Team Manager - Older Persons Mental Health Services Team (OPMH)

About Us

West Sussex is a county of contrast and opportunity. From our vibrant coastal towns to our rural heartlands, we are proud of our communities and ambitious for the people we serve. West Sussex County Council is a diverse organisation that provides services to more than 850,000 residents every day. As an employer we recognise that it is our employees that are central to everything we do. We aim to create a supportive and dynamic working environment where employees can achieve their full potential, a healthy work-life balance and are rewarded for the work they do.

Our Older Persons Mental Health Team work with people over the age of 65 who have a mental disorder and complex social care needs. Why not have a look at our dedicated careers in adults social work webpage to learn more!

About The Job

Salary: £55,057 to £58,829 per annum
Working Pattern: Full time, 37 hours per week
Contract Type: Permanent
Location: Horsham
Interview Date: Friday 6th March

We are offering an exciting opportunity for a Team Manager to lead and deliver a high‑quality, seamless service that meets customer expectations in the most efficient, effective, and economical way. This team works closely with the mental health trust and a range of partner organisations to support some of the county's most vulnerable residents.

As Team Manager, you will have direct line‑management responsibility for a team of Social Workers and Prevention and Wellbeing Officers. You will lead a service supporting people aged 65 and over who have a mental disorder and complex social care needs. You will provide professional guidance and day‑to‑day support to the team, promote learning and development opportunities, and ensure safe working practices while maintaining staff wellbeing.

You will also hold professional oversight for all activities within this busy team, ensuring that risks are effectively managed, data is recorded and maintained to a high standard, and the service operates in a legally compliant manner within complex statutory frameworks. A key part of the role is ensuring timely, responsive intervention following requests for assessment.

Key Responsibilities

• Leadership and Management: Lead and manage the OPMH Team, ensuring effective service delivery, coordination of assessments, and operational oversight.
• Policy Development: Lead the development and implementation of local policies and practices, ensuring they align with legal requirements and offer a high-quality service.
• Statutory Compliance:Ensure all referrals and assessments are conducted within the statutory framework.
• Budget Management: Lead the team to work within the OPMH budget to achieve best value for money and optimal use of resources.
• Training & Development: Plan, deliver, and manage training for the OPMH team to ensure compliance with statutory training and registration requirements.
• Statistical Reporting: Develop and maintain administrative systems to gather and interpret data in line with Department of Health requirements, contributing to operational procedure development.
• Deputise: Deputise for the Service Manager

Experience and Skills

Please cover how you meet the following criteria with examples within your application as these are the short listing criteria):

Key Skills:
1. Able to make sound pragmatic problem-solving decisions, which will have a wider service impact. The ability to provide comprehensive professional advice and support within the service specialism, including tackling difficult problems of a technical, professional, resource or people related nature.
2. Able to communicate clearly with an ability to influence actions of others and negotiate effective business solutions.
3. Able to analyse and make judgements based on understanding of principles.
4. Able to challenge existing practices and identify innovative solutions within the required framework.
5. Able to set timescales and review effectiveness of service delivery.
6. Able to apply project management principles and practices.

Qualifications and/or experience:
* A Post graduate professional qualification relevant to the professional service
specialism (such as CQSW/CSS/DipSW or BA/MA in Social Work or equivalent
and PQSW), plus, significant and broad experience demonstrating application
of the above levels of knowledge in a relevant setting.
* Relevant chartered status of a professional body or equivalent high-level
experience of involved practices.
* Significant post-qualification experience in dealing with significant and
diverse issues.
* Significant experience in frontline mental health services.
* Experience of managing resources, including leading staff and managing a
budget.

Rewards and Benefits

For a full list of the benefits offered to you as a West Sussex County Council employee you can find them on our Rewards and Benefits page.

Further Information

We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults. This post is subject to Social Work England registration, an enhanced DBS check, 5 years referencing and a health check.

West Sussex County Council is an equal opportunities employer committed to promoting an environment that is inclusive and free from all forms of unlawful or unfair discrimination and values the diversity of its people. We actively welcome applications from people of all backgrounds and take every possible step to ensure that no individual will be disadvantaged.

For information regarding your eligibility to apply for this role under our Disability or Veteran's Guaranteed Interview Scheme (if you meet all the essential criteria), this can be found on our application help page.