We are seeking an experienced and highly motivated Children’s Quality Assurance Officer to provide strategic oversight of the quality, performance, and value for money of all brokered provision across Children’s Services. This is a critical role within the directorate, ensuring that care, support, and education packages commissioned for children and young people are safe, high quality, compliant with contractual requirements, and aligned to individual needs and wishes. The postholder will work closely with brokerage, operational teams, external providers (for example Independent Residential Homes, Supported Accommodation, Independent Fostering Agencies and Support providers) and commissioners to drive continuous improvement and assurance. They will also: maintain oversight of the quality of all brokered and commissioned provision for children and young people provide advice and professional support to brokerage officers and practitioners to ensure high‑quality, value‑for‑money packages of care, support, and education are secured develop and sustain effective working relationships with providers, senior managers, frontline staff, and partner agencies including health undertake monitoring visits and contribute to contract reviews, in partnership with operational teams, to ensure compliance with contractual requirements and quality standards identify providers experiencing performance or quality concerns and work collaboratively to support improvement ensure appropriate systems and processes are in place to support effective record‑keeping and quality assurance oversight collate, analyse, and present performance and quality information to inform commissioning, sufficiency, and strategic decision‑making ensure contracts are kept up to date following reviews, monitoring activity, and changes in circumstances maintain the quality, accuracy, and integrity of management information and performance data support providers to align their development and improvement plans with the current and future needs of Dorset children and families Further Information This is a full time role at 37 hours per week, fixed term for 6 months. This post requires significant travel. You must have a vehicle (or transport we deem suitable) available for use as needed. This post involves working with children and/or vulnerable adults and/or having access to significant information about them. It will be subject to a Disclosure and Barring Service check. See our policy on the employment of ex-offenders. See our policy on safeguarding children and young people. If you are interested in this position and would like an informal conversation please contact [email protected] About Us At Dorset Council, it's not just about the work we do, it's about how we do it. Hear directly from our employees about what makes Dorset Council special in this short video: Unable to show this video due to your cookie preferences At Dorset Council, we are working together to create a fairer, more prosperous, and more sustainable Dorset for everyone, now and in the future. We: provide essential services that support over 300,000 residents work in partnership to make a real difference value every role and the impact it has on our communities support our employees to grow, develop, and thrive You will: be part of a team that works together for a better Dorset have access to a range of benefits and support receive training and development opportunities to help your career progress We are committed to building a diverse and inclusive organisation where different skills, perspectives, and backgrounds strengthen both our council and the communities we serve. We welcome applications from everyone and are proud to be a Disability Confident Employer. If you declare a disability and meet the essential criteria for the role, we will offer you an interview. We also want our recruitment process to be accessible, if you need any reasonable adjustments, just let us know on your application. This role is UK-based, and we will need to confirm your Right to Work as part of the appointment process. We use generic job descriptions and person specifications, so the job title in any attachments may differ from the advert. If needed, we will provide additional details in a context statement. If you’re passionate about making a difference, we’d love you to join us. Find out more about how to apply.