Senior Manager, Social Work Unit

Senior Manager, Social Work Services

Head, Social Work Unit

Position Summary

The Senior Manager, Social Work Services leads MTFA’s Social Work Unit, comprising Residential Services, Community Services and Counselling Services.

The role provides strategic, professional and practice leadership across the three service areas. Its immediate core focus is strengthening social work practice within MTFA’s children’s residential care services, ensuring that residents receive safe, trauma-informed, child-centred and family-focused interventions.

The incumbent will oversee practice standards, case management, safeguarding, supervision and service integration while developing the capabilities of social work and counselling professionals. The role will also strengthen coordination across MTFA’s residential homes, community programmes and counselling services to provide more integrated and effective support for children, young persons and families.

Key Responsibilities

1. Social Work Leadership and Service Direction

Lead the strategic direction and overall development of MTFA’s Social Work Unit.

Establish consistent social work practice standards across Residential Services, Community Services and Counselling Services.

Translate organisational priorities into clear service plans, practice frameworks and operational outcomes.

Advise senior management on social work practice, safeguarding, service risks and emerging client needs.

Promote evidence-informed, ethical, culturally responsive and person-centred practice across the Unit.

Develop the Social Work Unit progressively as an integrated centre of professional practice and service excellence.

2. Residential Social Work Practice — Primary Focus

Provide professional and practice leadership for social work services within MTFA’s children’s residential care settings.

Strengthen case management practices covering intake, assessment, care planning, intervention, review, discharge and post-discharge support.

Ensure interventions are child-centred, trauma-informed, developmentally appropriate and responsive to the needs of residents and their families.

Guide the management of complex and high-risk cases involving safeguarding, family difficulties, behavioural concerns, mental health needs and placement stability.

Strengthen family engagement, reunification planning and transition support, where appropriate.

Ensure effective coordination among social workers, welfare officers, counsellors, Home management and other professionals involved in residents’ care.

Conduct or oversee case conferences, multidisciplinary discussions and reviews of complex cases.

Support the Residential Services leadership team in embedding sound social work principles into daily care practices and programme delivery.

Ensure the voice, rights, safety and best interests of children and young persons remain central to case decisions and interventions.

3. Community Services Oversight

Oversee the delivery and development of community-based casework, family support, outreach and intervention services.

Guide the Manager, Community Services and relevant teams in maintaining effective intake, assessment, intervention, referral and case-closure processes.

Provide guidance on complex or high-risk cases and ensure appropriate escalation and risk-management measures.

Ensure community services remain responsive to emerging needs and are aligned with MTFA’s broader service objectives.

Strengthen links between community-based support, residential services and counselling interventions.

4. Counselling Services Oversight

Oversee the quality, accessibility and development of counselling services across MTFA.

Ensure counselling interventions are delivered within appropriate professional, ethical and organisational standards.

Provide or facilitate clinical guidance on case formulation, intervention planning, ethical concerns and risk management.

Ensure complex and high-risk counselling cases receive appropriate clinical oversight, consultation and referral.

Establish suitable arrangements for clinical supervision where specialised expertise or external supervision is required.

5. Practice Supervision and Complex Case Management

Establish a structured supervision framework for social work and counselling professionals.

Provide professional supervision, case consultation and practice guidance to managers and practitioners.

Review selected complex, high-risk or sensitive cases and guide intervention and escalation decisions.

Promote reflective practice, professional accountability and continuous improvement.

Ensure clear boundaries between administrative supervision, case supervision and clinical supervision.

Develop systems for peer reviews, case audits and multidisciplinary case discussions.

6. Safeguarding, Quality Assurance and Governance

Strengthen safeguarding practices across residential, community and counselling services.

Ensure concerns relating to abuse, neglect, exploitation, self-harm or other risks are identified, assessed, documented and escalated promptly.

Establish and monitor standards for case documentation, assessment, care planning, case reviews and service closure.

Conduct periodic case-file reviews and service audits to assess practice quality and compliance.

Ensure adherence to applicable legislation, regulatory requirements, funding conditions, professional codes and MTFA policies.

Identify service and practice risks and implement appropriate corrective and preventive measures.

Support reviews and investigations involving significant incidents, safeguarding concerns or professional practice issues.

7. Service Integration and Care Coordination

Develop clear referral, escalation and coordination pathways across Residential Services, Community Services and Counselling Services.

Facilitate coordinated care for clients and families who require support from more than one service area.

Strengthen multidisciplinary collaboration across MTFA and with external professionals.

Identify service ga