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Service Manager
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- Suffolk County Council
Address: Beacon House, Ipswich, IP1 5PB, West Suffolk House, Bury St Edmunds, IP33 3YU or Riverside, Lowestoft, NR33 0EQ - Hybrid
Salary: £62,119 - £73,998 per annum (pro rata for part time)
Hours: 37, flexible working options available
Contract: Permanent
This is an exciting opportunity to lead Suffolk County Council's County Children and Young People Disability Service (CCYPDS), supporting some of our most vulnerable children, young people, and families.
As Service Manager, you will play a pivotal role in shaping and delivering high-quality, innovative services that make a real, lasting difference. Working within Suffolk's Family Help model, you will lead a specialist multi-disciplinary service supporting children and young people with disabilities aged 0 to 17 years, ensuring they receive the right support, at the right time, to achieve the best possible outcomes.
This influential leadership role offers the opportunity to drive service excellence, inspire and empower staff, and shape strategic developments across the county. Through your vision, expertise, and commitment to improving lives, you will help ensure children, young people, and families receive the support they need to thrive.
Your role and responsibilities
You will provide strong and visible leadership across social work, occupational therapy, and short breaks services, creating a culture where staff feel valued, supported, and empowered to deliver outstanding outcomes for children, young people, and their families.
As Service Manager, you will:
- champion a clear and ambitious vision for children, young people, families, and staff, driving service development and continuous improvement
- inspire, support, and develop high-performing teams, fostering a positive and inclusive working environment
- promote staff wellbeing and sustainable workloads, enabling teams to thrive and deliver their best work
- set high standards of performance and accountability, ensuring the delivery of safe, effective, and high-quality practice
- embed a culture of learning, innovation, and reflective practice that encourages growth and excellence
- oversee and manage significant resources effectively, working across complex multi-agency pathways and building strong partnerships to improve outcomes.
This is a unique opportunity to make a lasting impact, leading a dedicated workforce and shaping services that support children and young people with disabilities to achieve their full potential.
You will need
You will be an experienced and inspiring leader with a passion for improving outcomes for children and young people with disabilities. Most importantly, you will be committed to empowering practitioners to deliver meaningful, strengths-based social work that is co-produced with families and focused on achieving lasting change.
You will bring:
- significant leadership experience within Children's Social Care and SEND services
- a strong understanding of the legislative and statutory frameworks that support children and young people with disabilities
- substantial experience of leading multidisciplinary teams and managing complex services
- excellent communication, influencing, and relationship-building skills, with the ability to develop effective partnerships across organisations
- strong analytical and strategic thinking skills, with the ability to use data and insight to drive improvement and performance
- experience of managing risk, safeguarding vulnerable children, and ensuring high standards of professional practice
- a proven track record of delivering service improvements and achieving positive outcomes for children, young people, and families
- the ability to inspire, motivate, and develop others, creating a culture where people can thrive and perform at their best
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To be successful in this role, you will hold a recognised Social Work qualification and be registered with Social Work England.
You can view a full list of requirements in the Job and Person Profile (JPP), which you can find in the ‘How to apply’ section towards the bottom of this advert. If you believe you can succeed in this role, even if you don't meet all requirements, please still apply. We would appreciate the opportunity to consider your application.
The team
County Children and Young Peoples Disability Service (CCYPDS) is a small specialist service working across the full range of statutory intervention for children and young people. We play a key role in supporting and advising other teams regarding disability related issues.
The Service is a combination of Social Care, Occupational Therapists and Activities Unlimited – Short Break Service.
You will be joining an experienced team of practitioners and managers who are invested in this area of work and work hard to support each other countywide.
Empowering Everyone
We’re big believers in potential, possibility and the power of different ideas. We’re always searching for ways to encourage, respect and enable everyone to be the best they can be. We want to represent the diverse communities we serve. We welcome applications from all individuals, especially those from groups that are currently underrepresented in the organisation, as shown in our Workforce Equality Report https://www.suffolk.gov.uk/council-and-democracy/our-aims-and-transformation-programmes/the-councils-equality-and-inclusion-commitment-to-you.
For more information
Please contact Fran Arnold (she/her) – Head of Service, for a casual conversation. You can reach them by emailing Fran.Arnold@suffolk.gov.uk.
How to apply
Step 1 - Read the Job and Person Profile (Word). https://sccrecruit.blob.core.windows.net/assets/SCC/24656-Service-Manager-County-Children-and-Young-People-Disabilities-Service.docx
Step 2 - Click ‘Apply Now’ to start your online application.
Step 3 - Upload a supporting statement answering the following questions below (no more than 400 words per question). You should use the Supporting Statement template https://sccrecruit.blob.core.windows.net/assets/SCC/Other-Docs/SupportingStatementTemplate.docx.
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Please describe a time when you have led a significant service, team, or organisational change within Children's Social Care or a related service. What was your vision, how did you engage others, and what impact did the change have?
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Tell us about your experience of leading services that support children and young people with disabilities and their families. How have you ensured services delivered positive outcomes and met statutory responsibilities?
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Please provide an example of a complex safeguarding or risk management issue that you have overseen. How did you ensure appropriate decision-making, professional oversight, and positive outcomes?
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Provide an example of how you have managed competing priorities, budgets, resources, or service demands within a complex environment. How did you ensure resources were used effectively while maintaining quality and compliance?
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How have you promoted strengths-based, relationship-led practice and ensured that children, young people, with disabilities and their families were actively involved in shaping decisions about the support they received?
Please note: Without a supporting statement, your interest will not be progressed. Any supporting documents must be in either PDF or MS Word format.
For guidance on completing your application, please see our How to Apply page https://www.suffolkjobsdirect.org/#en/sites/CX_3001/pages/657088.
We value authentic applications that showcase your genuine skills and experiences, so we encourage you to present your own work and ideas throughout the process. You can also read our Using AI in Your Application and Interview guidance https://www.suffolkjobsdirect.org/#en/sites/CX_3001/pages/764097 to understand acceptable and unacceptable use of AI. If AI is used inappropriately, your application may not be progressed.
Do you need any reasonable adjustments to help you to apply? If you are disabled and/or have additional support needs, you can request reasonable adjustments. You can do this by contacting our Recruitment Team at recruitment@suffolk.gov.uk or 03456 014412. You can find examples of possible adjustments on our Reasonable Adjustment pages https://www.suffolkjobsdirect.org/#en/sites/CX_3001/pages/757078. If you're invited to the next stage, you’ll have another chance to request adjustments.
Closing date: 11:30pm, 06 October 2026
This authority is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. DBS (Disclosure and Barring Service) checks or police vetting will be required for relevant posts. #LI-Hybrid
As a modern and effective council, we offer a wide variety of careers to suit people with a range of skills, abilities and ambitions. We offer working options that flex to reflect the way people work today and take the time to understand and support your individual needs. We’re driven to make a positive difference to the world around us and encourage everyone with drive and focus to join us and build an influential and impactful career. Reimagine the possibilities.
In return, you’ll enjoy:
- up to 29 days annual leave entitlement (pro rata), plus UK bank holidays and two paid volunteering days
- membership of a competitive Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS)
- travel, lifestyle, health and wellbeing benefits
- performance-related annual pay progression, in addition to an annual cost-of-living pay increase
- training and encouragement to expand your knowledge
- a variety of career development opportunities across our organisation
- diverse and active staff networks
- flexible working options, with the
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