Service Manager Locality Health Interface (Adults)

Salary: Grade 7

Contract: Permanent

Hours: Full-time

Closing date: 27 November 2026

Help shape the way health and social care work together across Somerset.

This is an exciting opportunity to lead our countywide Health Interface Service, this is what Somerset calls its hospital social work service, working at the heart of the relationship between Adult Social Care, the NHS and our wider partners. You’ll have the opportunity to influence how services develop across Somerset, supporting high-quality, integrated care and better experiences for people during their hospital admission and ensuring safe and well planned discharges in a timely manner with the person and alongside NHS and voluntary sector colleagues.

At Somerset, our vision is “A fairer, better future”, with a clear ambition to help people and communities stay connected. For Adult Social Care, that means working with partners, including the NHS, to support healthy, independent lives, strengthen prevention, avoid admissions and help people get home quickly following a hospital stay.

About the Role

As Service Manager – Locality Health Interface, you’ll provide strategic and operational leadership to our countywide Health Interface Service, ensuring people across Somerset receive high-quality Adult Social Care support within acute hospital settings. There are four acutes which provide care to Somerset residents, Yeovil District hospital and Musgrove Park Hospital in Taunton being the two that provide the majority of health care support to Somerset residents.  The post holder will need to be able to commit to weekly presence at each of these with occasional presence at the Royal United Hospital in Bath and Weston General Hospital.

You’ll lead across service performance, professional practice, safeguarding, workforce and resources, working closely with NHS colleagues, commissioners, voluntary and community organisations and other partners. You’ll use insight, performance and financial information to continuously improve services and help shape how health and social care work together across Somerset.

This is a substantial leadership role, with responsibility for approximately 33.41 FTE colleagues across Advanced Practitioner, Adult Social Care Practitioner and Social Worker roles, alongside accountability for a staffing budget of approximately £1.7 million.

How You'll Make a Difference

• Lead with purpose: provide visible, inspirational leadership across the Health Interface Service, creating a positive, solution-focused culture where colleagues can develop and deliver their best work.
• Strengthen integrated working: build effective relationships with NHS colleagues, commissioners and partners to improve services and create more joined-up experiences for people moving between health and social care. 
• Drive improvement and transformation: use performance, financial, demographic and service information to identify opportunities for change, improve quality and respond to current and future demand.
• Champion excellent practice: provide leadership across professional practice, safeguarding, risk and quality assurance, ensuring statutory responsibilities and standards are understood and consistently delivered.
• Develop and empower your people: lead workforce planning and support managers and practitioners to grow their capability, confidence and contribution, building a culture of trust, learning and shared accountability. 

Our values matter in how you’ll lead. We want senior managers who promote a one-team culture, inspire others towards a common goal and create an environment where people feel empowered to ask questions, contribute ideas and seek support.

What You'll Bring

We’re looking for an experienced and collaborative senior leader who can move confidently between strategic priorities and operational delivery.

You’ll bring:

• A Social Work or Occupational Therapy professional qualification, together with evidence of continued management development.
• Senior management and leadership experience, including responsibility for professional and multidisciplinary teams.
• Significant experience of multidisciplinary and multi-agency working across health and social care, including effective partnership working with NHS colleagues and other organisations.
• Strong knowledge of Adult Social Care legislation, safeguarding, complex risk and integrated health and social care services.
• Experience of leading service improvement and transformation, using performance and financial information to make informed decisions and improve outcomes.
• Strong leadership, coaching, communication and influencing skills, with the confidence to build relationships across organisational boundaries and lead effectively through change.

You’ll also share our commitment to working as one team, striving for excellence and building belonging. For our senior leaders, that means championing our vision and priorities, creating a coaching culture, driving continuous improvement and ensuring equity and fairness sit at the heart of decision-making.

Why Join Us?

At Somerset Council, we're a progressive organisation committed to improving lives and shaping better services for our communities. Based in one of England's most beautiful counties, it's a great place to build your career and enjoy an excellent quality of life.

• 33 days’ annual leave plus bank holidays, with the option to purchase additional leave.
• Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS), one of the UK's most enhanced and secure pension schemes.
• Flexible and hybrid working arrangements to support work-life balance, where service needs allow.
• Health and wellbeing support, including access to confidential employee assistance services.
• Paid volunteering opportunities, helping you make a difference both inside and outside of work.

Our refreshed vision is about creating a fairer, better future for Somerset, with our people at the heart of that journey. We’re investing in development, wellbeing and belonging so that colleagues feel valued, supported and empowered to make a difference

Find out more about working at Somerset Council: https://www.somerset.gov.uk/jobs-and-careers/working-at-somerset-council/

Further Information

• The role operates countywide and requires flexibility to meet the needs of the Health Interface Service.
• You’ll work across Council services and alongside NHS colleagues, commissioners and other partner organisations.
• Attendance at relevant Council, NHS and partner locations across Somerset will be required.
• Enhanced DBS
• If you currently work for Somerset Council, please apply via the internal SuccessFactors careers page.

For an informal chat about the role, you can contact Maxine Walton who is the current postholder at Maxine.Walton@somerset.gov.uk or Helen Readdy our recruitment and engagement lead at Helen.Readdy@somerset.gov.uk 

We believe diversity makes us stronger and are committed to creating a workplace where everyone feels valued and respected. We welcome applications from people of all backgrounds and experiences, whose unique perspectives help us better serve the people of Somerset.

You can find a copy of the job description here:  NOM0344 Service Manager - Locality Health Interface.pdf 

Req: 1592/FG