Service Manager- South East London and Volunteer Strategy.

Overview:

We are The Forward Trust, the social enterprise with charitable status that empowers people to break the often interlinked cycles of crime and addiction to move forward with their lives. For more than 25 years we have been working with people to build positive and productive lives, whatever their past. We believe that anyone is capable of lasting change. Our services have supported thousands of people to make positive changes and build productive lives with a job, family, friends and a sense of community.

We are looking for a Service Manager- South East London and Volunteer Strategy to join our Probation Services Team. 

The Dependency and Recovery (D&R) Service Manager role integrates a joint strategic and operational approach to service and partnership management within our D&R Service, supporting adult males involved in the Criminal Justice system who have substance mis use issues.

The service is designed to improve engagement into treatment services and ‘bridge the gap’ between probation and substance misuse services in the community by offering practical assistance and ongoing support through a range of timebound, enforceable and motivational interventions.

Our services success is dependent on appropriate staff recruitment, development, retention and practice. You are responsible for ensuring that You and the Team Leaders who report to you are highly people focused, providing a vision of success, coaching and all practical supports that enable your team to thrive.

Overseeing the D&R Service in your designated London Boroughs, you will ensure service delivery is compliant with our HMPPS contracts and performance targets. You will also contribute to wider CRS, and Forward Trust objectives, projects and aspirations. You will proactively develop D&R services and contribute to our wider learning and development of all CRS.

You will be responsible for line managing primarily two Team Leaders in SE London and the Volunteer Framework across the Dependency and Recovery contract, ensuring the effective running and development of these key areas.

You will manage and support teams who will be delivering a range of interventions within the D&R framework, within a hybrid model within the probation offices you are responsible for.

You are responsible for the  development, maintenance and creation of  key strategic and operational partner relationships and act as the single point of contact for all partnership engagement. This is key to enhancing referral pathways and develop joint working agreements to improve outcomes for our service users. These partnerships include and are not limited to: Probation Delivery Units, Senior Probation Officers, Probation Practitioners, named Prisons in your region, community projects / locations in your region, Subcontractors, Forward Connect, Forward Recovery services, Substance Misuse treatment and support services form all sectors in your region.

Your team will be delivering services in the boroughs assigned to you, they will provide a majority of in person support. Just like you, they will build and maintain positive working relationships with their probation practitioner colleagues and all stakeholders involved in their Service User’s care. You will provide visible leadership, travelling across the cluster of services you are responsible for, attending essential meetings and ensuring smooth project delivery so contractual targets and obligations are met, safely and the service is delivered to a high standard.

CRS Dependency and Recovery are in person services. You will regularly work from a PDU, Prison, community space or Forward Trust premises with your team. You may work from home where this meets a clear business need but should expect to spend at least three days a week meeting staff, partners, attending key mtgs and visiting probation/prison delivery units in your area.

You will be responsible for contributing to the targets set by Forward and the local commissioners. One of the key targets will be access into service and measuring outcomes, so co-operative working relationships with other partner agencies is vital to this role.

From a strategic perspective, you will work in conjunction with senior management and contribute to improvement plans, produce performance reports for commissioners and attend contract meetings. You will also be responsible for ensuring data accurately reflects output and is submitted within set deadlines which includes ensuring services are audit compliant.

The specific regions for which you have responsibility may be subject to change, depending on the needs and changes within the organisation at any given time. 

• A thorough understanding and relevant experience of providing substance mis-use services in prison or community
• Demonstrable knowledge of Community Rehabilitation Company (CRC), National Probation Service (NPS) and Criminal Justice services in custodial or community settings.
• Understanding of Psychosocial interventions and community provision.
• Previous experience of developing and implementing service improvements.
• Demonstrable in the successful and effective management of people and performance, with evidence-based, tangible outcomes.
• Experience of Co-ordinating a Volunteer Pathway Framework
• Demonstrable ability to effectively lead and motivate teams, including through change processes.
• Experience of supervising and supporting staff to enhance their skills and enable them to work effectively.
• Experience of contract management, recruitment experience and data management
• Understanding of and sensitivity to equality, diversity and inclusion.
• Working knowledge of using Microsoft office packages.
• Experience and knowledge of database monitoring systems, including overseeing the collection, recording and collating of information, including statistical data, for audit, research and reporting purposes.
• Experience of working within a rehabilitative setting, either custodial and/or community environments.
• A thorough understanding of relevant legislation and local/national best practice standards.
• A relevant qualification in business, leadership or management (or working towards)
• Relationship marketing, partnership building for service integration communication / information sharing, presentation skills.

Please note that Forward Trust follows a structured salary grading system for all roles, and the offered salary for each post will be at the starting point within the specified band. We value the skills and experience of potential candidates, and there may be opportunities for salary enhancements as you grow within Forward Trust. 

Closing Date: 10/01/2025 - We reserve the right to close this vacancy early if we receive sufficient applications for the role. Therefore, if you are interested, please submit your application as early as possible. Please note that previous applicants need not apply.

• Training and development opportunities
• Flexible working 
• Simply Health Cashback Scheme (Optional)
• Season Ticket Loan Scheme 
• Cycle to work scheme
• Crisis Loan Scheme
• Electric Car Scheme
• 3 x Wellbeing Days (pro rata'd for part time employees)
• Access to Blue Light Card
• 25 days (rising to 30 with length of service) Annual Leave plus Bank Holidays 
• Contributory Pension Scheme – Employer matched contributions of up to 6% in the first two years’ service and up to 9% thereafter 
• Death in Service Payment (2x annual salary) 
• Critical Illness Insurance (subject to qualifying criteria)

Diversity at Forward Trust

Our workforce is made up of a diverse community, where we all belong and feel part of something bigger. We are committed to equality of opportunity and welcome applications from individuals, regardless of age, gender, ethnicity, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, socio-economic background, religion and/or belief. We will consider flexible working requests for all roles unless operational requirements prevent otherwise.

D&R Service Manager London SE & Volunteer Strategy 2024