Professional Development Manager

Surrey County Council; Weybridge; On-site; GBP 54,000 - GBP 63,000; Part time

Job summary

A local government organization in Weybridge seeks a Professional Development Manager for its Children's Academy. The role involves designing and facilitating training programs to support social workers in delivering quality services for children and families. Applicants must possess a social work qualification and significant experience in statutory roles. The position offers a starting salary of £54,636, 26 days of holiday, and opportunities for growth and development within the organization.

Benefits

26 days' holiday capability

Option to buy additional leave

Local government salary-related pension

Carer's leave

Employee Assistance Programme

Learning and development resources

Wellbeing discounts

Qualifications

• Registered with Social Work England.
• Significant experience with statutory social work roles.
• Experience in Child in Need work and Child Protection.

Responsibilities

• Design and deliver impactful learning and development activities.
• Maximise the impact of staff learning on service quality.
• Support other Team Managers in the Academy.

Skills

Social Work qualification

Assessment skills

Experience with children and families

Planning and delivering training

Education

Degree, Masters, or Post Graduate Diploma in Social Work

Job description

Professional Development Manager - Families First

Details

• Reference: SCC/TP/288915/4536
• Positions: 1
• Category: Care - Children and Young People
• Contract type: Secondment
• Working hours: 36 hours per week
• Posted on: 6 February 2026
• Closing date: 22 February 2026
• Location: Dakota, Weybridge, Surrey, KT13 0YP

We are committed to the development of our workforce. This position is only available to applicants who already work for Surrey County Council. We thank you for your interest in our roles and would encourage you to review our vacancies which are open to all.

The starting salary for this position is £54,636 per annum based on a 36 hour working week.

We have an exciting opportunity for a Professional Development Manager to join our fantastic Children's Academy based at Dakota in Weybridge.

This is a secondment opportunity until the 31st March 2027, with a prospective start in April 2026. Please discuss with your current Line Manager before submitting your application.

Our Offer to You

• 26 days' holiday, rising to 28 days after 2 years' service and 31 days after 5 years' service (plus bank holidays)
• Option to buy up to 10 days of additional annual leave
• A generous local government salary related pension
• Up to 5 days of carer's leave and 2 paid volunteering days per year
• Paternity, adoption and dependents leave
• An Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) to support health and wellbeing
• Learning and development hub where you can access a wealth of resources
• Wellbeing and lifestyle discounts including gym, travel, and shopping
• A chance to make a real difference to the lives of our residents

About the Role

Surrey Children's Services Academy is committed to fostering learning and growth across Children's Services. We design and deliver innovative development programs that empower individuals and teams to achieve excellence and drive positive outcomes for children and families.

This exciting new role has been created for a social work qualified Team Manager to lead on the design, facilitation and delivery of a wide range of impactful learning and development activities. The role will be directly supporting the Families First Partnership Programme (FFPP) which is a multi-agency programme focused on early intervention and prevention to improve outcomes for children and families.

Your work will directly influence service transformation and improve outcomes for children and families across Surrey.

In this role you will work closely with colleagues in the Academy to utilise their expertise and knowledge of resources and training materials. You will also collaborate with Team Managers and other staff in frontline children's social care teams, and partners as required. You will use your experience of delivering training to support staff to put learning into practice.

This is a challenging but highly rewarding role, as every day you will see the impact your work has on the lives of the young people we support. The work is varied, and no two days will be the same, so you'll need to be adaptable and enjoy a challenge!

Your key responsibilities as a Professional Development Manager in our Children's Services Academy will include:

• Designing, facilitating and delivering a wide range of impactful learning and development activities to the workforce, related to skills and knowledge required under the Families First Partnership Programme
• Working in partnership with operational managers to maximise the impact of staff learning and development activity on service quality and outcomes for service users
• Working closely with, and supporting, other Team Managers in the Academy

Your Application

In order to be considered for shortlisting, your application will clearly evidence the following skills and align with our behaviours :

• A Social Work qualification such as a Degree, Masters or Post Graduate Diploma in Social Work, and registered with Social Work England
• Significant experience of working in statutory social work roles with children, young people and their families, including Assessment skills, Child in Need work, and escalating to Child Protection
• Experience of planning and delivering learning and training

The job advert closes at 23:59 on Sunday 22nd February with interviews scheduled for the 9th March.

Before submitting your application, we recommend you read the job description and Our Life at Surrey Handbook to get an insight into working at Surrey.

Contact Us

Please contact us for any questions relating to the role. This could be to discuss flexible working requests, transferable skills or any barriers to employment. Please contact Elaine Thomas by email at [e-mail] .

We look forward to receiving your application, please click on the apply online button below to submit.

An enhanced DBS 'Disclosure and Barring Service' check for regulated activity (formerly known as CRB) and the Children's and Adults' Barred List checks will be required for this role.

Local Government Reorganisation (LGR)

Surrey County Council is undergoing Local Government Reorganisation, moving from a two-tier system to two new unitary councils in April 2027. If you are employed by Surrey on 1st April 2027, your role will transfer with current terms and conditions to one of the new organisations, supporting local devolution and greater powers for our communities.

We are a disability confident employer which means if you have shared a disability on your application form and have evidenced you meet the minimum criteria, we guarantee you an interview.

Your skills and experience truly matter to us. From application to your first day, we're committed to supporting you with any adjustments you need, we value inclusion and warmly welcome you to join and help build a workplace where everyone belongs.