Service Manager
Location: Cardiff
Salary: £35,344 per annum
Vacancy Type: Permanent
Closing date: 18th May 2026
Can you lead, inspire, and drive real change across multiple sites?
Full time (37.5 hours). This role requires an English and Welsh speaker, with the ability to travel across all sites.
We’re looking for a confident and driven Service Manager to lead our Canol Service across the Welsh prison estate.
You’ll oversee Senior Health and Wellbeing Practitioners and frontline teams delivering integrated substance misuse and wellbeing services within HMP Cardiff, HMP Usk and HMP Prescoed. This is a pivotal leadership role where service delivery, people management, and stakeholder engagement all come together.
You’ll ensure high-quality psychosocial interventions are delivered both one-to-one and in groups, supporting personalised treatment pathways and strong recovery outcomes. Alongside this, you’ll work closely with the Regional Manager to drive performance, shape service development, and contribute to wider organisational strategy.
What you’ll be doing
* Leading and developing Senior Health & Wellbeing Practitioners and frontline teams
* Ensuring safe, high-quality and audit-compliant service delivery across all sites
* Managing performance against contractual targets and service level agreements
* Building and maintaining strong relationships with commissioners, G4S Community and key stakeholders
* Producing accurate, timely performance reports and attending contract meetings
* Overseeing robust data management, including WNDTMS and audit requirements
* Delivering effective supervision, appraisals and professional development support
* Supporting recruitment and fostering positive, engaged team culture
* Managing risk, safeguarding and operational compliance across services
What we’re looking for
* Fluent English and Welsh speaker (essential)
* Ability to work across multiple sites and manage competing priorities
* Experience in health, wellbeing, substance misuse or a related field
* Strong leadership and people management experience
* Ability to manage performance against KPIs and contractual targets
* Confident stakeholder management and partnership working skills
* Strong understanding of quality assurance, safeguarding and risk management
* Experience with data reporting and service compliance requirements
This is a role for someone who thrives on responsibility, builds strong and trusted relationships, and leads with both confidence and compassion. You’ll be joining a service that makes a genuine difference every day, supporting recovery, improving wellbeing, and helping people build healthier futures.
If you’re ready to take on a role with real impact across Wales, we’d love to hear from you.
All prison-based roles are subject to enhanced DBS checks and HMPPS security vetting. These checks can take up to 5 months to complete. Any offer of employment will be conditional upon the successful completion of both checks.
Please note if you have lived overseas within the last 5 years then checks may take longer.
About Us
We are The Forward Trust, the social enterprise with charitable status that empowers people to break the often interlinked cycles of crime and addiction to move forward with their lives. For more than 25 years we have been working with people to build positive and productive lives, whatever their past. We believe that anyone is capable of lasting change. Our services have supported thousands of people to make positive changes and build productive lives with a job, family, friends and a sense of community.
We are committed to our cause and the work we carry out as a charity. Equally the wellbeing and the employees who work for us are also important. Joining us an employee, we will offer you the following benefits -
* Flexible working
* Training and development opportunities
* Simply Health Cashback Scheme (optional)
* Season Ticket Loan Scheme
* Cycle to work scheme
* Crisis Loan Scheme
* Electric Car Scheme
* 3 x Wellbeing Days (pro rata'd for part time employees)
* Access to Blue Light Card
* 25 days (rising to 30 with length of service) Annual Leave plus Bank Holidays
* Contributory Pension Scheme – Employer matched contributions of up to 6% in the first two years’ service and up to 9% thereafter
* Death in Service Payment (2x annual salary)
* Critical Illness Insurance (subject to qualifying criteria)
Please note that we may close this vacancy early if we receive a high volume of suitable applications.
Our Commitment to Safeguarding
We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people, and adults at risk. Forward Trust follow safer recruitment practices and support a culture of openness and accountability.
To Apply
If you feel you are a suitable candidate and would like to work for Forward Trust please click apply to be redirected to our website to complete your application