Fostering Recruitment Team Manager

Contract to start ASAP until 07-05-27 with a possible extension.

Full job description

Fostering Recruitment Team Manager – Hackney London

Contract: Temporary contract from 2 November 2026 to 7 May 2027

Pay Rate: £45.20 per hour (Umbrella)

Location: 1 Hillman Street, London, E8 1DY

Lead Fostering Recruitment and Help Improve Outcomes for Children and Young People

We're recruiting an experienced Fostering Recruitment Team Manager to join Hackney London, based at 1 Hillman Street, London, E8 1DY.

This is a senior children's social care management opportunity responsible for leading and developing fostering recruitment services, ensuring the effective recruitment, assessment and approval of suitable foster carers.

You'll provide leadership to a specialist team of social workers and fostering professionals, oversee recruitment strategies and ensure fostering recruitment processes meet statutory requirements and safeguarding standards.

The successful candidate will play a key role in increasing foster carer capacity, improving recruitment outcomes and supporting the availability of safe, stable and nurturing placements for children and young people.

About the Role

As a Fostering Recruitment Team Manager, you'll be responsible for the operational management and development of fostering recruitment services.

You'll lead a team responsible for recruiting and assessing prospective foster carers, ensuring that all assessments, approvals and recruitment activities are completed effectively and in accordance with relevant legislation, regulations and statutory guidance.

You'll also work closely with senior managers, fostering panels, social workers, prospective foster carers and partner agencies to improve recruitment performance and strengthen the Council's fostering provision.

What you'll be doing:

• Leading and managing the Fostering Recruitment Team
• Overseeing the recruitment, assessment and approval of prospective foster carers
• Developing and implementing effective foster carer recruitment strategies
• Providing professional supervision and management support to social workers and fostering staff
• Monitoring team performance, workloads and recruitment targets
• Ensuring fostering assessments are completed to a high professional standard
• Overseeing the preparation and quality assurance of Form F and other fostering assessments
• Supporting the progression of prospective foster carers through the assessment process
• Ensuring compliance with fostering legislation, regulations and statutory guidance
• Working closely with fostering panels and supporting approval processes
• Managing complex fostering recruitment cases and providing professional guidance
• Developing targeted recruitment campaigns to attract suitable foster carers
• Supporting community engagement and foster carer recruitment events
• Working collaboratively with marketing and communications teams
• Monitoring recruitment enquiries, applications, assessments and approval outcomes
• Identifying barriers to recruitment and implementing service improvements
• Ensuring safeguarding concerns are identified and managed appropriately
• Building positive relationships with prospective and approved foster carers
• Working closely with children's social care and placement teams
• Supporting foster carer diversity and recruitment to meet children's individual needs
• Preparing management reports, performance information and service updates
• Contributing to wider fostering service development and strategic planning
• Promoting high-quality practice, accountability and continuous improvement

Requirements

We're looking for a qualified and experienced social work manager with strong knowledge of fostering services, recruitment and statutory children's social care.

You'll ideally have:

• A recognised Social Work qualification
• Current registration with Social Work England
• Significant post-qualifying experience within children's social care
• Strong experience working within fostering services
• Experience in foster carer recruitment, assessment and approval
• Previous experience managing or supervising social workers
• Good knowledge of the Fostering Services Regulations and relevant statutory guidance
• Experience overseeing Form F assessments and fostering panel processes
• Strong understanding of safeguarding and child protection
• Experience developing and implementing fostering recruitment strategies
• Ability to manage complex cases and provide professional oversight
• Strong performance management and service improvement skills
• Experience managing workloads and supporting staff development
• Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills
• Ability to build positive relationships with prospective foster carers and partner agencies
• Strong organisational and decision-making skills
• Previous local authority fostering management experience would be highly desirable
• Ability to work effectively in a busy and demanding service environment
• Eligibility to work in the UK
• Ability to provide relevant references and employment history
• Ability to complete an enhanced DBS and other required pre-employment checks

Why Apply

• Senior fostering management opportunity with Hackney London
• Competitive Umbrella rate of £45.20 per hour
• Long-term temporary assignment through to May 2027
• Opportunity to lead a specialist fostering recruitment team
• Chance to influence foster carer recruitment strategy and service performance
• Meaningful role supporting children and young people in care
• Work closely with experienced social care managers and fostering professionals
• Opportunity to drive service improvement and increase fostering capacity
• Develop further local authority fostering leadership experience

Benefits

• Weekly Pay
• Company Pension
• Ongoing Agency Support

Additional Information

Client: Hackney London

Job Title: Fostering Recruitment Team Manager

Job Category: Social & Healthcare Qualified

Location: 1 Hillman Street, London, E8 1DY

Start Date: 2 November 2026

End Date: 7 May 2027

Contract Type: Temporary

Pay Rate: Umbrella: £45.20 per hour

Job Types: Temporary contract

Pay: £45.20 per hour

Benefits:

• Company pension

Application question(s):

• Are you a qualified Social Worker with current Social Work England registration?
• Do you have significant experience working within fostering services?
• Have you previously managed or supervised a fostering recruitment team?
• Do you have experience overseeing foster carer recruitment and Form F assessments?
• Are you familiar with fostering legislation, statutory guidance and fostering panel processes?
• Have you developed or implemented foster carer recruitment strategies?
• Do you have previous local authority children's social care management experience?
• Are you able to reliably travel to 1 Hillman Street, London, E8 1DY?
• Are you available for this temporary assignment through to 7 May 2027?

Experience:

• Children's Social Care: 3 years (required)
• Fostering Services: 3 years (required)
• Foster Carer Recruitment / Assessment: 2 years (required)
• Team Management / Social Work Supervision: 2 years (preferred)
• Local Authority Fostering Services: 2 years (preferred)

Licence/Certification:

• Recognised Social Work Qualification (required)
• Social Work England Registration (required)
• Enhanced DBS (required or ability to obtain)
• Relevant Management / Leadership Qualification (preferred)

Work authorisation:

United Kingdom (required)

Disclaimer: On applying for this vacancy, you agree that your personal details will be passed onto our client for their consideration of your suitability for the role. I acknowledge that it is my responsibility to notify iWork Recruitment Limited of any hirer who I do not want my details to be passed onto.

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