Executive Director of Childrens Services

About Us

Derbyshire County Council is an ambitious, child‑centred authority committed to ensuring that every child and young person grows up safe, supported, and able to thrive. Like many authorities, we recognise that our services face high demand and financial constraints. However, with national policy change and local government reorganisation on the horizon, we are passionate about enhancing our Children’s Services delivery. Our Social Care service is rated Good by Ofsted, and we are progressing on a critical journey to improve local area services for children with Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND).

Our clear purpose and whole‑family approach present a real opportunity to reshape services. We promote empowered, accountable leadership, led by our newly appointed Chief Executive, where Executive Directors play a critical role in delivering our corporate vision and supporting disciplined, council‑wide decision‑making.

The Role

As we continue our improvement journey and transformation journey, we are seeking an exceptional Executive Director of Children’s Services (DCS) to provide strategic vision, and unwavering commitment to the children and families we serve.

This is a critical statutory role, responsible for the leadership, direction and delivery of all children’s services, including:

• Children’s social care
• Education and Inclusion
• Family Help
• Safeguarding partnerships
• Corporate parenting and care leavers’ offer
• Youth Justice

You will provide visible, compassionate, and confident leadership across the system, ensuring high‑quality practice, effective performance, and strong collaborative working with partners across health, schools, police, the voluntary sector and local communities.

What We Are Looking For

We are seeking a leader who can demonstrate:

• A strong track record in delivering improvement in complex children’s systems.
• Deep understanding of statutory duties under the Children Act 2004 and related legislation.
• The ability to inspire culture change, strengthen practice, and deliver high‑quality services at pace.
• A commitment to co‑production with children, families, and practitioners.
• Strategic credibility, political awareness, and the confidence to advise the Chief Executive and Elected Members.
• A collaborative and inclusive leadership style rooted in compassion, integrity, and ambition for children.

Your professional background may be in children’s social care, education, SEND, or wider public service leadership—what matters most is your values, your impact, and your ability to lead across a complex system. If you are an experienced senior leader, we are keen to hear from you.

To apply for this role please click here https://www.gatenbysanderson.com/job/GSe129298/

Contacts

Philip Emms: 07590 225 472Jude Watters: 07594 250060