Team Manager – Permanency Assessment and Support Team (PAST)

We’re looking for an experienced and motivated social work leader to join our Permanency Assessment and Support Team (PAST) as a Team Manager. You’ll lead a team delivering high-quality kinship (connected persons) assessments and support, helping children to live safely within their family networks and achieve permanence.

About the Role

This is an opportunity to lead one of two specialist teams focused on kinship care. You will provide management and professional oversight to social workers completing viability assessments and kinship (connected persons) assessments (Form K) and ensure support plans are robust and timely. You’ll quality assure practice so that work is analytical, child-focused and compliant with legislation, regulations, local procedures and national expectations for kinship care.

Manage and supervise a team undertaking kinship (connected persons) assessments and support work.
Quality assure assessments and reports, providing oversight for court work and fostering panel requirements.
Contribute to permanence and care planning, ensuring the child’s lived experience and voice is central.
Work in partnership with internal services and external agencies to strengthen the kinship support offer and triangulation through checks and references.
Use audit/Quality Assurance activity to drive improvement and promote consistent, high standards of practice.

You must have:

Significant practice experience in kinship (connected persons) work, including oversight/completing high-quality assessments suitable for court and fostering panel.
Strong working knowledge of fostering legislation, statutory guidance and the Fostering Services (England) Regulations/placement regulations (as applicable to the role).
Proven ability to lead, supervise, support and develop social workers to deliver excellent outcomes for children.
A collaborative approach and the confidence to build effective relationships with internal teams, partner agencies and families.
A commitment to restorative, reflective and systemic practice.
Significant quality assurance experience and a commitment to continuous improvement.
A passion for identifying and addressing disproportionality, with a commitment to anti-racist practice.

Why Join Us?

Kinship care is increasingly recognised nationally as a vital way to keep children connected to their families. In this role you will lead practice that strengthens permanence planning and improves support for kinship families. You’ll work alongside colleagues across children’s social care and with external partners to develop consistent, high-quality assessment and support pathways.

If you have the expertise, leadership skills, and passion to make a lasting impact on children's lives, we’d love to hear from you!

Apply now and help shape the future of kinship care.

Key Requirements

Social Work England registration.
Significant post-qualifying experience in children’s social care, including kinship (connected persons) work.
Demonstrable leadership/management capability (for example, supervising staff and managing performance, DofE statistics and competing demands).
Strong understanding of relevant legislation, best practice guidance and kinship/fostering/placement regulations, and confidence with court work.
Excellent communication and relationship-building skills with children, families, professionals and partner agencies.
Ability to audit, use quality assurance/audit learning to improve practice, with a commitment to addressing disproportionality.
Good IT and organisational skills (including case management systems and Microsoft Office).

How to Apply

To apply, please complete the online application form and upload your supporting statement (referencing the key requirements from the JDPS) and CV.

Closing date: 14th June 2026
Interview date: 26th June 2026
If you would like an informal discussion about the role, please contact: [email protected]

We reserve the right to close this vacancy earlier than the advertised closing date where a sufficient number of high-quality applications is received. To support a fair and manageable selection process, we will ensure a reasonable application window is maintained. We therefore encourage candidates to apply as early as possible.

Tower Hamlets is a truly unique borough at the heart of London – a place where history and innovation sit side by side. From the docks and markets that shaped the East End to the global business hub of Canary Wharf, we are proud to be one of the most dynamic, diverse, and ambitious communities in the UK. We are also one of the fastest growing and youngest boroughs in the country, offering unrivalled opportunities to make a real difference to people’s lives. Our residents are energetic, creative, and resilient, and our council is committed to delivering the best possible services and opportunities for them.

Our award-winning new Town Hall in Whitechapel provides a modern, flexible workplace for our staff, right at the heart of the borough and directly opposite Whitechapel Tube and Elizabeth line station. It is more than just a workplace – it’s a hub for collaboration, innovation and community, designed to bring out the best in our people.

As an employer, we put equality, diversity, and inclusion at the heart of everything we do. Our active Employee Network Groups celebrate and champion our workforce, helping to ensure that everyone feels a sense of belonging. Guided by our TOWER values – Together, Open, Willing, Excellent and Respect – we are building a positive, inclusive culture where colleagues can thrive.

At Tower Hamlets Council, you’ll find exciting challenges, supportive colleagues, and the chance to shape one of London’s most important and vibrant places. If you’re looking for a role where you can see the impact of your work every day, then Tower Hamlets is the place for you.