The job itself

Due to the successful promotion of the current post holder this prestigious opportunity has come up to lead our high performing Youth Justice Service in the East Riding. We are looking for an exceptional individual to join Targeted Services. This is a senior management position with responsibility for the Youth Justice Service which is a multi- agency team and consists of three team managers and a total of 27 members of staff.

You will be responsible for the work and co-ordination groups of multi-disciplinary staff, differently qualified, ensuring standards and performance targets are understood and met or exceeded. The ethos of the service is “child first” and all staff have been trained in trauma informed practice.

As the head of the youth justice service, you will provide high support/high challenge leadership and drive best practice in the strategic development of a “child first” approach within youth justice and translate this into operational delivery of services to children and their families. This will include securing political and high level management and stakeholder agreement in developing and delivering on strategic objectives in youth justice, including preparation for the new inspection regime and representing the service at the Youth Board.

We are looking for an energetic, creative and experienced leader who can demonstrate tenacity and enthusiasm in making a positive difference to the lives of children and young people. You will have a well-developed knowledge of Signs of Safety and have a working knowledge of restorative practice, social pedagogy and systemic practice. You will have an in depth understanding and experience of working with children, young people and their networks, as well as a demonstrable commitment to the values of family involvement, relational approaches and empowerment.

You will be passionate about ensuring our most vulnerable children are supported to achieve their full potential. You will be an innovative and creative child centred practitioner who is capable of leading and developing a dedicated team to perform at the highest level. East Riding Youth Justice Service is currently graded as “outstanding” by HMIP and it became the first to ever score full marks across the board in an inspection by HM Inspectorate of Probation.

Inspectors noted: “Staff build fruitful relationships with children, young people, parents and carers, and partner services. It is evident that children and young people are listened to and their goals and aspirations are taken seriously and acted upon.”

In October 2020, the Youth Offending Service won “Team of the Year” at the national LGC Awards. You will be expected to be office based and a visible, inspirational and active leader within our children’s services.

Experience and skills:

• Experience of management of youth justice services is essential.
• Degree in Social Work or equivalent professional qualification in work with children and families.
• In depth knowledge of the legal and statutory framework in which youth justice services operate.
• Knowledge and understanding of recent research and best practice in the field of youth justice and social care.
• Anti-discriminatory practice including promoting anti-racist practice and addressing issues of racism, inequality and injustice.
• Human and financial resource management and business planning at a senior level.
• High level written and verbal communication skills.

Benefits:

• Competitive salary and benefits package.
• Opportunities for professional development and growth.
• Supportive and inclusive work environment.
• Making a meaningful impact on the lives of young people.

Our Model

‘You can, I can, We can’

We have created a bespoke practice model that reflects and connects our vision, our value base and our behaviour as one East Riding of Yorkshire approach to working with children, young people and their families, which is nurtured and grown from within East Riding of Yorkshire CYPSSS and owned by our workforce.

We remain committed to Signs of Safety as a practice framework, but this will be set within a much wider, values based, model of practice that clearly connects Signs of Safety much more clearly with the East Riding value base, and our overall approach to making and sustaining relationships with children, families and communities.

Without a well embedded model, there is nothing to centre our practice on to ensure that, while the work may be different, all of our teams are grounded in the same values, beliefs, theories and approaches. Having a well-developed practice model helps to create a common language for the service and enables everyone to understand how we go about doing the right things, in the right way and for the right reasons for children and their families.