Jobs

This is an exceptional opportunity for an experienced and ambitious senior leader to join the Foster with North East Senior Leadership Team and help to shape the future of fostering and family-based care across the region. Influencing strategic direction and driving transformational change, you will play a pivotal role in developing and delivering a pioneering regional fostering model that brings together local authority fostering services to improve outcomes for children, young people, carers and families.
 
You will provide leadership across the development, implementation and operational delivery of innovative end-to-end fostering services, ensuring a high-quality, sustainable and collaborative approach to family-based care.
 
This is a highly visible strategic leadership role, requiring an individual who can inspire change, build strong partnerships and deliver excellence across complex multi-agency systems.
 
This role is offered on a secondment basis until 31 March 2028, when we expect the Regional Care Co-Operative to be formally established.

Applications are welcomed from managers currently employed by North East local authorities who have the support of their employer to apply.

If you are eligible to apply please contact Hazel Ostle for the password. You can contact Hazel by telephone on 03000 262 306, or by e-mail at hazel.ostle@durham.gov.uk
 

ABOUT THE ROLE

Reporting to the Regional Director – Family Based Care, you will provide strategic and operational leadership across your locality, ensuring the successful delivery of regional fostering priorities and national fostering reforms. You will:

• Lead the implementation of a new regional foster care model across your locality.
• Provide visible and influential leadership to fostering services, driving innovation, quality, and performance.
• Manage locality budgets, resources and workforce planning to ensure sustainable service delivery.
• Establish and lead newly integrated locality teams and structures.
• Act as Agency Decision Maker (ADM) for foster carer approvals.
• Develop strong partnerships with local authorities, Regional Adoption Agencies and wider stakeholders.
• Champion co-production, ensuring the voices of carers, children and young people shape service development.
• Drive cultural change and embed new ways of working across a complex regional landscape.
• Provide strategic oversight of quality assurance, performance management and risk mitigation. 

WHY JOIN US?

This is more than a senior management role. It is an opportunity to be part of a pioneering regional programme that will redefine fostering across the North East. You will have the chance to:

• Shape a major regional transformation programme from the ground up.
• Influence strategy at a regional level.
• Work alongside senior leaders across the region.
• Deliver lasting improvements for children, young people, foster carers and families.
• Be part of an ambitious, collaborative and values-led leadership team. 

ABOUT THE LOCALITY AREAS

We are recruiting to three Locality Delivery Manager roles. Each post holder will provide strategic and operational leadership for one of three geographical localities: North, Central or South.
 
North: Northumberland, North Tyneside, Newcastle and Gateshead
Central: Durham, South Tyneside and Sunderland
South: Darlington, Hartlepool, Middlesbrough, Redcar & Cleveland and Stockton
 
Please indicate your preferred locality when applying.

HOW TO APPLY

Please note, we do not accept CVs. All applications must be submitted online via the Northeast Jobs portal. Use the ‘Person Specification’ section of the form to clearly demonstrate how you meet the essential (and where possible, desirable) criteria. Applications that do not evidence the essential requirements will not be shortlisted.

Please visit our website to understand our position on using AI to support your application and for guidance on completing your application.
 
If you require assistance when applying for this role, please contact our Recruitment Helpdesk on 03000 26 27 27, or via email RecruitmentCYPS@durham.gov.uk
 
All correspondence relating to your application will be sent from donotreply@northeastjobs.org.uk. Kindly check your spam/junk folder regularly to ensure you don’t miss any updates.

#VPRS/161

Company: Durham County Council

Salary: Band 1 - £76,186 - £78,573 per annum

Location: Durham, Durham

Sector: Education

Job Role: Teaching Assistant