Assistant Head of Service Children with Disabilities

Are you passionate about making a difference in the lives of children with disabilities and their families?

Do you have the drive to support and empower young people to achieve their full potential?

If so, Birmingham Children’s Trust wants you!

The Role

As our new Assistant Head of Service for Children with Disabilities you will be passionate about changing the lives of children with disabilities in the city, supporting partnership working and ensuring children’s needs are identified at the earliest point.

You will:

• Support the Head of Service in managing the Children with Disabilities service.
• Lead operational delivery and performance improvement across the service.
• Ensure safeguarding standards are met and maintained.
• Drive continuous improvement and innovation in service provision.
• Support staff development and wellbeing within the teams.
• Chair and attend relevant Panel meetings.
• Be a good problem solver supporting the service to make decisions in line with legislative, regulatory and best practice guidelines.
• Collaborate with partners, building strong relationships with health, education, voluntary organisations and providers to create integrated solutions.
• Demonstrate professionalism, leadership and accountability.

About the Team

As the Assistant Head of Service, you will play a crucial role in ensuring the service safeguards and promotes the welfare of disabled children and young people.

We have 3 safeguarding teams who work with children and families from assessment upon receipt of referral and remain with the child whether the plan is Child in Need, Child Protection, or Child in Care. We work in robust partnership with other teams and outside agencies, including the police, health services, schools, and voluntary organisations.

We also have a specialist mental health team who work with children in and at risk of Tier 4 admission, a Designated Social Care Officer and team providing social care advice and a Review team supporting children who have long term packages of support.

About youWe are looking for experienced managers who are dedicated and compassionate individuals, committed to making a difference. The ideal candidate will have:

• A degree in Social Work.
• Registration with Social Work England (SWE)
• A strong background in children’s social care, ideally within disability services.
• An understanding of the legislative context for children with disabilities
• Proven ability to manage teams and deliver high-quality outcomes.
• Experience of performance and service improvement.
• Excellent communication and partnership-building skills.
• Commitment to equality, diversity, and inclusion.
• Passion for improving outcomes for children and families, with a commitment to trauma informed and strengths based approaches.
• Experience working with children and families in a social work setting.
• Strong assessment and analytical skills.
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills.
• The ability to work effectively as part of a team and independently.

Our offer to you:

• In addition to the salary offered, there is an incentive payment of £1,000 paid in full in your first months’ salary (T&C’s apply)
• Retention payment of up to £5,000 per annum, subject to tax and NI deductions - T&C's will apply.
• A generous annual leave package of 30 days annual leave, plus bank holidays, rising to 33 days after 5 years of service and 35 days after 10 years of service
• Relocation Allowance of up to £8,000 (T&C’s apply)
• We pay your Social Work England registration fee
• We pay your DBS application fee and reimburse your update service fee
• A generous annual leave package of 30 days annual leave, plus bank holidays, rising to 33 days after 5 years of service and 35 days after 10 years of service.
• Salary Sacrifice Car Scheme which gives you the chance to drive a brand-new car for an affordable fixed monthly amount as part of a salary sacrifice initiative. With no deposits or credit checks required a range of all-inclusive driving packages
• Free on-site parking at our offices on One Avenue Road (Aston) and Lifford House (Stirchley). We also provide onsite electric car charging ports which are free to use!
  Full access to our amazing internal employee benefits scheme including, Occupational Health services, Rewards Schemes, Benefits discounts (including the Blue Light Card), Health & Fitness and Personal Wellbeing support and much more!
• Flexible and hybrid working policy - we are well adapted to a hybrid model of working which includes a combination of time spent in the office and at home and we offer a variety of working patterns, to support the needs of the Trust and to ensure a positive work/life balance for our employees
• You will receive a generous local government career average pension scheme in line with the Local Government Pension Scheme
• Discounted gym memberships with Pure Gym and Nuffield Health.
• We are proud to be an Equal Opportunities Employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees - a place where we can all be ourselves and succeed on merit.

For an informal discussion, contact Claire Owen at Claire.owen@birminghamchildrenstrust.co.uk

Benefits

Help us to change children and young people’s lives!

At Birmingham Children’s Trust, we are committed to making a positive impact on the lives of over 10,000 children and young people in our city every day. Our mission is to support the most disadvantaged children and young people in Birmingham, ensuring they are safe, happy, and healthy.

Why Join Us?

• Impactful Work - be part of a team that makes a real difference in the lives of the city’s most vulnerable children.
• Supportive Environment - enjoy a supportive and collaborative work culture where your contributions are valued.
• Career Development - benefit from tailored development programs, supportive supervision, and a range of learning opportunities to enhance your skills and advance your career.
• Generous Benefits - take advantage of our competitive reward package including generous leave allowance, Local Government pension scheme, and additional benefits.

Our Values

We approach our work with care and compassion, actively listening to the needs of the children and young people we serve. We involve them in the decisions that affect their lives, ensuring their voices are heard and respected.

We are committed to using our resources wisely, ensuring that every penny is spent where it counts the most. We foster collaboration among schools, health professionals, and the police, working together to create a supportive network for our young people.

We believe that when we work as one cohesive team, the children and young people of Birmingham are more likely to thrive. Our unified approach ensures that we provide the best possible support and opportunities for their growth and development.

Join us and together, we can create a brighter future for all.

Safeguarding

At Birmingham Children’s Trust, we are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people.

Depending on the role, you may be asked to undergo the appropriate level of Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check to assess your suitability for working with children and young people.

The level of check (Standard, Enhanced, or Enhanced with Barred List) is determined based on the specific responsibilities of the role and the level of contact with children and young people.

We are committed to the fair treatment of all applicants, including those with criminal records. Having a criminal record will not necessarily bar an individual from working with us. This will depend on the nature of the position and the circumstances and background of the offence.

Please note that we reserve the right to close the job early should we reach the required number of applications, therefore please ensure you submit your application and supporting statement early to avoid any disappointment.