide range of children and family wellbeing services across Essex. Working closely with senior colleagues and partners such as Barnardos, you’ll help ensure services are responsive, effective and rooted in local needs.

This is a varied, people‑centred role, balancing strategic work with commissioners and hands‑on support for leaders overseeing around 800 colleagues across early help, family support, health visiting, school nursing and more. While hybrid, regular time on‑site across Essex is key to building strong relationships and maintaining a visible, supportive leadership presence.

If you’re a senior leader with experience in children, family, community or social care services and enjoy working in complex, multi‑agency environments, this is a rewarding opportunity to make a real difference for families across Essex.

• Provide senior operational leadership across a large and diverse children and family wellbeing portfolio, ensuring safe, high‑quality and responsive service delivery.
• Strategically oversee the delivery of a £50 million multi‑commissioner contract with 12 separate budget lines and ensure strong financial stewardship, robust forecasting and effective resource allocation.
• Work closely with our strategic delivery partners including Barnardos, to lead integrated approaches that improve outcomes for children, young people and families across Essex.
• Build strong, trusted relationships with multiple commissioners, system partners, local authority leaders, safeguarding boards and community stakeholders.
• Provide visible strategic leadership to a workforce of approximately 800 colleagues, empowering and inspiring senior managers and frontline teams to deliver high performance and continuous improvement.
• Ensure all services operate effectively within multi‑agency safeguarding frameworks, promoting a strong culture of safety, accountability and professional curiosity.
• Lead the development and delivery of performance recovery plans where required, ensuring services remain compliant with contractual, regulatory and quality standards.
• Act as a senior ambassador for HCRG Care Group within Essex, contributing to system‑wide priorities and representing the organisation at key strategic forums.

• Substantial senior leadership experience within children’s services, family wellbeing, social care, community health or a related multi‑agency environment, with the credibility to operate confidently across a complex system.
• Experience working with multiple commissioners and navigating competing priorities, performance frameworks and governance requirements.
• Strong financial acumen, with experience managing multiple complex budgets and contributing to or leading performance recovery plans within large, complex services.
• A proven track record of leading large multidisciplinary teams through senior managers and service leads.
• A deep understanding of multi‑agency safeguarding frameworks, statutory responsibilities and best practice in the delivery of children’s and family services.
• Experience of service redesign, transformation or improvement programmes that have delivered measurable impact.
• The ability to build strong relationships at all levels, from commissioners and system partners to frontline teams, using excellent communication, negotiation and influencing skills.
• High levels of emotional intelligence, resilience and autonomy, with the ability to make sound decisions in a fast‑paced environment with competing demands.
• A values‑driven leadership approach, aligned to our organisational values of We Care, We Think and We Do, and a passion for improving outcomes for children, young people and families.

• Educated to masters level or equivalent in Leadership, Commissioning, Management or a related specialist field.
• Coaching or Mentoring Qualification.
• Involvement in Business development, tendering or supporting contract growth.
• Knowledge of population health, systems level transformation and integrated care models.
• Awareness of emerging trends impacting children’s services and the wider public service landscape.

• NHS Agenda for Change Band 8d salary with group pension.
• Membership of My Reward Hub, giving you discounts on everyday purchases, plus cashback and voucher offers.
• Access to your wages as you earn them, helping cover life’s emergencies.
• Online and in‑person wellbeing support, including mental health services, activity challenges, financial wellbeing tools, coaching and counselling.
• Access to e‑learning, bespoke career pathways and opportunities for professional development through our Outstanding Learning Enterprise team.
• An open, just culture where you’re encouraged to contribute ideas that help us deliver our purpose of changing lives through transforming health and care, backed by ringfenced innovation funding each year.
• Pride of working for an organisation committed to the highest clinical and quality standards, with the majority of our rated services holding Good or Outstanding ratings from the Care Quality Commission.

Posted: 18 December 2025

Pay: £88,000 to £98,000 a year

Contract: Permanent

Working pattern: Full-time

Reference number: HCRGCG/TP/152668/17976

HCRG Care Group, Chelmsford, Essex, CM1 1GF

We change lives by transforming health and care. Established in 2006, we are one of the UK’s leading independent providers of community health and care services, working with health and care commissioners and communities to transform services with a focus on experience, efficiency and improved outcomes. We deliver and transform adult and children community health services, primary care services including urgent care, sexual health, dermatology and MSK services as well as adult social care and wellbeing services. Across England, we support communities of many millions and directly help more than half a million people each year – guided by our simple values: we care, we think, we do.

We’re committed to equal opportunities and welcome applications from a broad, diverse range of people who want to join our team. We’re a Disability Confident Committed company, so we work to provide facilities, work environment adjustments and technical solutions to be as inclusive of everyone.

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.

HCRG Care Group, Chelmsford, Essex, CM1 1GF

Website: https://www.hcrgcaregroup.com/