Title: Head of Care and Compliance
Salary: £75,000 – £80,000 per annum (dependent on experience)
Contract: Full time
Job Type: Permanent
Hours: Monday to Friday
Location: Kent – hybrid working (approx. 2–3 days in office/on site, remainder home-based)
This position does not offer sponsorship. We are unable to accept applications from individuals who require a visa to work in the UK.
Overview
Compass Associates is proud to be supporting a specialist autism and learning disability provider in Kent with the appointment of a Head of Care and Compliance. This is one of the most significant senior hires our client has made in recent years – a role that carries statutory accountability, sits at the heart of the Senior Leadership Team, and will shape the quality and compliance agenda for a well-established, values-driven organisation with over 35 years of specialist experience.
The postholder will be the organisation’s CQC Nominated Individual and will hold ultimate regulatory accountability for all services. When the Chief Executive is not available, full delegated authority passes to this person – making this effectively the second-in-command of the organisation.
Our client has recently invested significantly in its systems, processes and governance infrastructure. New care management systems, dashboards, risk tools and quality processes are now in place. The person stepping into this role will inherit strong foundations and a well-organised function – with the mandate and the platform to drive the organisation to CQC Outstanding.
About Our Client
Our client is a specialist provider that has been supporting autistic people and individuals with learning disabilities across Kent for over 35 years, delivering residential care, supported living and day services. The organisation has strong, established relationships with local authority commissioners, safeguarding authorities and the CQC, and is currently progressing through a fresh round of property inspections with a clear ambition to achieve an Outstanding rating.
The Role
The Head of Care and Compliance provides the strategic oversight, regulatory authority and organisational assurance that ensures everything beneath them operates safely, compliantly and to the standard required by the CQC and the board of trustees.
The postholder will be the organisation’s primary external face to the CQC, safeguarding authorities and local authority commissioners, including within the context of Kent’s social care and will work closely with the Chief Executive and trustees to provide the assurances the board requires.
Key Responsibilities
1. CQC Nominated Individual – Statutory Accountability
* Act as the legally designated Nominated Individual, with full statutory accountability for all regulated activity
* Maintain expert, current knowledge of CQC Regulations, the Care Act, Mental Capacity Act (MCA) and DoLS, NICE guidance, Human Rights Act and Health & Safety legislation
* Provide authoritative regulatory and legal advice to senior leaders and managers across the organisation
* Lead the response to CQC inspections, regulatory scrutiny, enforcement matters and statutory notifications
2. Strategic Oversight of Care Operations
* Provide strategic oversight and assurance of care operations across Residential, Supported Living and Day Services
* Hold oversight of care delivery effectiveness by reviewing quality, audit and performance intelligence and monitoring themes and trends across services
* Delegate day-to-day operations to the Operations Managers while retaining responsibility for organisational assurance, systemic risk identification and regulatory judgement
3. Risk Management, Safeguarding and Safety
* Provide strategic oversight of safeguarding governance across the organisation, exercising professional judgement in serious, complex or multi-agency safeguarding cases
* Accept or reject organisational risk in line with statutory and regulatory expectations
4. Quality, Audit and Assurance
* Retain accountability for the organisational audit and assurance framework
* Analyse audit findings, incidents, complaints and performance data to identify trends and systemic risk
* Utilise dashboards, care management systems and risk tools to maintain live oversight of performance across services
* Determine when service-level issues require organisational or regulatory escalation
* Lead the drive toward a CQC Outstanding rating across all registered services
5. Leadership, Accountability and Well-Led Assurance
* Lead and assure the Quality and Compliance function, providing clear remit and accountability for the Quality Manager and operational leads
* Hold managers to account for quality of decision-making, compliance behaviours and risk awareness in a supportive, emotionally intelligent manner
* Design and maintain quality, compliance and leadership frameworks across registered and non-registered services
6. Board, Trustee and External Engagement
* Attend and contribute to board and trustee committees, providing high-level assurance that all required compliance and governance arrangements are in place
* Act as the senior professional representative with the CQC, safeguarding authorities, local authorities and commissioners
* Engage with Kent’s social care reform agenda to support commissioned service relationships
* Lead the organisational response to serious complaints, inspections and regulatory scrutiny
7. On-Call, Escalation and Crisis Leadership
* Operate as Tier 3 within the four-tier on-call escalation structure (Tier 1: Registered Managers; Tier 2: Operations Managers, PBS Lead and Quality Manager; Tier 3: Head of Care and Compliance; Tier 4: Chief Executive)
* Provide strategic, regulatory and risk-based leadership during escalation periods rather than routine operational response
* Be contactable and responsive for significant or complex escalations – this is a senior availability expectation, not a rota-based on-call commitment
8. New Service Mobilisation
* Provide strategic oversight and regulatory assurance for the mobilisation of new services – including a forthcoming 9-bed supported living development currently in groundwork phase
* Set clear quality, compliance and risk expectations prior to commencement, ensuring inspection readiness is embedded from the outset
* Delegate day-to-day operational mobilisation while retaining oversight of identified risks and authority to intervene
* Ensure organisational learning from mobilisation activity is captured and used to strengthen future governance
Requirements Essential:
* Background in learning disabilities and/or autism services, specialist sector knowledge is essential and non-negotiable for this role
* Senior leadership experience in a CQC-regulated health or social care environment with thorough working knowledge of CQC frameworks, regulations and inspection methodology
* Expert knowledge of the Care Act, Mental Capacity Act, DoLS, NICE guidance, Human Rights Act and Health & Safety legislation
* Track record of exercising high-level professional judgement on complex regulatory, safeguarding and risk matters
* Confident and credible external representative with the CQC, local authorities, commissioners, families and trustees
* Kent-based or within comfortable commuting distance regular office and service presence is required
* Comfortable in a hands-on environment where senior leaders are expected to run project plans and deliver alongside their teams
Desirable:
* Previous experience as a Head of Care, Head of Quality or Head of operations
* Level 5 qualification in Leadership and Management or equivalent; Level 7 desirable
* IOSH or NEBOSH qualification
* Experience of new service mobilisation and CQC registration processes
* Familiarity with Kent’s local authority and commissioning landscape
Please Note:
* Candidates from elderly care, dementia, home care or community care backgrounds without specialist LD or autism experience will not be considered for this role
* Candidates based outside of Kent and the surrounding area will not be considered regular on-site presence is a firm requirement
Benefits
* Salary of £75,000 – £80,000 per annum dependent on experience
* 33 days annual leave (inclusive of bank holidays)
* Pension scheme (5% employer / 3% employee contributions)
* Hybrid working approximately 2–3 days in office/on site, remainder home-based
* Senior Leadership Team position with full delegated authority in the absence of the Chief Executive
* The opportunity to lead a specialist, well-regarded organisation to CQC Outstanding
Contact Details
If you wish to either apply or gain further information, please contact Ed at Compass Associates on 02394 214 487 or email
Recommendations
Compass Associates Ltd is acting as a Recruitment Consultancy for this permanent vacancy; we offer £200 in John Lewis vouchers or £200 charity donation for each successful recommendation.
Compass Associates, established in 2009, is an award-winning, UK specialist Health and Social Care Recruitment Consultancy providing tailored, high quality recruitment solutions for all permanent assignments.