At Cheshire East we're making significant, tangible investments in our foundations. This includes strengthening our commissioning function, expanding workforce development and creating clearer, more ambitious pathways. To realise these ambitions, we're seeking exceptional Senior leaders who want to help us shape the future.

We have an exciting opportunity for a Head of Service - Commissioning, based at Delamere House, Crewe.

About the Role

You'll provide strategic system leadership the full breadth of children's commissioned services, covering SEND, children's social care, alternative provision, placements and market shaping. The role sets the strategic direction for commissioning, leads the commissioning cycle, and ensures that services for children and families are safe, high-quality, sustainable and value for money, in line with the Council's statutory duties and corporate priorities.

You'll be responsible for shaping and developing local, regional and sub-regional provider markets, ensuring there is sufficient and appropriate provision for children and young people with increasingly complex needs.

You'll lead commissioning strategies, sufficiency planning, joint commissioning with the Integrated Care Board (ICB), and the development of market position statements and quality assurance frameworks that secure improved outcomes and reduce inequalities.

You'll contribute directly to the Council's vision by championing co-production, embedding the lived experience of children, young people and families into commissioning decisions, and ensuring that services support resilience, inclusion and positive life chances. It provides the strategic leadership required to meet the Council's statutory obligations under the Children Act, SEND Code of Practice and inspection frameworks, ensuring commissioning activity is inspection-ready and that learning from complaints, incidents and serious case reviews drives continuous improvement.

You'll lead the commissioning data, performance and analytics function, ensuring that commissioning decisions are evidence-based, that sufficiency modelling and forecasting inform financial planning, and that senior leaders, Cabinet and partnership boards receive clear, accurate insight on risks, quality and outcomes.

The successful candidate will lead on:

Market Provision - Providing statements and local, regional and sub-regional markets (including RCC/frameworks), fostering strong relationships with VCS and independent sector.

Commissioning Data - Providing a data, performance and analytics function for needs assessments, sufficiency modelling, demand forecasting and outcomes reporting to Cabinet, DLT and partnership boards.

Safeguarding - For commissioned provision, ensuring robust escalation, oversight of provider concerns, safer commissioning practice, and compliance with statutory safeguarding requirements.

Ofsted/CQC - Relating to commissioned provision, ensuring high-quality evidence rapid response to recommendations, and cross-service improvement.

Commissioning Governance - Ensure alignment with ICB and partners to the Health & Care Act, robust decision-making and integrated outcomes frameworks.

The successful candidate will bring

• Qualified social worker registered with Social Work England.
• Senior leadership experience of children's commissioning across SEND and Social Care including market development, contracting, quality assurance and placements / brokerage.
• Expert understanding of contract law and public procurement.
• Advanced skills in needs assessments, demand and sufficiency modelling, outcomes-based commissioning and benefits tracking.
• Understanding of public procurement regulations, safeguarding information governance, equality and human rights and corporate decision-making.
• Proven ability in leadership, influencing and partnership, financial and commercial acumen.

To find out more about the essential and desirable criteria for the role please view the attached job description specification document.

In return we are able to offer:

• Enhanced annual leave - Start with an impressive 34 days of annual leave (including bank holidays) from day one, and watch it grow to 39 days after just five years of service
• Purchase of annual leave - Want more time off? You can purchase up to 10 extra days of annual leave each year, giving you the flexibility to balance work and life just the way you want (Pro-rata for part-time staff)
• Flexible working pattern - Enjoy a 37-hour standard full-time work week with the added perks of flexi-time and hybrid/remote working arrangements where possible. Your work-life balance just got a whole lot better
• Salary sacrifice green car scheme - Drive green and save green! Lease a brand-new electric or hybrid car through our salary sacrifice scheme. There's no credit checks, no deposits, just significant savings and exclusive offers on a three-year lease
• White goods salary sacrifice scheme - Upgrade your home with ease. Purchase home and electronic items through our salary sacrifice scheme, spreading the cost of big-ticket purchases like appliances, computers, and tech gadgets directly from your salary
• Enhanced public pension - Secure your future with our career average pension, where contributions are built at a rate of 1/49th of your yearly pensionable pay
• Cycle to work scheme - Save up to 25-39% on the retail price of bikes and safety equipment through Income Tax and National Insurance savings. Get fit and save money!
• Employee assistance programme - Access a completely free and confidential assistance service to help manage, reduce, and overcome life's challenges, both at work and in your personal life
• Discounted gym membership - Stay active and healthy with corporate membership prices for Everybody Leisure, including:
• Gym, Swim and Group Fitness at all 16 facilities
• Off-Peak Racket Sports
• Athletics Tracks
• Sauna/Steam/Spa

Join us and experience a workplace that truly values and supports you!

Cheshire East is an amazing place to live and work. As one of the largest employers in the borough, we are able to offer you a wide range of challenging and rewarding career opportunities.

We are working for a brighter future - together and our commitment to you is that our workplace culture will provide a shared purpose, a well-led organisation with valued people succeeding together as one team and one council to deliver the best service for our customers and communities.

If you want to be part of our award-winning council and contribute to our ongoing success, have the flexibility and drive to enable us to innovate, are committed to working as part of a team and striving to deliver exceptional service wherever you can, we would especially like to hear from you.

As an equal opportunities employer, we welcome applicants from all backgrounds and want our workforce to reflect the diversity of our local communities so that we can all work for a brighter future - together.

Applicants should ensure all sections of the application form are completed as failure to do so will result in their application being rejected. Please ensure you check the email account (including junk/spam boxes) from which you apply regularly as we will use this to contact you regarding your application.

If you have not heard from us within 4 weeks of the closing date then it is likely that you have not been shortlisted on this occasion, however, please do not be discouraged from applying again.

For any technical enquiries please email sourcingteam@ecwip.co.uk

Please quote job reference number in all correspondence.

To arrange a confidential conversation about this post prior to application, please contact Karen Potts (executive assistant to Dawn Godfrey, Executive Director Children's Service) on 01270 686275 or karen.potts2@cheshireeast.gov.uk .