Suffolk County Council
Team Manager (Internal)
How your CV stacks up
Upload your CV to see how well it fits this job role
?%
- Suffolk County Council
- Address: Landmark House, Ipswich, IP1 5PF – Office Based
- Salary: £53,788 per annum (pro rata if part time)
- Hours: 37 hours per week
- Contract: Permanent
This post is open to current Suffolk County Council staff only.
At Suffolk County Council, every role is a chance to create positive change. As an experienced, visible and confident Team Manager, you'll lead one of our Integrated Front Door teams at a key stage in our improvement and development journey. Through your leadership, you'll help ensure children and families receive the right support, at the right time, while shaping practice and driving continuous improvement across the service.
As Team Manager, you'll have the opportunity to influence practice at the very start of a child's journey, supporting high-quality safeguarding decisions and helping shape the service as part of Suffolk's ongoing improvement programme. Join us and turn your passion for progress into action.
Reimagine the possibilities.
Your role and responsibilities
You'll lead a busy, multi-agency Front Door team responsible for safeguarding decision-making and ensuring children and families access the right support at the earliest opportunity.
You will:
- Lead, motivate and develop a high-performing team
- Drive timely, safe and effective decision-making
- Provide management oversight on contacts, referrals and thresholds
- Support practitioners to deliver strengths-based, child-focused practice
- Embed high-quality safeguarding and risk management
- Drive performance, quality assurance and continuous improvement
- Build strong partnerships across the multi-agency network
- Create a culture of learning, accountability and professional curiosity
- Be a visible, accessible and supportive leader, providing regular oversight, guidance and challenge to practitioners within a busy Front Door environment.
You will need:
- To be a qualified Social Worker registered with Social Work England
- To lead from the front and thrive in a fast-paced environment
- Understanding that visibility, accessibility and support are key to success
- Significant management experience within Children's Social Care
- Strong understanding of safeguarding, thresholds and risk
- The ability to provide direction when complex decisions need to be made
- To develop and inspire practitioners to be their very best
- A track record of improving performance and driving change
- A passion for achieving outstanding outcomes for children and families
Experience in Front Door, MASH or Assessment Services will be highly desirable
The team
At Suffolk County Council, we aspire for every child to live their best life.
The Integrated Front Door is a fast-paced, multi-agency environment bringing together professionals from across the partnership, including social care, police, health and education, to ensure concerns are responded to quickly, consistently and effectively.
Reasons to use Rodeo
Start with a chat, not a search bar
Grad scheme, placement, apprenticeship? Not sure what you want yet — that's fine. Your agent talks it through with you and turns "I have no idea" into a shortlist.
It searches the market for you
Every day your agent scans the market matching roles against what actually matters to you, not just keywords on a CV.
Only hits
No noise. No "maybe this fits." Just roles with a clear explanation of why they're right — and where to focus when applying.
You’ll be part of a service that:
- Supports early decision-making and earlier help
- Works within a shared safeguarding framework and statutory duties
- Promotes joined-up, high-quality responses for children and families
- Plays a key role in Suffolk’s Families First approach.
This is an office-based role, five days per week. We believe that being together matters. Visible leadership supports better decision-making, stronger oversight, professional development and a culture where practitioners feel supported to do their best work.
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 Sean Segal or Milly Clark for a casual conversation. You can reach them by calling 01473 260673 or emailing sean.segal@suffolk.gov.uk [Sean.Segal@suffolk.gov.uk] or milly.clark2@suffolk.gov.uk [Milly.clark2@suffolk.gov.uk].
How to apply
Step 1 - Read the Job and Person Profile (Word). [https://sccrecruit.blob.core.windows.net/assets/SCC/24358-Team%20Manager-IFD-JPP.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].
- Describe a time when you led and developed a team to improve performance, practice or outcomes for children and families. What was your approach and what impact did it have?
- Describe how you have supported practitioners to develop their skills, professional curiosity and confidence. What did you do and what impact did it have on practice?
- Tell us about a complex safeguarding situation where you had responsibility for overseeing or making a significant decision. How did you assess risk, apply thresholds and ensure the child's needs remained central to decision-making?
Please note: Without a supporting statement, your interest will not be progressed. Any supporting documents must be in either PDF or MS Word format.
Get help with your application
Your very own career expert that helps elevate your application to the next level.
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 25 August 2026
Interview date: 7 September 2026 at Landmark House, Ipswich, IP1 5PF
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-Onsite
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 right to request flexible working from your first day
Plus lots more!
If you want to know more about our benefits, values and equality commitments please visit our Suffolk County Council careers website (careers.Suffolk.gov.uk) [https://careers.suffolk.gov.uk/].
“It took my CV and asked me questions relevant to understanding what kind of jobs to suggest for me. Suggestions were almost perfect. Jobs were exactly what I’ve been looking for.”
Jessica, London
Skills
Location