Head of Young Peoples Services

About Blackburn  & Darwen Youth Zone:

Blackburn & Darwen Youth Zone is a 21st century youth hub located at the heart of Blackburn and a dedicated site in Darwen, open to young people aged 5 to 25 years old, aiming to change the prospects offered to young people in the area. Our vision is to be at the heart of the community, collaborating to create a more cohesive and prosperous Blackburn and Darwen.

We are one of the leading youth organisations in Blackburn, with a membership of over 5000 young people. We are open 7 days a week, 52 weeks of a year and offer over 40 different activities and opportunities in our open-access youth club.

Context of Role:

Our Head of Young People's Services is a critical, strategic and operational role within Blackburn and Darwen Youth Zone. As a supporting member of the Senior Leadership Team (SLT), you will work closely with the Director of Operations, CEO and the Director of Finance to ensure the charity delivers its vision and strategic objectives. This includes strategies for sustaining and overseeing the ongoing transformation of Blackburn and Darwen Youth Zones' operational business plan and its operational processes and infrastructure. Your leadership skills will play a crucial role (in conjunction with the leadership team) in establishing a platform and environment for growth by creating a best-in-class, people-first, employee-of-choice that changes the prospect of local children and young people (aged 5 to 25 years). You must be abreast of new opportunities (sourced independently and through your colleagues) and advise the leadership team and board on all Universal and Targeted Service operational matters, including its performance, risk, forecast/trajectories, and the general state of play. 

You will need to show exceptional skills and the ability to meet KPI’s relating to (but, not limited to) leadership skills, the ability to design and deliver organisational operational plans, risk management, departmental budget management, stakeholder relations and organisational safeguarding responsibility. 

We have big plans for the Youth Zone and this is an exciting time to join us. We would expect the right candidate for this role to be open to new opportunities and there is a strong line of progression within the charity for the right person.