We are responsible for the entire range of children’s education, health and social care services in all three boroughs. We use a Signs of Safety practice model and approach which ensures the voice of the child is at the heart of everything we do. There’s never been a better time to join AfC, we are growing our workforce, implementing new flexible working arrangements and have increased our virtual wellbeing offer.
This exciting role includes managing a multi agency team who respond to all contacts into children’s social care, leading and developing the return interview service responding to children who go missing, managing the Contextual Safeguarding lead to drive the development of systems, increasing knowledge and understanding about exploitation of children within the whole of AfC, partners and community.
We now have the following job opportunity available and we would be delighted to receive your application to continue our story.
This is a rare opportunity to join a well established service. As the Head of Service you will provide stability, leadership and management of our Single Point of Access (SPA). This will include maintaining and developing working relationships with partner agencies, ensuring robust processes in the SPA that provide timely and effective decision making, reviewing the MASH process and monitoring the performance within the service. You will work with other managers to achieve the best partnerships to support the work as well as staff performance with the expectation to set, review, praise and address performance across the service area. Incorporated into the SPA is the lead for developing our responses to contextual safeguarding as well as the return interview service responding to children who go missing.
Within this role, you will be expected to:
For further information about this role, please contact Sara Doyle by email sara.doyle@achievingforchildren.org.uk for an informal discussion.
To be successful in this role you will be an outstanding senior leader with proven experience and competence in managing and leading our SPA, the front door into children’s services. You will be highly motivated and competent in developing and maintaining partnerships, working within a MASH environment. You will have a working knowledge about contextual safeguarding and children who go missing and a strong desire to further develop our policies and responses to exploitation of children from a partnership perspective.
Key requirements for this role include:
Achieving for Children (AfC) is a community interest company (a not-for-profit social enterprise) created in 2014 by the Royal Borough of Kingston and the London Borough of Richmond to provide their children’s services. In 2017, the Royal Borough of Windsor & Maidenhead joined AfC as our third owner.
We deliver the full range of children’s services for the three councils. Achieving for Children is a great place to work for those looking for a new challenge. Our offer to you includes:
A role in an organisation that is supportive
An induction offer that starts before you join and includes a welcome event on your first day of employment.
29 days annual leave, increasing to 33 days after two years and 35 days after four years
Local Government salary and pension scheme (LGPS or Teachers Pension)
Hybrid or mobile working and the technology and equipment to facilitate this
Positions available in three of the most desirable boroughs in the south - discrete relocation packages are available for selected roles
Travel assistance package for business use, including car and cycle mileage reimbursement, annual season ticket loan or business Oyster cards
Two days accredited Signs of Safety Foundation Training
12 protected Development Days each year for all staff
Access to a huge range of additional professional development opportunities as part of our regional Social Work Teaching Partnership
On occasions we are in the position to offer some additional financial payments for particularly hard to place roles in selected service areas of AfC.
If you would like to have an informal chat about working with us, please email recruitment@achievingforchildren.org.uk