About The Job
Salary : £53,350 to £57,005 per annum
Working Pattern : Full-time, 37 hours per week
Contract Type : Fixed-term until March 2026*
Location : Office-based in Shoreham, covering the Adur, Arun, and Worthing areas
Interview Date : Week commencing 19th May
*If you are an internal candidate, this position may be available as a secondment. Please ensure you discuss this with your manager before applying.
Are you an inspiring and effective leader ready to take on a pivotal role in delivering high-quality operational services? We’re looking for a Social Work Team Manager to join our team — someone who can manage performance, lead with vision, and drive positive outcomes for both service users and staff.
As a Social Work Team Manager, you will play a vital leadership role in shaping and delivering high-quality adult social care services. You'll be confident in navigating and advising on complex statutory frameworks including the Care Act 2014, Mental Health Act, Mental Capacity Act, and related legislation. Your expertise will guide decision-making and ensure compliance across the team.
In this key position, you’ll lead and manage a dedicated team, acting as the principal professional within your service area. You’ll oversee planning, coordination, and delivery of activities and objectives, ensuring consistent performance and continuous improvement. Your expertise will contribute to shaping the future of the service, and you’ll play a crucial role in building strong relationships and influencing across the organisation and beyond.. You'll provide specialist advice and guidance across departments, support policy development, and tackle complex challenges — whether they’re technical, professional, resource-based, or people-related. You’ll uphold and champion equality, diversity, and inclusion, while also adhering to the highest standards, including those set out by Social Work England.
We place a strong emphasis on learning and development. Our team is committed not just to delivering services, but to identifying and overcoming system barriers, using innovative approaches and best practice to support individuals experiencing multiple disadvantage.
What we’re looking for:
1. Proven leadership and management experience in a professional setting
2. Ability to think strategically and deliver operational outcomes
3. Strong relationship-building and influencing skills
4. A collaborative, flexible approach to solving challenges
Experience and Skills
Key Skills (please cover with examples within your application as these are the short listing criteria):
5. Ability to make sound, pragmatic, problem-solving decisions including tackling difficult problems of a technical, professional, resource or people-related nature.
6. Excellent communication skills with ability to influence actions by others and negotiate effective business solutions.
7. Research and knowledge management skills; able to apply project management principles and practices.
8. Leadership, effective people management and performance management skills and the ability to provide direction and support to individuals and teams during complex situations.
9. Ability to challenge existing practices and identify innovative strength-based solutions within the required frameworks.
10. Sound and accurate IT skills for general office duties, producing reports and research.
11. Post graduate professional qualification relevant to the professional service specialism (such as CQSW/CSS/DipSW or BA/MA in Social Work or equivalent and PQSW).
12. Significant and broad experience demonstrating applied application of the above levels of knowledge in a relevant setting.
13. Relevant chartered status of a professional body or equivalent high-level experience of involved practices.
14. Registration with Social Work England and responsibility for maintaining registration.
15. Significant post-qualification experience in dealing with diverse issues.
16. Demonstrable experience of delivering or co-ordinating a quality customer-focussed service to others.
17. Experience of managing and leading staff.
18. Experience of managing a small budget and/or contributing to financially related decisions on larger spends.
19. Experience of supporting initiatives in a political environment.
Rewards and Benefits
For a full list of the benefits offered to you as a West Sussex County Council employee you can find them on our Rewards and Benefits page.