Job responsibilities
Specific duties and responsibilities include:
To provide a planned and safe environment which gives care, control and nurture, appropriate
to maintaining and promoting the emotional and physical well-being of children and young
people in accordance with Looked After Children arrangements (LAC) involving family
members as much as possible.
To lead and manage a staff group to ensure effective services are offered to children and
young people who are in need of a positive and supportive respite placement.
To advise on policies and procedures to reflect the severe and complex disabilities of the
clients, the aims and objectives of the respite childrens home to develop systems for
monitoring progress towards the achievement of such aims.
To draft and revise the statement of purpose and monitor on a monthly basis in line with the
requirements of Ofsted.
To assess the developmental needs of the children and to monitor and improve the homes
care plan and practices for each child/young person.
To monitor and plan the invasive health training needs for staff members in line with the
medical needs of children with life limiting complex health care needs. To establish a positive
working relationship with health care professionals. To chair health and social care liaison
group, ensuring that the identified needs of children with life limiting complex health needs
can be met within the respite care home in conjunction with Quality Care Standards.
To monitor and plan the training needs of staff to manage complex and challenging
behaviours, carry out risk assessments, undertake manual handling tasks safely, maintain the
home at a standard to reduce opportunities of infection such as MRSA.
To create and develop links between the community and the home to enable children to
participate fully in the life of the community.
To take responsibility for the premises control for the building and ensure that health and
safety policy and legislation are implemented.
To ensure that regular checks and risk
assessments are completed as required and that health and safety standards are maintained.
To ensure that all policies and procedures relating to children are educational services are
adhered to at all times.
To secure good outcomes for children and young people
To investigate complaints according to corporate procedures. To ensure children and staff
are aware of all procedures relating to complaints and concerns and know how to activate
them.
To ensure that the dignity and rights of the children/young people are respected at all times
and that effective processes exist for children/young people to express their views and
feelings about daily life within the setting and to influence their day to day care. To ensure
that the needs, wishes and views of children/young people are effectively communicated to
other agencies and that the children/young people and their families are given the opportunity
to participate in the service and care planning.
To maintain a strong management overview of the service provided with any identified gaps
actioned.
To ensure that good communication channels are effective and operational between the
setting, children/young people and families and referring agencies. That all work is carried
out in partnership. To develop and maintain effective working relationships at an operative
level with relevant statutory and independent sector agencies.
To keep abreast of all developments for children/young people living at the setting and to
oversee all care planning processes, including needs/risk assessment recording/report
writing.
To accept responsibility for all administrative procedures ensuring that records are maintained
in an efficient and effective manner in line with national minimum standards.
To chair or participate in meetings attended by children as well as by colleagues and
representatives of other agencies, for example, health and education. To ensure that written
reports of a satisfactory standard are presented as required, alongside childrens placement
plans and reviews.
To advise the Locality manager of issues which relate to service provision. This includes the
production of statistics, monitoring outcomes and initiating proposals that support effective
service delivery and an integrated approach to work.
To prepare information for and participate in Regulation 44 visits and answer queries raised
by members, and to promote the role of the council as corporate parent.
To promote equality of opportunity to children/young people regardless of individual disability
in accessing the service and care planning.
To be responsible for the management of budgets and accountable for the team staffing and
operational budget. To plan, control and monitor all expenditure, ensuring that all
transactions are recorded and accounted for.
To promote a culture of value for money.
To be responsible for the operational management, supervision, appraisal, recruitment and
training of all team members, consisting of senior care officers, care officers, waking night
care officers, domestic, ancillary and administrative staff. Ensuring competency levels for all
posts in the team are achieved and maintained and that staff meet the objectives of the
homes statement of purpose.
To develop staff to their full potential including taking the lead role as assessor and internal
verifier in supporting staff in achieving the QCF level 3 in Caring for Children and Young
People, relevant management courses and responding to training and development issues
across the team, both for groups and individuals.
To be an active member of the disability allocation panel, to consider core assessment of
need against eligibility criteria for disability services in Wiltshire.
To be responsible for ensuring that the teams work is in line with relevant legislation and
guidance, Childrens Homes Regulations 2015, Care Standards Act and Quality Care
Standards. To ensure overall performance of the team including monitoring targets and
budgets, and taking action at team or individual level to improve performance in line with
departmental aims.
To be responsible for identifying where capability or disciplinary procedures may need to be
used and with senior management approval, to pursue these procedures to conclusion.
To be responsible for promoting good interagency working on individual projects or cases
through monitoring appropriate working relationships with other professionals such as head
teachers, GPs, consultants, community paediatricians, behaviour nurse specialists,
physiotherapists, occupational therapists
To carry out health and safety inspections for the establishment.
COSHH assessments Monthly
Asbestos register Quarterly
Kitchen inspection Yearly
Building health and safety audit 6-monthly
Rospa play equipment Monthly
Rospa inspection Yearly
Risk assessments Quarterly
Menus
Fire drills/tests Weekly
First aid file
Accident investigation forms Weekly
Sanctions & physical intervention recording Weekly
Review of establishments medication policy Quarterly
To oversee, report and manage building contractors and sub-contractors.
The registered manager has regular contact with Heads of service and Service director for
children and families department, for example when dealing with difficult situations for individual
families or dealing with service development On a daily basis the manager has contact with
disabled children and their families in coordinating individual care services.
