Deputy Manager (Young People’s Services - Suffolk)

Deputy Manager (Young People’s Services)
Location: Ipswich
From £31,516 pa pro rata (28- 37 hours pw)

The service offers a comprehensive LAC and Leaving Care Service to young people aged 16 – 24 and as the Ipswich area has the largest number of care leavers (almost 50% of care leavers in the county) and a significant number of Unaccompanied Asylum Seekers (UAS) who are care leavers, compared to the other area teams – it’s a busy, challenging and varied service to manage. The service will be delivered from 3 bases in Ipswich, Bury St Edmunds and Lowestoft.

As Deputy Manager you will:

• be responsible for the management and supervision of the Senior Young Person’s Advisers, Young Person’s Advisers, Leaving Care Social Workers and Administrator based at the office
• regularly liaise with the relevant Suffolk Children’s Services team managers to ensure smooth transition arrangements for referrals and case transfers
• take lead responsibility in liaising with the Refugee team to ensure the referral process of UAS is timely and all legal responsibilities for this group are managed appropriately
• recruit, develop, support and manage the staff to ensure skilled, motivated, effective workforce to meet the needs of the services
• attend appropriate local forum to raise the profile of the service, to develop networks and to inform developments as well as hold regular team meetings to share information
• support the development and delivery of a service plan that has clear targets which will meet the requirements of the contract and service specification and Catch22’s strategic targets.
• provide an effective service based on individual assessment and care/pathway plans for each young person, to enable his or her personal growth and development ensuring all staff have clear outcome based plans for their interventions.
• manage the collection and collation of data and provide regular, timely reports as required by the Service Manager, demonstrating activity levels and contract performance to commissioners, partners and Catch22 Performance Unit

As Deputy Manager you will need:

• a Social Work qualification or equivalent plus post qualification experience with young people
• a good working knowledge of relevant legislation including Aftercare provisions and an understanding of the Looked After system
• team leadership skills including setting objectives and monitoring performance against targets
• strong relationship skills – working with partner organisations
• negotiation and conflict management skills
• budget and financial management experience
• excellent verbal and written communication skills
• a flexible approach to working hours – attending evening events etc

Catch22 is a national charity that works with young people facing tough situations, encouraging and guiding them through thick and thin. We work with over 37,000 young people in 150 neighbourhoods across the UK. By joining us you’ll be helping to give young people a chance to get on in life.

For the right applicant we are flexible as to working hours but it is likely that this should be between 28 and 37 per week.

For further details about this post please contact Di Ana Stewart at diana.stewart@catch-22.org.uk or by telephone to 07748 116400.