Job Description

Team Manager Family Support and Protection Mid Essex

Permanent, Full Time

£55,892 to £69,241 Per Annum

Location: Chelmsford

Working Style: Fixed-base worker

Closing Date: 14th October 2026

Please note that visa sponsorship is not available for this role. Applicants must have a current, unrestricted right to work in the UK. The Children and Families Service champions the development and well-being of children, young people, and families. Our mission encompasses shielding children from neglect and abuse, while working collaboratively with partners to provide early assistance, family support, and effective social work interventions. We believe in building resilience, knocking down barriers, and fostering a brighter future for every child and young person. At the heart of our operation is the Team Manager. Collaborating with the Service Manager, the Team Manager contributes to our strategic evolution, ensuring that we remain adaptable in the face of change. The Family Support and Protection (FS&P) teams work with families on Child in Need & Child Protection plans to promote sustainable change. FS&P Social Workers are responsible for building positive relationships with families using systemic and strengths based social work approaches. The work is varied and involves working within the Public Law Outline (PLO) when necessary, initiating care proceedings and responding to requests arising in Private Law proceedings. Through regular reflective supervision and access to CPD/Training from the Essex Social Care Academy, a BASW accredited CPD provider, you will be encouraged to be creative and innovative in the direct work social workers undertake with families. We believe that giving families a supportive environment, encouragement and insight helps them to achieve change. As an organisation, we take pride in the following commitments: Operational Excellence: Our roles in this capacity revolve around delivering tangible outcomes in a specific functional domain. We hold a deep understanding of policy application and service enhancement. Our roles are equipped with clear team budgets and targets, all contributing to the overall service mission. Collaboration and Commercial Thinking: We work collaboratively within and beyond our functions, with a keen eye on practicality to ensure optimal outcomes for our customers in a sustainable manner. Innovation and Improvement: We're change agents, consistently evaluating and implementing improvements while upholding the highest standards of service quality. Complex Issue Management: We excel at managing intricate matters and resources to meet our customers' needs and deliver exceptional outcomes. Digital Integration and Diversity: We harness technology and innovation to drive our mission forward, all while celebrating and integrating equality and diversity into every decision we make. As a Team Manager in Family Support & Protection, you'll lead a team of dedicated social workers. Your influence will be pivotal in delivering exceptional professional services. You'll hold accountability for performance, quality assurance, resource allocation, and budgets. Your leadership will foster a culture of growth, professional development, and effective practice. Your expertise will extend to supervising social workers, ensuring their practice meets the highest standards. You'll oversee the quality of reports and court statements and handle feedback from service users with a commitment to building positive relationships. Collaboration will be a cornerstone of your role, as you lead inter-agency efforts to inform decision-making and achieve success for service users. You'll be the architect of training plans and tactical service delivery strategies, and your professional knowledge will be paramount in guiding complex cases within legislative and organizational frameworks. To thrive in this role, you'll bring: A recognised social work qualification and current registration with Social Work England, accompanied by substantial experience in challenging social and family scenarios. Leadership and Mentorship: you can inspire, mentor, and build high-performing teams from diverse backgrounds. Change Management experience: Your experience in complex environments has equipped you to lead change and uphold best practices even in demanding circumstances. Experience of building strong relationships with partners, agencies, and communities to ensure a supportive environment for children and families. Strategic Decision-Making: You're skilled at making clear decisions that mitigate potential risks, particularly when intervention is needed. Essex welcomes those who are passionate about making a difference. If you're ready to contribute to an environment that is both challenging and rewarding, where excellence is the norm, join us in shaping a brighter future for children and families. To read more about us please visit: Children & Families Please take a look at our ‘No Magic’ Children & Families video Why Essex? As one of the largest and most dynamic UK local authorities, Essex offers a stimulating public service environment. Covering over 1,420 square miles and serving 1.8 million residents, we’re committed to transformational change and delivering better quality at lower cost. Recognised in the top three of the latest IMPOWER index for productivity, we ensure everyone matters in Everyone's Essex. With flexible working options and a focus on innovation, whether you are looking to develop your career or contribute to the local community, Essex is the ideal place for you. In March 2026, Greater Essex was accepted on to the devolution priority programme, where we will work towards establishing a Mayoral Combined County Authority. You can read more about these changes, and what this may mean for this role, on our careers site. Essex County Council is proud to be a Disability Confident Leader. We’re committed to interview all disabled applicants who choose to apply under our Job Interview Scheme if they meet the minimum requirements of the job. Please speak to our Recruiters if you require any reasonable adjustments during the process. We’re also committed to interview all veterans and care leavers, who meet the minimum requirements of the role for which they are applying. Once you’ve secured your role within Essex County Council you will receive many great employee benefits, including support for unpaid carers and flexible working arrangements to accommodate their needs. At Essex County Council, we value integrity and ethical behaviour. We kindly ask that you embrace our code of conduct and the Nolan principles, including throughout the recruitment process. Your commitment to these standards helps us maintain a positive and respectful workplace for everyone. The role requires you to be mobile throughout a wider operational area including travelling around the county of Essex and beyond, transporting service users and their belongings and to be able to do so in an emergency. Driving licence and car or the ability to meet the mobility requirements of the role through other means is essential. As part of employment with Essex County Council (ECC) should your role require a DBS check you will be required to register with the DBS update service. The DBS update service ensures all registered DBS certificates are kept up to date and allows authorised parties to view the status of your certificate. This is an annual subscription, and you will be responsible for ensuring this is maintained. For further information on the DBS update service please go to https://www.gov.uk/dbs-update-service Essex County Council is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and vulnerable adults, and expects all employees and volunteers to share this commitment. If you would like to be kept up to date on other relevant opportunities, blogs, news, events and industry related news at Essex County Council, please join The Essex Talent Community If you have queries on this role or require anything further, please email resourcing.team@essex.gov.uk Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn. Further details can be found on our careers page. Downloads Pay and Reward | Our Ways of Working | About Us | Organisation Behaviours