Team Manager – Through Care Service
Post: Team Manager – Through Care Service
Salary: Grade L (£52,806 – £55,845pa) + Retention Allowance (£4,971pa)
Would you like to improve the outcomes for children and young people we care for and who we are preparing to leave our care and transition to adulthood?
Would you like to support them to build bright and stable futures, and have the satisfaction of knowing that you have made a difference in them achieving positive outcomes?
If yes, we have the perfect role for you!
About Us
We believe that the best place for children is to be raised within their own families, immediate or wider, wherever it is safe and appropriate to do so.
In Tower Hamlets we are committed to building relationships and strengthening families by working with people in a compassionate and understanding way.
We are ambitious for Tower Hamlets children and families and endeavour for every child and young person to be healthy, safe and successful.
Tower Hamlets is a progressive, ambitious and diverse place to work. We place children and families at the heart of everything that we do and are relentless in our pursuit of positive outcomes for all.
Team Managers are integral to our offer. They empower, provide high support and challenge along with motivating our social workers so we can collectively achieve best outcomes for children, young people and their families in Borough.
Our Through Care Service is looking for a permanent Team Manager. A qualified Social Worker with full Social Work England registration, you may be an existing Team Manager looking for a fresh challenge in a new team and area of the child’s journey, or an experienced Senior or Advanced Practitioner looking to develop your leadership and management skills. In either case, you will be a practitioner committed to restorative approaches and centring children and young people at the heart of your practice.
What does the team do?
The Through Care Service supports young people aged 14-25 who have been in the care of Tower Hamlets, under the Children Act 1989 and Children (Leaving Care) Act 2000, working to the 7 corporate parenting principles set out in the Children and Social Work Act 2017. We support them to build stable and successful independent adult lives by supporting them to access permanent housing, education/employment, health, leisure activities, stable relationships and support networks. We also support them to achieve financial stability. We work with almost 400 young people in a service which includes 5 teams. We are ambitious for the children and young people we work with and expect you to share this commitment.
What will your role be?
In this challenging but rewarding role, you will lead and co-ordinate a fast-paced, high quality Through Care Team for young people aged 14 to 25 currently in care or who have recently left the care of Tower Hamlets. You will be responsible for the overall performance of your team as well as support the Head of Service in service development.
Leading, supporting and developing your team to create a skilled, motivated, and effective workforce, you will also contribute to and deliver a service plan that has clear targets that improve outcomes for care leavers. As Team Manager you will use your proven social work experience to have overall responsibility for a team qualified Social Workers and Personal Advisors, overseeing quality assurance and performance management. Your team responsibilities will include recruitment, retention, development, and the allocation of workload, as well as supervision to ensure consistently high standards of work. You will lead investigations into any complaints from service users, relatives or carers and be responsible for the justifiable allocation of resources.
This is a great opportunity to make a difference to young people at a crucial time in their lives. It’s vital you have up to date and in-depth knowledge of relevant legislation and are familiar with new evidence-based research and developments, including the Government’s agenda for care leavers.
The post will involve occasional travel around the UK and evening working in line with service user availability and duty arrangements. We work to a 35-hour week, and you will typically need to be in the office at least 2 days per week. We are happy to discuss flexible working arrangements.
Our Offer
A competitive salary (£52,806- £55,845) plus retention allowance of £4,971
Up to 31 days annual leave rising to 32 days with 5 years
In return, we can offer you working arrangements that will enhance your work-life balance and a generous holiday allowance of up to 30 days plus bank holidays. In addition, we offer a range of staff benefits such as membership of the Local Government contributory pension scheme, childcare vouchers, new technology scheme, and discounts at many leisure activities, restaurants, shops, and other establishments. Opportunities to develop your practice, with a clear framework for career development/leadership programme
Role Requirements
- You are an experienced Social Worker with demonstrable experience of working with safeguarding, child protection, and children looked after procedures.
- That you can handle challenges and that you are committed to achieving positive outcomes for young people who have been looked after or are care experienced.
- You have strong assessment and report writing skills and can analyse and interpret complex performance data and other information and use this to drive practice improvements.
- Experience of staff and/or student supervision and management is highly desirable.
- That you are a motivated innovator who is committed to anti-discriminatory practice and who has experience working with a diverse cohort of children and young people, including those with challenging and complex needs.
How to apply:
Please complete the application form on our online application system and upload your CV.
For an informal discussion, please contact Leo Major, Head of Service on leo.major@towerhamlets.gov.uk
Indicative timetable
Role closes: 31st March 2023
Shortlisting: Week commencing 3rd April 2023
Panel interview: Wednesday 12th April 2023
Additional Details
Tower Hamlets vision for our borough is that: people are aspirational, independent and have equal access to opportunities; we are a borough that our residents are proud of and love to live in; and we are a dynamic, outcomes-based council using digital innovation and partnership working to respond to the changing needs of our borough. We want people who aspire to our TOWER values: Together; Open; Willing; Excellent; Respect.
Tower Hamlets has a zero-tolerance approach to, and works to eradicate, all forms of discrimination on the basis of race, sex, disability, age, religion or belief, sexual orientation, gender reassignment, marital status, status as a civil partner, gender, gender identity, gender expression, pregnancy and maternity and looks to employ a diverse workforce representative of those groups. We recognise that people can also be disadvantaged by their social and economic circumstances, so we will work to eliminate discrimination and disadvantage caused by social class.
We welcome applicants interested in flexible working arrangements and also applicants who live in the borough.