Up to £98k

You'll be building on strong foundations to deliver excellent services here in Oxfordshire as care services for children have been judged good or outstanding.

We've still got a lot of work to do to deliver consistently high quality services and the best possible outcomes for children, young people and families. New national agendas, greater community diversity and reducing resources are generating major challenges. We are tackling these in a range of ways and believe that we have the capability and capacity to maintain our trajectory of improvement, notwithstanding service and fi nancial pressures.

We are looking for a social care professional with stature, to be responsible for the successful operation of our Children's Social Care Service, including the delivery of an effective child protection system. You will lead, develop and continually improve professional practice with specifi c focus on children's social work and social care professionals.

With accountability for a wide range of Children‘s Social Care services, you will relish the challenge of making sure that services are consistently child centred, of achieving continuous improvements, and of delivering good value for money. Most of all you will be driven by a passion for improving children and young people's lives.

This is a high profile, politically sensitive role and it is imperative that you have the ability to work collaboratively and creatively both within the directorate, corporately and with our partners across the county. Exceptional leadership skills will be key to your success.

For a confidential discussion about the role, please contact our consultants at GatenbySanderson Jon Houlihan on 0121 644 5710 or Phillip Emms on 0113 205 6078. For more information and how to apply please see the GatenbySanderson website

Closing date: 28th June 2013