Corporate Director of Children's Social Care

Job Description

Organisation: London Borough of Waltham Forest

Grade: CD1

Salary Range: £134,557 - £141,408

Contract Type: Full time / Permanent

Working hours per week: 36 hrs

Application Deadline: 11th December 2025

Proposed Interview Dates: 16th and 18th December 2025

Reference: 1960

About Us:

Bursting with culture, energy, and opportunity, The London Borough of Waltham Forest is an exciting place to live and work.

We are a highly ambitious Borough, driven by culture and the innate creativity of our residents, we have developed new and innovative ways to build our communities.

Our Council is relentlessly resident-focused, insight-led, digitally driven and commercially minded; a Council focused on meeting the needs of our existing and future residents.

The London Borough of Waltham Forest is one of the Mayor of London’s Good Work Standard employers. This accreditation is a proof of our commitment to creating a healthy, fair and inclusive workplace. This includes fair pay and conditions, workplace well-being, skills and progression and diversity and recruitment opportunities.

Elevate your Leadership: Corporate Director of Children's Social Care Operations

If you are an experienced and innovative leader in Children’s Social Care, we want to hear from you!

The London Borough of Waltham Forest is offering a rare opportunity to step into the role of Corporate Director of Children’s Social Care Operations.

The Council’s preference is for online application. However, if you have a disability and are unable to complete an online application, please email recruitment@walthamforest.gov.uk so we can arrange an alternative application method.

About the role:

In this influential role, you are a talented leader demonstrating ability to build and strengthen relationships, whilst navigating challenging financial landscapes with well-developed budget management skills. Alongside your track record of safeguarding children and promoting the best outcomes for all, you will also be able to demonstrate experience of delivering Transformation in Social Care.

You will work effectively with a wide range of key internal and external partners including Schools, Police, Public Health, NHS Health Partnerships and the Voluntary and Community Sector.

As a member of our Corporate Team, you will play a central role in the strategic vision of Mission Waltham Forest as together we continue to shape the Borough's future.

Now is the time to influence real change in Children’s Social Care, implementing the Care Reforms and designing services for the future. Seize this opportunity to make a real difference in the esteemed heart of Waltham Forest!

The Council’s Challenge

We, like most other Councils, will need to become a leaner and more efficient organisation as we move forward focusing on our most vulnerable residents. We are embedding a transformational programme which needs to be delivered at pace to ensure the financial sustainability of the Council over the coming years.

>> Click here to download the Role Profile <<

Key Responsibilities, Knowledge, Skills and Experience:

▪ A successful track record and background of consistent achievement as a senior manager, complex, multi-disciplined and challenging organisation.

▪ A proven track record of delivering in-depth change management.

▪ Evidence of success in strategic management and in achieving excellence in the Leadership and Management of a Social Services Directorate.

▪ Evidence of commitment to, and ability to provide, continuous and fundamental improvement programmes.

▪ Strong experience of strategic budget management, including evaluating competing budgetary priorities within tight financial limits.

▪ A proven track record of working and communicating effectively with a wide range of internal and external bodies to achieve the corporate and service objectives of a comparable organisation.

▪ A proven track record of working effectively within a political environment, providing clear, balanced advice and guidance on strategic issues that achieve the corporate and service objectives of the organisation.

▪ Evidence of a clear understanding of the workings of local government, the legal, financial and political context of public sector management.

▪ Demonstrable achievement and understanding of equal opportunities in employment and service delivery within a large and complex organisation.

▪ Significant and successful experience of working at a senior management level within Children’s Social Care or related relevant field.

▪ An understanding of the role and function of Children’s Social Care services.

▪ Thorough understanding of the processes, practices and culture required to deliver strong, healthy local governance.

▪ A thorough understanding of Children’s Social Care services issues in a diverse inner-city area.

▪ A working knowledge of the legislation and statutory obligations relating to Children’s Social Care services and changes in the health sector.

▪ A broad understanding of how Children’s Social Care services operate and of how improvements can be made by integrated planning and delivery of services.

▪ A thorough understanding of consultation methods and techniques appropriate to a diverse community.

▪ High-level analytical skills, with the ability to exercise sound judgement in seeking creative solutions to complex situations.

Qualifications and Requirements:

To be considered for this position, you should meet the following requirements:

• Social Work England Registered

• Qualified Social Worker

Terms and conditions:

The below terms and conditions apply to this role:

Satisfactory Employment References.

Satisfactory Declaration of Interest.

This role is subject to Safer Recruitment Practices as it involves work with Children.

Enhanced DBS check.

Continued Professional Body Registration.

This post is politically restricted therefore the post holder is disqualified from undertaking certain political activities under the Local Government Officers (Political Restrictions) Regulations 1990.

As a public authority, we must ensure that members of staff in public-facing roles are able to speak fluent English. This means that they must have a command of spoken English, with confidence and accuracy, sufficient for the effective performance of their role. This requirement does not refer to any particular English language qualifications, regional or international accents, dialects, speech impediments or the tone of conversations. It does not require staff to speak only in English.

Contact Information:

If you would like to arrange a confidential discussion about this role please contact Kimberley Ramsey (Kimberley.ramsey@walthamforest.gov.uk), Executive Assistant to Nicky Crouch - Strategic Director of Children's Services, who will organise this for you.

How to Apply:

Interested candidates are invited to submit their applications online by pressing the ‘Apply’ button below. This includes a Supporting Statement that outlines to us how your skills and experience make you a good candidate for this vacancy.

We reserve the right to close this vacancy early if we receive sufficient applications for the role. Therefore, if you are interested, please submit your application as early as possible.

For further details and to express your interest, please visit www.missionwalthamforest.com

Equal Opportunity Employer:

Waltham Forest is a diverse borough where diversity is valued and is integral to both service delivery and employment of its staff. The Council is proud of its rich mix of communities and as the largest employer in the area, it works hard to respond to the changing needs of its population. We use our statutory duties on race, gender and disability equality and best practice in respect of age, faith and sexual orientation to ensure equality of opportunity in the workplace.

The Council is committed to meeting its 4 equality objectives:

- Promoting equality of opportunity

- Opposing all forms of discrimination, intolerance and disadvantage

- Ensuring our workforce reflects the diverse communities of Waltham Forest at all levels.

- Providing fair, appropriate, accessible and excellent Services to all.

Respecting Diversity is a core Council value.

To support the above and reduce the risk of bias in its recruitment activities, the Council is operating an anonymous shortlisting process, which hides personal information that can identify individuals until their application has been considered for shortlisting. The Council also operates a scheme whereby, for jobs graded up to and including scale SO2, internal candidates are considered first. This includes those candidates who self-identify as having a disability for the purposes of the Disability Confident scheme. For more information, please refer to our recruitment and selection policy.

We are open to support employees to balance their working life with other commitments. Therefore, wherever possible, we will consider working arrangements that suit an individual's personal circumstances whilst still meeting the needs of the Service and the Council. If you would like to discuss the possible flexible working options that might be applicable to this role, please contact the person named below or feel free to discuss this during your interview.

For more information on the benefits of working for the Council, please visit https://www.walthamforest.gov.uk/jobs-and-training/find-jobs-and-other-opportunities/working-us.

If you have any technical issues when trying to apply for this post, please contact our Recruitment Team via email at recruitment@walthamforest.gov.uk.

Click here for further information on the Human Resources recruitment privacy notice.