National Manager – Children, Young People & Families (0–25)

We are looking for a National Manager to shape the delivery of our services for children, young people, and families. 

Job Title:  National Manager – Children, Young People & Families (0–25)  Reports to:  Deputy CEO Department:  Services Location:  Home-based or Hybrid (if located near Peterborough HQ) Travel:  Across England, Wales, occasionally Northern Ireland Hours:  35 per week  (core hours 9am-5pm with flexibility for evenings/weekends) Salary:  £37,000 pa FTE Closing date:  Thursday 16th April 2026 at 11pm  Interviews:  Monday 27th April 2026   

This is an exciting opportunity to shape Shine’s strategic direction while managing the operational delivery of our services for children, young people, and families aged 0–25. Building on the success of our Little Stars/Ser Bach programme for members aged 0–12 and the development and extension of the FIRE (Friendship, Independence, Resilience, Empowerment) programme for those aged 13–25, you will play a key role in shaping the future of our support for children, young people and their families.  
 
Working across England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, you will lead the delivery of an established, evidence-based programme that improves health, social, and emotional outcomes for those living with spina bifida, hydrocephalus, and associated conditions.  
 
You’ll lead a passionate team and work closely with Shine’s Adult Services Team (25+), Health Team, Wales and Northern Ireland Managers and wider colleagues across the organisation to ensure work is coordinated, complementary, and beneficial to members. At the same time, you’ll forge strong partnerships with NHS professionals, statutory services, and voluntary organisations, driving collaboration that will support our vision of providing consistent, high-quality support for children, young people, and families nationwide. 
 

Leadership and Team Management 

• Lead and develop the Children, Young People & Families Team, providing supervision, guidance, and professional development.
• Recruit and induct new team members in line with Shine’s HR processes.

Programme Development and Delivery 

• Implement and oversee the Little Stars/Ser Bach and FIRE programmes, ensuring they meet the needs of members and funders.
• Build strategic relationships with NHS children’s and transition clinics across England, Wales and Northern Ireland; negotiate formal Service Level Agreements (SLAs).
• Collaborate closely with the Northern Ireland and Wales Service Managers to ensure service development and delivery meets the needs of members across all nations and recognises regional differences.
• Develop the Children, Young People & Families Strategy in collaboration with the Head of Health.
• Monitor and optimise team workflow for efficiency.
• Deliver the annual workplan alongside the specific funded projects.
• Manage funded projects and service budgets.
• Ensure compliance with funding agreements and reporting requirements.
• Develop key resources.
• Contribute to the successful delivery of Shine’s Strategic Goals.
• Act as Shine’s Deputy Safeguarding Lead for 0–25s, ensuring robust safeguarding practices.

Monitoring, Evaluation and Reporting 

• Oversee data quality and reporting, using insights to inform service improvements.
• Work with the Head of Data & Communications to develop the CRM system (Salesforce).
• Provide evidence for funders and contribute to fundraising bids for sustainability.
• Ensure monitoring and evaluation takes place in line with agreed KPIs.

Member Support and Engagement 

• Ensure the team delivers quality advice and support to Shine’s members.
• Oversight of events, peer support groups, and online communities' delivery to ensure they meet service objectives.
• Ensure clinic cover and development of Shine’s role within the hospital setting.
• Attend multi-disciplinary meetings on behalf of Shine/Shine members.
• Coordinate casework referrals and signposting to specialist services.
• Identify opportunities for consultation and research.
• Lead and oversee social media, including Discord, WhatsApp and Facebook groups.

• Demonstrate flexibility and willingness to work outside core hours when required.
• This role requires travel primarily across England, therefore easy access to major transport routes would be beneficial.
• Maintain high standards of respect, communication, professionalism, empathy, and sensitivity when supporting an organisation representing 15,000 members, including 5,000 members aged 0-25.
• Adhere to Shine’s safeguarding policies and processes, recognising that safeguarding is everyone’s responsibility.
• Actively participate in regional staff meetings and staff residential events.
• Identify new innovative ideas for additional or continued funding as the project develops and contribute to funding bids as requested.
• Work with Services, Marketing, Fundraising, Trust and Foundations colleagues and Shine’s membership to identify and seize potential fundraising opportunities for long-term sustainability of the work.

Essential knowledge, skills and experience: 

• Minimum 3 years’ experience managing staff and teams.
• At least 5 years' experience in delivering support services for children, young people and families.
• Proven project management skills.
• Experience of Safeguarding Children & Young People.
• Ability to develop and deliver professional presentations and training in a variety of settings.
• Excellent communication and relationship-building skills.
• IT skills, including confidence in the use of Microsoft and bespoke CRMs.

Essential qualifications:  (one of the following) 

• Qualified Teacher / SENCO
• JNC Level 6 Youth Worker
• Level 6+ in Childhood Development/Early Childhood Studies.

Desirable knowledge, skills and experience: 

• Experience supporting children and young people with disabilities, particularly spina bifida/hydrocephalus.
• Event planning, advocacy, and multi-disciplinary working.
• Understanding of NHS systems and processes.
• Third sector experience and working with volunteers.
• Managing communication through social media platforms.
• Leading on safeguarding.

Desirable qualifications: 

• Safeguarding level 3
• Health/ Social Care/ Information and Advice
• Management Level 5+
• Project management

• Competitive salary: Review due April 2027
• Regular working hours, and no shift work (some very occasional weekends or evenings)
• 3% pension contribution
• 25 days annual leave plus bank holidays, with additional discretionary leave between Christmas and New Year
• Additional annual leave awarded for ‘long service’
• Opportunity to purchase additional annual leave
• Broadband allowance for home-based roles
• Life insurance after 12 months’ employment
• Access to our Employee Support Programme and Mental Health First Aiders
• Support to learn and develop

Shine is a Disability Confident employer and will offer guaranteed interviews if a disabled applicant meets the minimum criteria for the job.  
  
If you would like to discuss the role with our Deputy CEO, Gill Valentine, please contact recruitment@shinecharity.org.uk to arrange a convenient time for a call.  
  
To apply, please submit your CV and supporting statement, which should outline your interest and explain how you meet the role criteria to recruitment@shinecharity.org.uk    
 
We understand that you may wish to use AI tools to help you with some aspects of your application but we do expect tailored applications which are personalised to your experiences and not generic applications which are completely AI generated. We encourage candidates to be transparent about AI usage in their applications.  
  *Please note applications without a supporting statement will not be accepted*  
  Closing date:  Thursday 16th April 2026 at 11pm  Interviews:  Monday 27th April 2026   
 Please note:  we reserve the right to interview suitable candidates before the closing date, therefore, we encourage applications as soon as possible.