Contract Type: Permanent

Salary: Grade H. Scale 29 - £39,862 to Scale 31 - £41,771

Hours Per Week: 36 hours

Base Location: Ashton Old Library

Assessment Date: To be arranged

Are you passionate about being the difference to the lives of children and families? Do you bring, compassion, curiosity, collaboration, conversation and courage to your practice? If so, we want you to join Team Tameside. This is an exciting time to join Tameside’s Children’s Services.

The Role

Are you committed to making a positive difference for children, young people and families in Tameside?

We have an excellent opportunity for a motivated Senior Commissioning Officer to join Tameside Council’s Children and Young People’s Commissioning Service.

This senior role will work closely with the Team Manager to provide strategic leadership and oversight in shaping and delivering Tameside’s priorities for Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) and Alternative Provision, ensuring alignment with the national SEND and Alternative Provision reforms.

From a commissioning perspective, the postholder will play a pivotal role in driving system-wide transformation to improve outcomes, promote inclusion, and secure sustainable, high-quality provision for children and young people.

Working collaboratively with schools, settings, and key system partners, you will lead the strategic commissioning cycle across SEND and Alternative Provision. This will include developing and implementing forward-thinking commissioning strategies, informed by robust sufficiency planning, local need, and the principles of the SEND reforms, including earlier intervention, inclusive practice, and strengthened mainstream capacity.

You will provide visible and assured leadership across the system, overseeing the performance, quality, and impact of commissioned services and placements, including those delivered by independent and alternative provision providers.

A strong focus will be placed on ensuring services deliver positive outcomes, support children and young people to thrive within their local communities wherever possible and represent best value in the context of increasing demand and financial pressures.

The role will hold accountability for the end-to-end commissioning cycle, including market development, procurement, contract management, and quality assurance, ensuring a coherent and integrated approach to service delivery. You will work closely with education leaders, particularly schools and trusts, to co-produce solutions that strengthen inclusive practice and reduce reliance on high-cost specialist placements.

Through effective partnership working across the Council, education, health, and wider stakeholders, you will ensure that statutory responsibilities are fully met, while also influencing system change in line with the ambitions of the SEND reforms.

This role will be central to embedding a more strategic, preventative, and outcomes-focused approach to meeting the needs of children and young people with SEND in Tameside.

About You

Your essential qualifications

• Good level of Education to ‘A’ Level standard or equivalent level 3 Qualification

Your essential skills, knowledge and experience

• Previous experience within a contracting environment, in a related area.
• Experience and knowledge of the SEND, Alternative Provision and Inclusion sector
• Effective communication skills at both verbal and written levels
• Effective and up to date IT skills
• The ability to monitor and report on financial information
• Effective organisational and planning skills and the ability to coordinate a variety of different activities simultaneously
• The ability to process and manage information effectively including the establishment and maintenance of appropriate systems.
• The ability to take a pro-active approach including initiating work, taking lead responsibility, working autonomously where appropriate
• The ability to work productively with a range of people, including senior officers, independent Providers and people who use services
• The ability to work in complex situations and offer solutions
• The ability to self-reflect and a commitment to own personal and professional development
• The ability to converse at ease with service users/customers and provide advice in accurate spoken English
• Knowledge and understanding of the tasks and processes involved in managing and designing contracts
• Understanding of the relevance of Local Authority Standing Orders relating to contracts and financial regulations, and also European procurement regulations
• Ability to manage own workload

If you have the following experience or qualifications then that’s great!

• Legal or Procurement qualification
• Outcome Based contracting
• Public Sector contracting
• Previous work experience of public sector organisations including experience with a legal or financial framework
• Collation and production of statistics
• Management experience
• Knowledge and understanding of the changing SEND, Alternative Provision and Inclusion agenda and reforms
• Knowledge of the range of services offers by Education, Social Care and Health

About Us

Hear from Jill Colbert OBE, Director of Children’s Services

“When I first joined the council at the beginning of 2025 I was instantly charmed by the warmth, openness, and energy of my colleagues.

“The reason why I came to Tameside was because I knew we could do fantastic things for our families here.

“Whilst we’re currently a children’s service on a significant improvement journey, I’m proud of the progress we’ve made together, and this is already making a difference for our children.

“I know from the feedback from our Commissioner, Ofsted and our Strategic Improvement Partner, that families are seeing and feeling the impact of the thoughtful and compassionate support delivered by our workforce.

“We know that if we keep children at the centre of our thinking and our actions, we will create meaningful change for them that lasts.

“We are also growing and investing in our future. We have a range of specialist services for children, giving social workers quick access to expert help that makes complex decisions easier and supports better outcomes. Our Social Work Academy is led by people who bring passion to learning. We are strengthening our progression pathways so that staying in Tameside is rewarded and recognised. We have invested in innovation and improvement so that we can grow services and support for families that we can sustain, from family hubs through to complex safeguarding.

“Together, we are creating a proud, inclusive, and safe environment where great practice can truly flourish. And I feel incredibly privileged to lead this journey alongside such dedicated colleagues.

“Be a part of something great, be a part of our improvement journey and join us at Team Tameside.”

At the heart of this role is our Heart of Support Practice Approach, underpinned by the 5 C’s Compassion, Curiosity, Collaboration, Conversation and Courage. These values are the golden thread in how we work with children, families and each other. You will champion the Heart of Support and play a pivotal role in embedding systemic practice across the service.

We are committed to safeguarding and championing the welfare of children, young people, and families. Protecting and empowering our communities is at the heart of everything we do, and we expect every member of our team to share that commitment and help us make a meaningful difference.

This position is subject to Enhanced with Barred List Disclosure Procedures. We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and adults and expect all staff to share this commitment.

Unfortunately, at this time we are not able to offer sponsorship.

We are committed to developing a culture which respects individuals, appreciates difference and allows everyone regardless of background to reach their full potential. We are proud to be an accredited disability confident employer. Reasonable Adjustments will be considered in accordance with the Equality Act 2010 in relation to the Job Role Criteria.

Our rewards and benefits package can be viewed here

For further information about this role please contact the recruiting manager on 0161 342 3649 or sally.atkinson@tameside.gov.uk