Assistant Head of Home – Family Assessment Centre

About the role

This is a permanent, full-time leadership position at Buckinghamshire Council's Family Assessment Centre in Aylesbury, supporting parents and their children through high-quality assessments and structured support programmes. Working closely with the Head of Home (Registered Manager), you will share responsibility for the day-to-day running of the service and the development of a skilled residential staff team.

You will oversee the delivery of trauma-informed, child-centred practice, ensuring that care planning, safeguarding processes, and regulatory compliance are maintained to a high standard. The role carries genuine operational weight: you will lead staff supervision, manage risk and incident processes, and deputise for the Head of Home when required. Building effective relationships with families, partner agencies, and external stakeholders is central to the work.

Key responsibilities include:

• Supporting the Head of Home in maintaining high standards of care, safeguarding, and operational performance across the service
• Leading, supervising, and developing residential staff, promoting reflective practice and a culture of continuous improvement
• Overseeing risk assessments, incident management, and safeguarding investigations, ensuring effective recording and follow-up
• Monitoring the progress and wellbeing of children and young people, ensuring care plans are implemented and reviewed regularly
• Deputising for the Head of Home when required, ensuring continuity of leadership, care standards, and operational oversight

For informal enquiries about the role, please contact Krishane Madhavan at Krishane.Madhavan@buckinghamshire.gov.uk. Applications are submitted online. We review applications regularly throughout the advertising period and may close this vacancy early if a high volume of suitable applications is received — applying as early as possible is recommended. The closing date is 23:59 on Sunday 25 October 2026.

About You

We are looking for an experienced leader who brings a strong grounding in residential childcare, family assessment, or social care, and who has already held supervisory or management responsibilities. You will be someone who can inspire a team, navigate complexity, and hold high professional standards under pressure.

The ideal candidate will:

• Have experience working in a residential childcare, family assessment, or social care setting with supervisory or management responsibilities
• Demonstrate a strong understanding of safeguarding, child protection procedures, and relevant legislation, standards, and regulations
• Have proven leadership skills, with the ability to motivate, coach, and develop staff to deliver outstanding practice
• Bring excellent communication and interpersonal skills, with the ability to build effective relationships with families, colleagues, and partner agencies
• Have experience managing challenging situations, making informed decisions, and maintaining high professional standards
• Demonstrate strong organisational skills, with the ability to prioritise workloads, manage competing demands, and maintain accurate records
• Be committed to delivering child-centred, trauma-informed practice that promotes positive outcomes and supports long-term stability
• Have experience contributing to quality assurance, service improvement, and regulatory compliance
• Show the ability to lead by example, demonstrate resilience, and remain calm under pressure
• Be committed to equality, diversity, and inclusion, ensuring that every child and family is treated with dignity and respect

Buckinghamshire Council is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people, and adults at risk. This post is exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974. Applicants are required to declare all unspent convictions and conditional cautions, and all spent convictions and adult cautions that are not protected as defined by the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (as amended in 2020 and 2023). An enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check with barred list check is required for this role.

We welcome applications from all backgrounds and are actively working to ensure our workforce reflects the diverse communities we serve across Buckinghamshire.

Buckinghamshire's Offer to You

Children's Services at Buckinghamshire Council is on an improvement journey. The most recent Ofsted inspection confirmed continued improvement, and the service has built solid foundations for future success despite the pressures of the pandemic. Relationships with partners are strong, and collective work with The Buckinghamshire Safeguarding Children Partnership continues to strengthen the council's response to children and young people affected by domestic abuse, exploitation, substance misuse, and mental health issues.

Every role in Children's Services sits within a team dedicated to supporting children and their families to achieve their full potential. Buckinghamshire's values — Proud, Ambitious, Collaborative, and Trustworthy — were chosen by employees and underpin the culture. You can also expect:

• A fair and inclusive culture, with dedicated staff networks overseen by an Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Steering Group
• Health and wellbeing support including an Employee Assistance Programme, Mental Health First Aiders, and mindfulness workshops
• Flexible and agile working arrangements that support a good work-life balance
• Auto-enrolment onto a generous pension scheme
• Discounts on cafés, restaurants, shops, and gym memberships, plus travel discounts with Arriva
• Opportunity to gain Costco membership
• Ongoing opportunities to develop and progress your career
• And more, including fundraising and social events