Director of Children's Services

Directors of Children's Services lead, manage and take overall responsibility for the delivery of high-quality social care in their local authority.

Leaders

Directors of Children's Services are also referred to as Directors of Children’s Social Care.

What you'll do

As a Director of Children’s Services you’ll:

  • provide strategic leadership of children's services to align with national policies and local authority objectives 
  • oversee the planning, development and delivery of services 
  • define and implement the strategic vision for children's services across a local authority 
  • lead on developing co-operation with external partners including schools, health and police 
  • have oversight of the budget and resources allocated to children's services 
  • ensure services provided by external partners deliver for children and represent value for money 
  • sit on national boards and report to organisations such as the Department for Education 
  • develop and implement policies and initiatives that promote the welfare of children 
  • manage a team of professionals and ensure high standards of practice 

The role of Director of Children's Services is subject to Statutory guidance for local authorities with responsibility for education and children’s social services functions. This sets out:

  • the process for appointing a director of children's services
  • the role and responsibilities of post holders
  • what local authorities must do to comply with the law

Skills and knowledge

You'll need:

  • leadership skills to provide strategic direction, motivate teams and manage resources 
  • strategic thinking to analyse complex issues and make informed decisions 
  • in-depth knowledge of legislation, regulations and policies related to children's services and social care 
  • expert knowledge of running a public sector organisation 
  • financial management skills to ensure effective use of resources 
  • communication skills to build relationships and negotiate with external partners 
  • knowledge of safeguarding principles to ensure the well-being of children
  • the ability to evaluate service performance and implement continuous improvement measures

How to become one

To become a Director of Children’s Services, you must: 

  • ideally have a professional qualification such as the Level 7 Diploma in Management and Leadership
  • have experience leading multidisciplinary teams, implementing strategic plans and driving organisational change
  • have experience managing budgets and allocating resources

If you’re an assistant director, the DCS Leadership programme for aspirant directors can help prepare you to progress to a director of children's services role.

Career roles and progression

With experience you could: 

  • move into a senior leadership position in a social work organisation such as chief executive officer or chief operating officer 
  • move into research and teaching 
  • complete the DCS Leadership programme for new directors to help develop your leadership, management and technical skills.

Career opportunities

The Find a job service can help you with your search for jobs and send alerts when new jobs become available.

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These resources have been developed by Department for Education.
Published: 18 September 2023
Last updated: 21 November 2025
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