Area manager jobs

Do you have proven leadership skills, a strong work ethic and a passion for quality? We are seeking an Area Manager with the expertise, commitment and values to make a real and positive difference to the lives of older people with care and support needs.

We need a well-organised, professional and proactive Area Manager to lead and manage the delivery of high-quality care and support to people living in our 6 Extra Care services in Brent and Harrow. You will be dedicated to the delivery of person-centred services which enable people to enjoy a great quality of life. You will be professional and accountable with excellent verbal and written communication skills. You will have the experience and credibility to be able to provide direction, guidance and support to our services to ensure 100% CQC compliance. 

You will have experience and skills in contract management, quality assurance and performance management. You will be able to develop and sustain positive and trusting relationships with local authority commissioners, partner housing providers, professionals and other agencies. You will demonstrate a commitment to re-enablement principles and be able to lead staff to provide care and support which promotes dignity, wellbeing and independence. You will foster a warm and inclusive atmosphere in services and must promote a responsive, person-centred culture and excellent customer care. Your busy, varied and responsible role will involve:

• Contract management and compliance

• All aspects of quality assurance and monitoring

• Driving service improvements

• Ensuring provision of varied and vibrant activities at all services

• Producing reports and collating data against KPIs

• Performance management of the Registered Managers/Senior Team

• Recruitment and selection of Staff

• Disciplinary and grievance management

• Investigation and follow up of concerns, complaints and suggestions

• Assessment and allocation of new service users

• Partnership working

In order to undertake this responsible role, you will need to have a relevant health or social care qualification and have at least 4 years supervisory/management experience in health or social care services involving the care and support of older people and adults with a range of support needs. A knowledge and understanding of dementia and common health related needs will be very helpful. In return we will support you with your on-going professional development, including practitioner and management training.

The successful applicant will be initially based in Harrow/Brent and in time proceed to offer their insight and management to other services in London, Essex and surrounding areas.

Vacancy Reference Number: 93725

Applications for this role must be submitted via the Creative Support website using the above vacancy reference number

Creative Support has a corporate commitment to enabling people with caring and family responsibilities to apply for senior roles, part time applicants will be considered for this role.

Creative Support’s Development Pathway offers a structured induction and values-led training to help staff grow from entry-level to leadership roles. It empowers career progression through tailored learning aligned with national strategies and the WE CARE framework. Benefits of working with Creative Support include a probationary bonus, pension contributions, 28 days Leave and company paid enhanced DBS.

We are a passionate, inclusive, and anti-racist organization - Stonewall Diversity Champion, Disability Confident Employer who have recently received Investors in People Gold award.

We can only accept applications from candidates who are located in and eligible to work within the UK – This post will not be open to Sponsorship, and we are unable to accept applicants with Skilled Worker Visas.

Area Manager Role

Location: London (field-based with some home working)
Salary: £46,000
Contract: Full Time
Closing Date: 24 August 2026

Join FARA and Help Transform Lives Through Retail

Founded over 35 years ago, FARA Foundation is a UK registered charity and a successful charity retailer with a network of 39 vibrant shops across London. FARA raises vital funds to support vulnerable and disadvantaged children, young people and their families in Romania, providing services that help break the cycles of poverty and give young people a better start in life.

We are looking for an exceptional Area Manager to lead and develop a portfolio of 10+ charity shops, supporting Shop Managers to deliver outstanding commercial results while creating welcoming, community-focused spaces that embody FARA’s values and mission.

This is an exciting opportunity for a commercially-minded and people-focused leader who enjoys developing others, driving performance, and contributing strategically to a charity retail operation.

The Role

Reporting to the Trading Director, you will be responsible for supporting and developing a group of Shop Managers, helping them maximise sales, donations, Gift Aid income and community engagement while ensuring shops operate safely, compliantly and efficiently.

As a member of the Senior Management Team, you will contribute to the wider development of the trading business, lead operational projects, and play a key role in delivering FARA’s long-term retail strategy.

