Participation & Engagement Lead

About the Borough

In Sutton, there is much for us to be proud of both as a council and as a borough. This includes high levels of resident satisfaction, the quality of our services, our success in addressing our financial challenges to date, the way that we involve and engage with residents on key issues facing the borough, and the enthusiastic and motivated staff that we employ.

Looking ahead, there are plans for the delivery of new homes and new schools and the London Cancer Hub is being developed, while the Council is also seen as a driving force within the South London Partnership of five outer south west London boroughs focused on strategic growth, regeneration and investment.

All of this demonstrates a good track record and an authority that is ambitious and set to deliver more improvements for the borough. We've set out our vision for the future of Sutton in our corporate plan - Ambitious for Sutton. This strategic plan will shape the outcomes we achieve, the services we provide, and the impact we have on residents, to make Sutton a great place to live, work and raise a family.

Situated in Zone 5, Sutton is less than 30 minutes by train from central London, and south and south west London are easily accessible by public transport. There are 10 train stations which serve key neighbourhoods within the borough providing direct connections to London Victoria, London Bridge, London Blackfriars and St Pancras International. Sutton also has direct rail connections with Epsom, Dorking, Guildford and Horsham, as well as Wimbledon for an interchange with the London Underground and West Croydon for the London Overground. There’s also an extensive road network which provides close and easy access to the M25 and M23.

About the Service and Team

At Sutton Council, our vision is centered on amplifying the voices of Children in Care and Care-Experienced young people, making their experiences integral to everything we do. We are committed to ensuring that children in our care have a good life during their time with us, and are supported to fulfil their potential after leaving care. We believe that listening to and acting upon the voices of children and young people is fundamental to delivering high-quality, inclusive services to achieve positive outcomes. We are a dynamic team seeking to build on the reputation we have developed for successful delivery of collaborative and innovative initiatives. Our work includes collaboration with our partners to make best use of resources and delivery of services , for the benefit of children and young people.

About the Role and Our Ideal Candidate

London Borough of Sutton are seeking a dedicated Participation and Engagement Lead to join our Corporate Parenting team. Sitting within the Corporate Parenting service and reporting directly to the Head of Service, this pivotal role will lead on the operational and strategic development and implementation of the Participation Framework, with a focus on Children in Care Council and care-experienced young adults.

Your responsibilities will include::

• Lead the strategic development and operational delivery of the “Participation Strategy” to embed participation, engagement, and impact across services.
• Facilitate a vibrant, dynamic “Children in Care Council” and support the development of a “Post-18 Positive Engagement and Shadow Board”
• Develop and implement a “Quality Assurance Framework” aligned with commissioning standards for Children’s Social Care (CSC) providers.
• Promote the voice and views of children in care and care-experienced young people through strategic and operational initiatives.
• Offering advocacy and tailored support to children and young people from diverse backgrounds.

This role offers a unique opportunity to influence policy, practice, and service delivery, ensuring that the voices of children and young people in care are heard, valued, and acted upon across all levels of the Council and partner agencies.

For more information about the role and/or an informal conversation, view the Role Profile or contact Debbie Owen, Head of Service on debbie.owen@sutton.gov.uk

We welcome applications from candidates with knowledge of children’s social care, with experience of working directly with children and young peopleand interested in developing a role with a range of responsibilities.

We would expect candidates to fulfil the competencies including

• Qualification in social work, youth work or equivalent.
• Experience of developing and leading participation and engagement activities, particularly with children and young people in care or care-experienced.
• Strong understanding of safeguarding, children's rights, and the importance of inclusive participation.
• Proven ability to influence policy, practice, and strategic development through excellent communication, facilitation, and advocacy skills.
• Ability to build effective relationships with children, young people, families, and professionals.
• Experience managing projects, apprentices, or youth forums.
• Hybrid working model - 3 days in the Civic Office

Join our team and play a vital role in making a positive difference in the lives of children and young people. This is an opportunity to shape participation frameworks and influence meaningful change, ensuring that children’s voices are at the heart of decision-making. We offer a supportive working environment with ample opportunities for professional growth, allowing you to develop your skills while contributing to a shared vision of empowering young people and creating lasting impact.

Our Offer to You

As an organisation that values and nurtures talent, we’re committed to helping you fulfil your potential and will offer you a supportive, friendly and collaborative environment to grow and develop your career and skills. We’re constantly striving to improve our ways of working so putting your ideas across - however big or small - will be fully encouraged and supported by your colleagues and our dynamic and experienced management team.

In addition, we offer a modern and flexible working environment for our staff, supported by our IT infrastructure, including Google Chromebooks and Google Apps. Our Flexible Working - Smarter Working Scheme embraces new ways of working. It provides improved work life balance for our staff as it allows staff to work from a variety of locations and staff are not required to work within the office 5 days a week.

Employees have access to a wide range of benefits, some of which include:

• Generous annual leave entitlement plus bank holidays (pro-rata if part-time working hours apply)
• General Council Flexi-time (Please note, this applies to roles at grades 1-9 only)
• Public Health Service Localised Flexi-time Scheme - accrual of up to 5 days per year
• Three volunteering days per year in Sutton
• Comprehensive learning and development programme
• Local and national discounts for shopping, eating out and leisure activities
• Interest free season ticket loans
• Local Government Pension Scheme
• Car parking scheme
• Bicycle loan facilities and cycle to work scheme
• Zip car scheme
• Free eye tests and contribution towards glasses
• Confidential wellbeing and counselling support
• Subsidised gym membership

Application Process

Please apply online outlining what skills, abilities and experience you can bring which makes you an ideal candidate for this role. Please ensure you refer to the requirements outlined in the job profile when completing your application.

To support our diversity agenda and reduce the risk of bias in our recruitment activities, our short listing process completely anonymises personal information that can identify job applicants e.g. name, title etc. Our hiring managers review and short list applications based on the information provided as part of your application as to how well you meet the requirements and criteria for the role, as outlined in the job profile.

The closing date is given as a guide. We reserve the right to close this vacancy once a sufficient number of applications has been received. Therefore, it is strongly advised that you complete and submit your application as soon as possible to avoid disappointment.

Additional Information

We pride ourselves on being a diverse, inclusive and welcoming Borough and we aim to create a workforce which reflects the community we serve - the key highlights from our recent Equalities Workforce Report can be seen here. We are respectful of difference and realise the positive value of diversity in our workforce. We welcome and encourage job applications from people of all backgrounds and particularly welcome applications from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic candidates and disabled candidates, as these groups are currently under-represented in our workforce. As part of our Disability Confident Committed status, we guarantee to interview all disabled applicants who meet the minimum/essential criteria for the role.

We offer a range of family friendly, inclusive employment policies, flexible working arrangements, staff engagement forums, and inclusive staff networks who help drive our diversity agenda.

The UK has introduced a new points-based immigration system affecting EU and Non-EU workers and sponsorship requirements. We advise checking the GOV.UK website for right to work guidance.