Strategic Lead for Adult Learning Disability and First Contact

We are looking for a strong leader to join our Adult Social Care team. In this role, you will lead services that support adults with learning disabilities and those contacting us for help for the first time.

You will help shape how our assessment and support planning services are delivered and make sure people get the right support at the right time, ensuring always that safeguarding adults is always prioritised.

You will also drive change and improvement, helping us build a more inclusive and effective service.

Working within a supportive leadership team that encourages development opportunities; you will work with a wide range of partners across health and care, helping people stay independent, safe, and well in their communities.

In this role, you will:

• Lead the Adult Learning Disabilities and First Contact assessment and case management services
• Set the direction for the service and deliver improvement and change, designing and developing our services to meet changing needs
• Build strong relationships with service users, carers, staff and partners to improve our services.
• Work with health and care commissioners to make sure people can access high-quality support that promotes independence
• Ensure our services meet legal and policy requirements

To apply, you must have:

• A recognised Social Work qualification and registration with Social Work England
• Strong experience in a senior management role in social care or health

You will also need to be able to evidence:

• Experience of leading and motivating teams to deliver high-quality services
• Experience of influencing and negotiating with leaders, partners and commissioners developing strong working relationships
• Experience of effectively managing finances and delivering value for money
• Experience of successfully delivering improvement and change

Above all, you will be passionate about improving lives. You will understand the importance of working with people, families and communities to help them stay independent and achieve their goals.

If you’re an experienced leader who wants to make a real impact in adult social care, we would love to hear from you.

For further information about this role please contact Jo Cowcher – jo.cowcher@staffordshire.gov.uk

Interviews are anticipated to take place the week beginning the 20th July 2026.

Our Recruitment Process: We anonymise applications during shortlisting to ensure only relevant information is considered. Please complete your application fully, especially the supporting statement, to highlight what you’ll bring to the role. Please note: The minimum essential criteria in the ideal candidate section detailed above will be used if you are applying under one of our Interview Guarantee Schemes detailed below.

We are no ordinary county council:

Our Values:

The core of who we are as an organisation. Just like we all have personal values that shape our thoughts and behaviour, organisational values drive how we think and act collectively.

Our values were created and shaped by colleague feedback and national best practice and they sit at the heart of People Strategy:

We have a real sense of community spirit that brings our people together. This feeling of belonging means we are all connected to what we do and take pride in the difference we make every day for Staffordshire people. We are ambitious and our sights are set firmly on a better future.

We look forward and race ahead - that goes for your career too.

Our benefits:

We recognise that it is our employees that are central to everything we do. We aim to create a supportive working environment where employees can achieve their full potential and achieve a healthy work-life balance.

In addition to your salary, as a member of staff, you will have access to Our rewards and benefits - Careers at Staffordshire

Our recruitment process:

As an Authority we are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people/vulnerable adults and expect all staff and volunteers to share this commitment.

Staffordshire County Council is an equal opportunities organisation and Disability Confident employer. We encourage applications from all background and communities

As part of our commitment as a Disability Confident employer, a Gold Award Armed Forces employer and our commitment to supporting care leavers - we offer a guaranteed interview as long as your application meets the minimum criteria for the post.

As you’ll know safeguarding and promoting the welfare of our children and young people/vulnerable adults is important to us and that’s why this position is subject to a criminal record check from the Disclosure and Barring Service. If applicable you should disclose details of unspent and unfiltered spent reprimands, formal warnings, cautions and convictions in your application form.