Team Manager Safeguarding

As Safeguarding Team Manager, you will provide strong, visible and values‑led leadership within the Safeguarding Service, holding responsibility for Children in Need (CIN) and Child Protection (CP) cases. You will lead a team of social workers and practitioners delivering high‑quality, timely and effective interventions to safeguard children and promote positive outcomes for children and families.

You will have operational responsibility for the day‑to‑day management of the team, ensuring practice is consistently child‑focused, risk‑informed and compliant with statutory guidance and local safeguarding procedures. You will maintain clear oversight of casework, decision‑making and performance, ensuring that children are protected from harm and that plans are purposeful, outcome‑focused and reviewed in a timely way.

A central element of the role is the provision of high‑quality reflective supervision, supporting practitioners to develop confident professional judgement, manage risk and complexity, and deliver effective relationship‑based practice. You will model strong safeguarding leadership, ensuring that drift is challenged, thresholds are applied appropriately and children’s voices are heard, understood and acted upon.

You will play an active role in quality assurance, audit and performance management, using data, learning from reviews and feedback to drive continuous improvement. You will contribute to service development, embedding learning from safeguarding practice, serious incidents and inspections, and supporting a culture of accountability, learning and improvement.

Key aims and objectives of the role include:

• Ensuring children subject to CIN and CP plans are safeguarded and experience timely, effective and child‑centred interventions
• Providing strong management oversight and reflective supervision to support high‑quality social work practice
• Promoting confident risk assessment, clear planning and effective decision‑making
• Strengthening partnership working to improve outcomes for children and families
• Driving continuous improvement through quality assurance, learning and performance management

This is a challenging and rewarding leadership role within a service that places safeguarding, reflective practice and staff wellbeing at its core. You will join a supportive management team committed to learning, development and delivering high standards of practice for children and families. For an experienced safeguarding leader, this role offers the opportunity to make a meaningful difference every day.

About You

You will be an experienced, confident and values‑driven social work leader with a strong commitment to safeguarding and improving outcomes for children and families. You will bring sound professional judgement, resilience and a child‑centred approach to managing risk, complexity and statutory responsibilities within a safeguarding context.

You will be a qualified Social Worker, holding a CQSW, Diploma in Social Work or equivalent qualification, and be registered with Social Work England. You will have substantial post‑qualifying experience within children’s social care, including direct experience of Children in Need (CIN) and Child Protection (CP) work, and a strong understanding of relevant legislation, statutory guidance and local safeguarding procedures.

You will have demonstrable experience of leading, supervising and developing social workers and practitioners, providing high‑quality reflective supervision that supports critical thinking, confident decision‑making and effective risk management. You will be skilled in maintaining clear oversight of casework, ensuring plans are purposeful, outcomes‑focused and progressed in a timely way.

You will have a strong working knowledge of the Children Act 1989, Working Together to Safeguard Children, and related statutory guidance, and be confident in applying this to practice. You will understand the importance of multi‑agency working and will be effective in building constructive relationships with partner agencies to safeguard children and promote positive outcomes.

As a Team Manager, you will have experience of performance management, quality assurance and audit activity, using data, learning from reviews and feedback to drive continuous improvement in practice and service delivery. You will be confident in challenging drift, applying thresholds appropriately and ensuring that children’s voices are central to assessment, planning and intervention.

Non‑negotiable qualities for this role include:

• A strong and demonstrable commitment to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children
• Confident, values‑led leadership with the ability to support, challenge and hold practitioners to account
• Sound professional judgement and the ability to manage risk and complexity effectively
• A clear focus on high‑quality practice, reflective supervision and continuous improvement
• Strong communication and interpersonal skills, with the ability to work effectively across agencies
• Professional integrity, resilience and a commitment to learning, development and staff wellbeing

If you are a motivated and reflective safeguarding leader who is passionate about protecting children and supporting families, we would welcome your application.

Please view Job Profile here

For an informal discussion about the post, please contact eva.andrews@havering.gov.uk or eulyn.joseph@havering.gov.uk

The closing date for the receipt of applications is 13/3/26 however interest in this job may be high and we therefore reserve the right to close the vacancy early.

You will be notified if your application has been successful. Shortlisting date: w/c 16 March 2026

Interview date: w/c 30 March 2026

Should you require any help or advice with your online application, please contact the Recruitment Helpdesk on 01708 432770

Additional Information

We want everyone to choose Havering. When you apply for a job with us, your application is considered on its merits regardless of your age, disability, ethnicity, faith, gender identity or sexual orientation. Our residents and service users come from all walks of life, and so do our employees. Find out what it means to Choose Havering.

The London Borough of Havering has important responsibilities for safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults. If you are appointed to a job that involves working with these groups, you may be subject to a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check.

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