About You

We are looking for someone who can demonstrate the following competencies:

• Values-led leadership: A strong commitment to FARA’s mission, vision and values, with the ability to lead, coach and develop Shop Managers in a supportive, accountable and collaborative way.
• Commercial focus: Experience of achieving results through others, using KPIs, budgets and financial reports to improve sales, contribution, Gift Aid, stock generation and controllable costs.
• People development: Strong line management skills, with experience of recruitment, induction, performance management, succession planning and handling employee relations matters.
• Retail operational excellence: A sound understanding of shop operations, including pricing, culling, density, curation, sales space, sorting, layout and the ability to coach managers to improve the retail proposition.
• Compliance and risk management: Working knowledge of health and safety, risk assessments, fire risk assessments, regulatory requirements and the ability to maintain safe, compliant shops.
• Project and planning skills: Experience supporting target setting, five-year plans, shop improvements, refits, relocations or other operational projects.

Essential Skills & Experience

• Proven experience in an Area Manager, Regional Manager or equivalent multi-site retail role (or demonstrable desire to gain wider experience).
• Strong track record of leading teams to achieve and exceed commercial and operational KPIs.
• Excellent commercial awareness with the ability to analyse financial and operational data.
• Experience in coaching, developing and motivating staff.
• Experience handling employee relations issues, including performance management, disciplinary and grievance matters.
• Knowledge of health and safety, risk management and compliance requirements.
• Strong organisational, planning and project management skills.
• Ability to build effective working relationships across a wide range of stakeholders.
• Proficient IT skills to perform a range of professional functions on excel, word and other applications.

Desirable

• Experience within charity retail or the not-for-profit sector.
• Experience recruiting and managing volunteers.
• Knowledge of retail refurbishment, relocation or property projects.
• Understanding of Gift Aid and donation-led retail operations.
• Full UK driving licence and access to a vehicle.

Additional Information

• Travel across London will be required.
• Participation in an on-call rota approximately one weekend per month will be required.
• Occasional cover for colleagues during periods of annual leave/absence will be required.

How to Apply

If you are an inspiring retail leader who can combine commercial expertise with a passion for people development and social impact, we would love to hear from you.

To apply, please submit a CV and a cover letter (maximum 2 pages) by email outlining how you meet the skills & experience required for the role and why the role excites you.

Applications Deadline: 24 August 2026

Interview Dates:

• Round one: Online 2 September 2026 (online via Zoom)
• Round two: In Person 18 & 21 September 2026 

Join FARA and help us grow a retail operation that changes lives, strengthens communities and delivers lasting impact.

Salary: £27,500 per annual and a car allowance

Hours: Full-time 37 hours per week across seven days (potentially including weekend work)

Closing date: 19 August 2026

Permanent or Fixed Term: Permanent

Location: Harrogate, with regular travel across South and West Yorkshire

About Us

Yorkshire is one of the regions hardest hit by cancer. Together, we can change this.

Yorkshire Cancer Research is a charity dedicated to funding research so that you and those you love live longer healthier lives, free of cancer.

Thanks to supporters, the charity funds vital cancer research and pioneers innovative new services for people with cancer. These life-giving medical breakthroughs are helping more people survive cancer – in Yorkshire, and beyond.

As an inclusive employer, our aim is to ensure our workforce reflects the rich diversity of our region. We believe a diverse workforce is vital to us taking action to prevent, diagnose and treat cancer more effectively in Yorkshire. We offer equal opportunities regardless of race, religion or belief, age, disability, sex, gender reassignment, sexual orientation, pregnancy and maternity, marriage and civil partnerships.

We’ve got a strong set of values that inform everything we do, and we’re looking for people who are aligned with these. As a Assistant Retail Area Manager, you will put people in Yorkshire at the heart of everything you do, unite with colleagues and other organisations in this cause, and dare to think big and bold to make positive solutions happen.

