Priority Candidates will be considered in the first instance
Wigan Life Centre South
College Avenue
Wigan
WN1 1NJ
Salary: Grade 16, £71,824 per annum.
37 hours per week
We're on a journey to build a workforce reflective of our Borough.
We are committed to fostering diverse teams where everybody can bring their authentic selves to work and feel that they belong. If you want to work for a Council where everybody is encouraged to meet their full potential and make a difference in our neighbourhoods, we would love to hear from you!
Your role:
Are you a highly skilled, motivated and experienced Social Work leader who is passionate about making a difference for children? This is an exciting time to join Wigan and be part of the journey of implementation of our new way of working.
Wigan implemented the Family Safeguarding Model in 2024. Yes, it is still early days, but we are already seeing reduced caseloads, making time for social workers to spend more time with families rather than sat behind a computer. At Wigan, we prioritise early help supporting the whole family as they need it. We sit alongside our partners, allowing us to have quick conversations and to share case notes on one system. And what’s even more special about Wigan is we give you permission to innovate, always listening to how we can do things better.
As Service Lead for our Family Safeguarding, you will lead two service managers, providing strategic leadership that will ensure children in need of help and protection are provided the right support at the right time.
You will continue our transformation journey and the development of families first partnership reforms to continue to take a whole family approach, making it easier for parents to access the support they need from within one team.
About you:
You will have a successful and varied social work career, with experience of leading teams towards outstanding. But what is equally as important in this role, is your passion for working alongside our partner organisations, drawing upon our collective strengths to deliver services that our children and families need, in the heart of our communities.
Compassionate, resilient, approachable, nurturing, fun are some words that spring to mind, to describe who we are looking for. Let’s not forget you will have a contagious energy and leadership style that makes our teams feel safe and well looked after, because our social workers are just as important to us as our children and families.
About us:
Our Borough is made up of a collection of 14 brilliant towns making one great place to live, work and visit. We want our teams to be out there in the borough, rooted in our neighbourhoods so we can work alongside our partners and families. Our refreshed organisation strategy which includes our two missions, Progress with Unity, demonstrates our commitment to getting things right, with a strong focus on fair opportunities for our children:
* Create fair opportunities for all children, families, residents and businesses by breaking down the barriers that create financial, health, education and environmental inequalities in our borough
* Make all our towns and neighbourhoods flourish for those who live and work in them as a genuine partnership with our residents and businesses, who know our communities best, we will help each town and village in the borough to celebrate and maintain their identity whilst understanding and helping to achieve what is needed to thrive.
We have won Council of the Year 3 times across Public Sector Awards in the last 5 years. We have a culture that fosters positivity, courage, accountability, and kindness, rooted in asset-based ways of working, that make a difference for our children and families.
Wigan Council has been voted ‘Overall Council of the Year’ at the APSE (Association for Public Service Excellence) Awards. We are signed up to the Greater Manchester Continuous Service Commitment ensuring that your service will be continuous or 'unbroken' between the supporting organisations.
The Progress with Unity plan is a place movement for change for the next decade, bringing a new era for Wigan Borough. It draws on the strengths of our individual organisations, recognising that together we can achieve much more for our communities by delivering on our 2 place missions; create fair opportunities for all children, families, residents and businesses and make our towns and neighbourhoods flourish for those who live and work in them.
Here at Wigan, we are proud to support flexible working patterns, when the service can accommodate this. We also take a blended approach to where we work, depending on the work we do. This may include working from home, the office, or the community. We like to thank our employees for their hard work and commitment by giving them the opportunity to access a range of exclusive rewards and benefits click here to find out more about working for #TeamWigan.
To be appointed to this role you must be able to prove your right to work in the UK. Please visit the link below to check you qualify to apply. Please note, at present we are not a licenced sponsor. Prove your right to work to an employer: Overview - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
Prove your right to work to an employer
If you like the sound of this role and would like to know more our Practice Director, Sandie Hayes, is more than happy to speak to you. You can contact at sandie.hayes@wigan.gov.uk to arrange a chat.
Interview date: 14th July 2025
This is a politically restricted role
To view the details relating to this position, please click the links below: