Assistant Director - Safeguarding, Quality And Practice

Job Details

Are you an inspirational senior leader with extensive experience leading a complex Children's Service, which includes the provision of Children's Social Care as well as Education & Skills, in a large local authority? Are you an excellent strategic manager, with a strong background in professional social care and education practice, performance management and a real focus of the benefits of partnership working?

About us

West Sussex is rapidly improving and changing with increasing pressure to provide our residents and communities with greater levels of choice and improved outcomes, whilst working within tight financial constraints.

Our Children, Young People and Learning (CYPL) Department is going through an exciting time. Joining now you will become part of an ambitious leadership team setting out a bright future for children in West Sussex. The hard work and determination of the previous holder of the role has contributed to Children's social care services recently been judged to be 'Requiring Improvement to be Good' with some key judgments such as Leadership and Care Services receiving sub-judgements of 'Good.' So, you will be joining a strong leadership team and playing a key part in the next part of our journey as we strive to move to 'Good' and 'Outstanding'. Our 2023 Ofsted Inspection praised our relentless approach to improving practice.

The Opportunity

We have a unique opportunity for a senior people leader to join us. You will report directly to the Director for Children, Young People and Learning and be given the opportunity to work at both an operational and strategic level. You will be a key member of the Departmental Leadership team and will be responsible for setting the strategic direction for the whole directorate, with a particular focus on Children's Social Care and Education & Skills.

You will lead our passionate and committed operational teams in their area of accountability. Driving high performance, whilst creating the right culture and environment for our teams to flourish. You will collaborate across the Children, Young People and Learning Department, including Education & Skills working closely with internal and external partners.

What you will be doing

• You will be a key member of the strategic leadership group of CYPL and play a pivotal role in providing Safeguarding and Quality leadership across the whole CYPL directorate.

• As part of the Children's Service Senior Leadership Team, to advance WSCC's corporate priorities and those of Children's Services, ensuring collectively that priorities of the Children First Programme are delivered effectively and are having a positive impact on all children and young people.
• You will lead on all aspects of policy, practice, governance and service development for the designated areas of service accountability.

• You will drive and embed a culture of openness and continuous improvement, leading the way in demonstrating the importance of Corporate Parenting within the Council, making it integral to the wider Council agenda.
• You will deliver a range of children's social care services to the relevant service area, including a focus on effective practice, high Quality and improving performance in an ever changing and demanding environment

• You will ensure strong quality measures are in place to ensure the effectiveness of our service and improvements are driven from feedback and that all social work is carried out to agreed service standards within available budgets and in line with legislative, regulatory and national requirements.
• You will ensure the service area develops and maintains a stable, confident, engaged and able workforce who have good practice development opportunities in a culture of high performance, high support and continuous learning, including ensuring manageable caseloads, and efficient and effective workflows in accordance with the defined operating model.
• As a member of the Corporate Leadership Team, you will lead by example, role modelling our values and work collaboratively and cohesively to deliver the West Sussex Plan.
• You will develop a workforce who are committed to our organisational values and cultural aspirations and you will drive a values-based behavioural approach across your service area

About You

• You will be an inspiring leader with a transformational approach and possess a high level of emotional intelligence and self-awareness with a strong ability to bring people with you

• You will be educated to post-graduate level or equivalent experience with a social work qualification or equivalent, relevant professional registration, and evidence of ongoing professional development.

• You will have knowledge of relevant legislation, policy and good practices that relates to all the core areas of social care and education practices. The ability to shape and model best practice based on legislation, regulation, research and learning from others.
• You will have experience of building cross sector partnership working with stakeholders, communities and agencies to develop, design and deliver services that reflect the needs of our community, and deliver the best outcomes for vulnerable children.

For more information on the Key Skills as well as the Qualifications and/or experience required, please refer to the Job Description attached.