Fostering and Adoption UK Assistant Head of Service Development and Quality

• Do you have significant experience as a manager in fostering/adoption?
• Are you looking for a new challenge or maybe a change of direction?
• Do you have an interest in leading change, developing new pieces of work, writing and reviewing policy & guidance, and embedding quality?
• If so, then this could be the role for you!

We are seeking to recruit an experienced, solution focussed, innovative and enthusiastic UK Assistant Head of Service Development and Quality in fostering & adoption (this is an assistant director level post)

You will report to the UK Head of Fostering & adoption, and your role will be to lead the service development and quality team currently consisting of two Operations Managers and a Charms data administrator. You will lead UK fostering and adoption on developing new areas of work, quality assurance, policy and practice across fostering and adoption in all four UK nations, as well as represent Barnardo's externally.

Responsibilities include -

• Be the Agency Decision Maker for fostering and adoption across the UK where required.
• Participate on the helpline rota as the UK manager on call and have oversight of the helpline/ be AHoB cover for services where required.
• Lead on Charms recording system and data analysis, data protection.
• Project development, oversight and management of new and existing products/developments in fostering and adoption services.
• Creation, review and oversight of policies, practice, guidance, templates.
• Oversight of the Adoption Assessment Project (AAR)
• Undertake complaints investigations and other investigations as / when required.
• Present at Senior Management Meetings and other internal meetings.
• Deliver workshops, learning events, lessons learned across fostering and adoption.
• Review external and internal inspection reports to ensure that policy/quality issues are shared across services.
• Represent fostering/ adoption at internal / external meetings and working groups, including working with government, media, policy, legal.
• Be the lead link with internal teams such as policy, media, creative, data governance, health & safety, business development
• Implement and establish reporting systems and present qualitative and quantitative performance analysis reports.
• Act as spokesperson for Barnardo's, highlighting Barnardo's experience and value as a fostering and adoption agency to influencing government policy and practice.
• Scrutinise external and internal inspection reports to ensure that policy/ quality issues are shared across services.
• Support in response to government consultations relating to fostering and adoption

Please read the job description, person specification and additional information for details on experience, knowledge and skills required as this will be used when shortlisting. This is a regulated post so a social work qualification is essential. If you would like an informal conversation about the role, contact nicola.williams@barnardos.org.uk.

Interviews will be on 11 & 16 November, and will include a task, the detail of which will be provided if shortlisted.

There will also be an interview with children and young people (date to be arranged)

Please note due to the high volume of applications for some posts, this advert might close before the displayed closing date. We recommend that you apply for this role as soon as possible.