Team Manager – Children’s Services (Pre-Birth Team)

Our client is offering an exciting opportunity for an experienced Team Manager to lead their well‑established Pre‑Birth Team within Children’s Services based in Durham.

Following a service redesign that began in 2022, Durham’s Pre‑Birth Team works intensively with at‑risk families to support children to remain safely within their birth families wherever possible. The service works closely with care leavers, young parents, and parents with experience of care proceedings, with a clear focus on breaking cycles of repeated social work involvement.

The team has recently redesigned its assessment pathways to deliver bespoke pre‑birth assessments prior to a child’s birth, with these pathways now being launched county‑wide. Caseloads are capped to enable meaningful, relationship‑based work with families.

About the Role

As Team Manager, you will be responsible for the day‑to‑day leadership and management of a team of passionate and nurturing Pre‑Birth Social Workers. You will work closely with a Social Work Consultant to ensure high‑quality practice, effective interventions, and strong outcomes for children and families.

This is a fantastic opportunity for a professional who is passionate about early intervention, leadership, and making a lasting impact on children’s lives.

You will be supported by:

• A strong network of Team Managers across East Durham
• Social Work Consultants
• An engaged and supportive senior management team
• A comprehensive in‑house leadership and development programme
• What will your responsibilities be?
• In this role, you will: Provide operational leadership and oversight of the Pre‑Birth Team’s work
• Support social workers to deliver high‑quality assessments and interventions that promote sustainable change
• Ensure practice is safe, child‑focused, and meets statutory and quality standards
• Embed and champion the Signs of Safety model of practice across the team
• Monitor performance, quality, and outcomes, ensuring work is completed to a high standard
• Provide reflective supervision and professional support to social workers
• Build and maintain strong working relationships with families, partner agencies, and other professionals
• Be visible, accessible, and engaged as a manager to staff and families
• Contribute as a key member of the wider Children’s Services management team

Qualifications & Experience:

• To be successful in this role, you must have: Degree level qualification in Social Work (or equivalent).
• Registered with Social Work England.
• Significant post-qualified experience within Children’s Services.
• Proven experience managing or supervising social workers.
• Strong understanding of pre-birth work, safeguarding, and early intervention.
• Experience embedding Signs of Safety in practice.
• Excellent leadership, decision-making, and relationship-building skills.
• Desirable: Parent Assessment qualification.
• Eligible to work in the UK.