About Us

Make a real difference in the lives of young people. Join [Employer hidden — sign up to reveal]. [Employer hidden — sign up to reveal] provides high quality Registered Children’s Homes and Supported Living Homes for young people with complex needs, ranging from single occupancy to 4 bed multi-occupancy provisions across Dorset and Hampshire. Our ethos is rooted in therapeutic, nurturing, family-style care - ensuring every young person experiences safety, stability and the opportunity to thrive. Driven by compassion, professionalism, and a commitment to excellence, we provide very high quality services, with our inspection outcomes highly positive. We are continuously developing services that place young people’s wellbeing at the heart of everything we do. [Employer hidden — sign up to reveal] is part of the [Employer hidden — sign up to reveal], one of the UK’s largest leading communities of children’s service providers. Within the community, we have independent fostering and adoption agencies who have been passionately improving the lives of young people for over 30 years, as well as Education, Residential and Leaving Care services, and bespoke children’s services contracts. Our nurturing community works collectively to support the very best outcomes for each and every child in our care. We’re ambitious for our children and young people, families and staff, and believe in their futures.

What We Are Looking For

Due to the expansion of [Employer hidden — sign up to reveal], and more importantly striving for Outstanding Ofsted ratings, we are looking for an enthusiastic and driven Operations Director to support the Managing Director in delivering our services. If you are a leader who is passionate about transforming the lives of young people and committed to delivering exceptional care, we would love to hear from you.

Role Responsibilities

• Overseeing the effective running of all homes to ensure high-quality, therapeutic support is consistently delivered
• Lead, coach, and develop two Area Managers across their services, driving high performance and team engagement
• Act as the Responsible Individual (RI) for four children’s homes and the Nominated Individual for six Supported Accommodation services
• Ensuring regulatory compliance and driving towards achieving Good and Outstanding Ofsted outcomes
• Maintaining occupancy levels above 90%
• Overseeing workforce planning, recruitment, and induction, reducing reliance on agency staff
• Supporting the delivery of trauma-informed practice, working alongside clinical teams, therapists and psychologists
• Managing budgets, rotas, and operational processes in line with legislation and company policies
• Leading multi-agency liaison, chair meetings and reviews, and ensure safeguarding is upheld to the highest standard
• Building strong relationships with internal teams, stakeholders, and commissioning authorities

About You

• Minimum of Level 5 qualification in residential childcare
• Proactive, enthusiastic, and committed to achieving the best outcomes for children
• Experience of managing complex social care/LAC services and trauma-informed practice
• Excellent understanding of safeguarding, Children’s Homes Regulations, and relevant legislation
• Ideally demonstrates a strong understanding of Supported Accommodation legislation and regulatory frameworks
• Confident leadership skills, robust decision-making and strong written/verbal communication
• Ability to manage budgets, oversee rotas and deliver projects effectively
• A proactive, solution-focused approach
• A commitment to personal development
• Full UK driving licence

We are an Equal Opportunities employer. The successful applicant will be subject to a DBS check if successful for the position. [Employer hidden — sign up to reveal] is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults and expects all staff to share this commitment. We reserve the right to withdraw this advert without notification.