To find out more about our values and how important they are to us, please read the role profile linked above.

The Benefits

We offer a wide and generous range of benefits designed to support our employees through every stage of life. To read about these, please see the benefits section of our Careers Page.

The Role

As a Assistant Retail Area Manager, you will play a key support role within the retail team in South and West Yorkshire, ensuring continuity of shop operations, reducing unplanned shop closure dates, and strengthening recruitment and induction processes.

The role supports the Retail Area Manager by maintaining high operational standards, developing shop teams, and embedding consistent policies and procedures across the retail network. The postholder will provide hands-on cover and practical support across multiple shops, particularly during periods of holiday, absence, vacancies, or after new shop openings.

Specifically, you will:

Provide support, knowledge and guidance through effective policies and procedures to keep Retail safe and legal:

• Support shop teams by reinforcing and embedding retail, operational, health & safety, and compliance policies and procedures.

• Act as a practical point of guidance for shop teams when covering shops or providing additional support, ensuring policies and procedures are applied consistently.

• Identify gaps in understanding or compliance and provide clear, supportive coaching to address these.

• Escalate risks, incidents, or non-compliance concerns promptly to the Retail Area Manager, supporting corrective action where required.

• Promote a culture where safety, legality, and good governance are clearly understood as part of everyday retail practice.

Enable managers across the retail estate to build high ownership of risk management:

• Support Retail Area Managers in developing confident, capable shop management teams who understand their responsibilities for compliance, safety, and risk management.

• Assist with recruitment activity, including shortlisting, interviewing, and inducting new starters, ensuring roles are filled effectively to minimise shop closures.

• Provide hands on management cover during periods of absence or vacancy, maintaining team morale, accountability, and operational continuity.

Provide clarity around retail standards, policies and procedures to protect the professional integrity of retail teams and the Yorkshire Cancer Research brand:

• Support shop teams to maintain strong commercial awareness, balancing income generation with appropriate controls and risk management.

• Provide clear, practical guidance to shop teams on visual merchandising, customer service, stock presentation, and shop standards.

• Act as post opening support for new shops, working alongside new teams to embed agreed standards, procedures, and ways of working.

• Reinforce brand presentation and customer experience expectations during shop cover and support visits.

Drive cost control and income generation across Retail while balancing commercial performance and business protection:

• Support shop teams to maintain strong commercial awareness, balancing income generation with appropriate controls and risk management.

• While covering or supporting shops, take responsibility for protecting income through effective stock management, pricing, till procedures, and loss prevention.

• Promote efficient use of resources, helping to control costs and reduce unnecessary spend during periods of cover or transition.

• Support Retail Area Managers and shop teams to maximise trading opportunities, particularly during periods of employee change or after new shop openings.

About You

To be considered for this role, you will need:

• Experience working in a retail environment, ideally within charity or not-for-profit retail.

• Proven experience supporting or supervising multiple stores or teams.

• An understanding of retail key performance indicators (KPIs) such as sales, Gift Aid, average transaction value (ATV), and stock rotation.

• Experience supporting recruitment, onboarding, and development of employees and/or volunteers.

• Strong leadership and interpersonal skills, with the ability to motivate and support diverse teams, including volunteers.

• Excellent communication skills, both verbal and written, with the ability to adapt style to different audiences.

• The ability to build effective working relationships with shop managers, colleagues, and external stakeholders.

• The ability to coach and support shop managers and teams to improve performance and deliver targets.

• A full UK driving licence and access to your own vehicle.

• To be ideally educated to A Level or equivalent or able to demonstrate experience in a similar role at a similar level.

Application

Before applying, please read the full role profile linked above.

Yorkshire Cancer Research is a responsible and flexible employer. We welcome any discussion for flexible working at the interview/offer stage where we will consider an individual’s circumstances against the needs of the charity.

We positively encourage applications from suitably qualified and eligible candidates from all backgrounds. If we can make any reasonable adjustments to support your application please contact us.