Business Services Manager

Job summary

Cafcass works with children and families in family court proceedings to ensure every child’s voice is heard, and their welfare is protected. Our Business Services teams play a vital role in enabling practitioners and managers to deliver safe, effective, high‑quality services across England.

We are now seeking a Business Services Manager to lead, develop, and support Business Services teams across a designated area.

Job description

About the Role

We are recruiting for the role of Business Services Manager in our team covering the North Central Area - Hull & Humberside, South Yorkshire, West Yorkshire and Greater Manchester.

As a Business Services Manager, you will lead local Business Services teams to deliver effective business services to our Family Court Advisors and Practice Service Managers, as well as ensuring our offices run efficiently and provide a professional, welcoming environment for colleagues and families.

You’ll report to the Senior Business Services Manager Operations and work closely with local Operational Managers, the National Business Centre, and a range of internal and external partners — including the Courts — to ensure services are delivered effectively and consistently.

This role can be based in either our Leeds or Manchester office. We offer colleagues to work in a hybrid way but there is an expectation of regular office attendance so that individually and collectively, we can be the voice of children and young people when the family court makes critical decisions about their futures.

We are a diverse, inclusive organisation that is a safe space for colleagues with shared aspects of identity and lived experience, which helps ensure we provide a service which promotes the diversity and uniqueness of children and families from all backgrounds. We especially welcome applications from people from diverse backgrounds as we strive to ensure our workforce reflects the diversity of the children and families we work with.

We provide extensive wellbeing support for colleagues, as well as excellent benefits, all of which we hope encourages you to join us.

Let us tell you a bit more about the role…

As a Business Services Manager, you will work in partnership with Business Services Team Leaders, national Business Managers and local Operational Managers to manage and develop effective and consistent Business Service processes which enable the local delivery of services to children and families and are responsive to requests from the Courts.

You will contribute to the effective and efficient management and progression of children’s cases, managing a team that provides administrative support to the local Family Court Advisers and Service Managers.

You will:

• Directly manage Cafcass Family Liaison Officers and Team Leaders who in turn manage teams of Business Service Officers.
• Manage all Business Services Standard Operating Procedures in your region and within this the quality and quantity of Business Service work via Quality Assurance processes and Key Performance Indicators.
• Be responsible for ensuring all Human Resource issues are managed within the team, including but not exclusively Performance Learning Reviews, recruitment, performance and Health and Wellbeing.
• Work closely with our Estates team and oversee the safe day-to-day running of offices in your region.
• Contribute to the development of the national Business Managers team and projects that are commissioned to that team.
• Work locally alongside all other Operational Managers and play an integral part in local Service Area Meetings.

Person specification

About You

You will bring strong leadership skills, high professional standards, and a collaborative approach to service delivery. You should have:

Essential Skills & Experience

• Excellent people skills, aligned to our Together values.
• Experience in line managing teams across several locations.
• Knowledge of office practices, procedures, and building/facilities management.
• Excellent IT skills with the ability to utilise management information systems effectively.
• Strong analytical skills and the ability to present data clearly.
• Proven ability to manage budgets, resources, and multiple priorities.
• Experience in project management or coordination.
• Excellent interpersonal, communication, and stakeholder‑management skills.
• A commitment to equality, diversity, and safeguarding.

Benefits

• Learning and development tailored to your role
• An environment with flexible working options
• A culture encouraging inclusion and diversity
• A Local Government Pension with an employer contribution of 18.1%
• 28 days holiday (including three for Christmas) rising to 33 days with five years continuous service, which could include your current employment

Things you need to know

Artificial intelligence

Artificial intelligence can be a useful tool to support your application, however, all examples and statements provided must be truthful, factually accurate and taken directly from your own experience. Where plagiarism has been identified (presenting the ideas and experiences of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own) applications may be withdrawn and internal candidates may be subject to disciplinary action. Please see our candidate guidance (opens in a new window) for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.

Selection process details

Next steps / timelines

If and when you are ready to apply, our application process is straightforward and quick to complete. You don’t need to complete your application in a single visit, you can start it and come back and amend your responses / update your CV, just make sure you come back before the closing date to submit.

If you’re preparing to apply, we encourage you not to rely heavily on AI tools when creating your application. While we recognise the benefits AI can offer, your application should reflect your own experience, insights, and motivations. This helps us genuinely understand what you will bring to the role.

Applications that appear to contain generalised or inauthentic content may limit our ability to assess your suitability, and where it is clear that AI has been used, it may affect our decision‑making during the screening process.

Below we have given you an indication of a timetable we are hoping to work towards, although dates are subject to change.

Last date for applications:

18 March 2026

Telephone Interviews

27 March 2026

Panel Interview:

W.C. 6 April 2026

We understand that starting a new role is a big decision, and you may require further information before applying. You can find out more about the role in the Job Description and there is a wealth of information about Cafcass on our Cafcass Careers page.

If you have any recruitment queries, you can contact Michelle Berridge at Michelle.Berridge@cafcass.gov.uk

Whilst we will always try and respond a.s.a.p. we wouldn’t want you to miss the closing date before we are able to. If this is the case, we recommend you apply and as part of your application you can ask questions, and this may allow us to contact you and provide you with the required information that will help you decide if you still wish to be considered.

Finally, in anticipation of your application being successful, you might want to read about the offer and pre-employment checks process. As part of your application you can highlight any concerns or questions about the pre-employment checks and we encourage all applicants to do so, safe in the knowledge such information will not be shared with individuals involved in the selection process.

We look forward to hearing from you.

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.

Security

Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check.People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks.

Medical

Successful candidates will be expected to have a medical.

Nationality requirements

This job is broadly open to the following groups:

• UK nationals
• nationals of the Republic of Ireland
• nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
• individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
• Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service

Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window)

Working for the Civil Service

The Civil Service Code (opens in a new window) sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.

We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles (opens in a new window).The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.

Diversity and Inclusion

The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see theCivil Service People Plan (opens in a new window) and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy (opens in a new window).

Apply and further information

Once this job has closed, the job advert will no longer be available. You may want to save a copy for your records.

Contact point for applicants

Job contact :

• Name : Michelle Berridge
• Email : Michelle.Berridge@cafcass.gov.uk

Recruitment team

• Email : HRResourcing@cafcass.gov.uk

Attachments

Business Services Manager JD Aprl 2018 (1) Opens in new window (docx, 95kB)