Assistant Director Adult Social Care Operations
Location: Aylesbury
Overview
Lead change. Shape services. Change lives.
This is a defining moment for Buckinghamshire Council as we recruit an inspirational leader to help us move from a strong foundation towards outstanding services. Following a recent ‘Good’ rating from the Care Quality Commission, Buckinghamshire Council is recognised as one of the top-performing Adult Social Care services in the Southeast. Inspectors praised our compassionate staff, strong values, and innovative practice model. We are ambitious to do more - especially around co-production, prevention, strength based support and reducing inequalities.
We are seeking an Assistant Director to lead our adult social care Community Neighbourhood Service. You will drive integration, innovation, and improvement across our community neighbourhood teams. This is a high-impact leadership role, overseeing the engine room of our operational delivery helping to build a strong and resilient service for the future.
Salary: circa £92k per annum
About us
Buckinghamshire Council is a relatively new organisation that combines the strengths and expertise of the previous five councils in the county to create positive change for local people, communities, and businesses. We are firmly focused on the future and have made a clear commitment to serve residents better and to provide stronger representation for Buckinghamshire, both locally and nationally.
Please view our recruitment pack: Assistant Director Adult Social Care Operations
About the role
A qualified social worker with senior leadership experience, you’ll have a deep understanding of adult social care systems. You’ll be comfortable operating across organisational boundaries, from integrated health partnerships to regional networks. You’ll work closely with partners across the ADASS SE region, maintaining strong local relationships while navigating change within the wider ICB landscape, and benefiting from an active voluntary and community sector.
What you’ll bring:
- A proven track record of senior leadership in adult social care
- Deep understanding of statutory responsibilities, regulatory frameworks, and sector challenges
- The confidence to lead complex change with clarity, empathy, and ambition
- A commitment to co‑production, inclusion, and empowering people to live fulfilling lives
- The ability to inspire teams and build trusted relationships across systems
If you are an ambitious, authentic and energised leader who can drive improvement, build strong relationships and lead frontline teams with clarity and compassion, we’d love to hear from you.
About you
Like other local authorities across the country, we are experiencing an increase in demand and complexity. We need someone who can lead with both resilience and creativity - holding up our high standards while empowering people to do their best work.
Buckinghamshire is a vibrant and diverse county with strong communities and a unique mix of urban centres, market towns and rural areas. Our culture is positive and inclusive, with a working environment that supports people to achieve.
This role offers real breadth of experience and the opportunity to develop yourself as a leader. You’ll join a stable and ambitious leadership team, with strong political backing and a genuine appetite for transformation.
If you want to shape the future of health and social care in a place where your impact will be visible and valued, this is your moment.
Please refer to the job summary attached for full details about the role.
Other information
For an informal discussion with the Service Director Adult Social Care Operations please contact [email protected]
This post is exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 and therefore applicants are required to declare:
- All unspent convictions and conditional cautions
- All spent convictions and adult cautions that are not protected (i.e. that are not filtered out) as defined by the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (as amended in 2020 and 2023).
For further information on filtering please refer to Nacro guidance and the guidance published by the Ministry of Justice (see, in particular, the section titled ‘Exceptions Order’).
We reserve the right to close the vacancy once we have received sufficient applications, so please be advised to submit your application as early as possible.
We understand that candidates may use AI tools to assist with their applications. While we welcome innovation, we expect all submissions to reflect your own experience, skills, and achievements accurately. Please ensure your application is truthful and demonstrates your personal capabilities, as this will be assessed during the selection process.
Buckinghamshire Council is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and adults at risk.
Our values and culture
We have a set of values, which our employees have chosen, that represent what we are – Proud, Ambitious, Collaborative and Trustworthy.
By joining Buckinghamshire Council, you can expect:
- a fair and inclusive culture
- the chance to really make a difference to those around you
- health and well-being initiatives including an Employee Assistance Programme, Mental Health First Aiders and mindfulness workshops
- a unified voice through our Employee Representative Group
- ongoing support, and the opportunity to develop and progress in your career with us
- opportunities to take part in fun activities such as fundraising and social events
At Buckinghamshire Council, we know that our biggest strength comes from the people that work for us, and that’s why we’re working hard to ensure we continue to be an accessible and inclusive organisation.
From dedicated staff networks overseen by our Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Steering Group, to proudly standing as a Disability Confident employer, it’s important to us that all our colleagues feel engaged, listened to, and valued. Our offer of flexible working empowers a productive and happy workforce and allows employees to combine work with other responsibilities and commitments.
We believe our workforce should reflect the diverse communities we service in Buckinghamshire, and are looking for like-minded individuals to join us in promoting equality, fairness, and inclusion for everyone.
About the Business Unit
We recognise and reward you
Hard work and success deserves recognition. That’s why we pride ourselves on the benefits we give our people. We actively encourage a good work-life balance and promote flexible and agile working arrangements. We provide discounts on various Cafés, restaurants, shops and auto enrolment onto our generous Pension Scheme. In addition to the opportunity to gain membership to Costco, we have discounted gym memberships, travel discounts with Arriva and much more.
https://jobs.buckinghamshire.gov.uk/working-buckinghamshire-council/
