Director of Support Services

To lead the effective development and delivery of all Wessex Cancer Support’s services to ensure we are able to continue to meet the emotional and wellbeing needs of people with cancer and their loved ones.    

Principal Responsibilities 

Operational 

To oversee the delivery of all of Wessex Cancer Support’s services for people with cancer and their loved ones. These include 4 cancer support centres; outreach services delivered in the community and online; counselling and complementary therapy contracts delivered in hospitals; 4 Sing for Life choirs; and 2 Daisy bus transport services. Specifically: 

• Strategic responsibility and leadership for all our support services, staff and volunteers, with direct line management responsibility for 5 direct reports.  

• Ensure that all support services are delivered in a safe, responsible and compassionate manner. 

• Facilitate strong communication between different services, to share best practice and encourage peer support.  

• Implement and monitor appropriate systems to collect and safely store services data, ensuring compliance with GDPR regulations.  

• Analyse data to measure, monitor and evaluate services in line with agreed KPIs, including around client data, EDI measures, utilization and so on, taking mitigating actions as needed.  

• Work with the marketing team and services colleagues to plan and implement promotional activity to the general public, clinical and cancer support workers, to raise the profile of our services and ensure we achieve targeted client numbers.  

• Develop and manage new projects and programmes as agreed by the Board / CEO, working collaboratively with colleagues in the SLT and across the organisation.  

• Build strong working relationships with key partners eg Wessex Cancer Alliance, NHS departments, other charities and community organisations to further the charity’s mission. 

• Facilitate good working relationships between service teams and income generation colleagues to ensure opportunities to raise money are maximised in a way that is appropriate for clients.  

• Work with the fundraising team to provide information that will support funding applications and reporting; and deliver services in line with restricted grant agreements where relevant.  

• Prepare and manage income and expenditure budgets proactively, taking responsibility for controlling expenditure, ensuring sustainability of support, and growing income where possible. 

Strategic leadership 

• Attend Board meetings, providing regular written and verbal reports about progress against KPI goals.   

• Take a proactive role in the development of the services strategy, preparing robust proposals for new activity, for consideration by the CEO and Board.  

• As part of the Senior Leadership Team, develop and execute strategic plans which align with the charity’s mission and goals.  

• Be a respected ambassador of the charity’s brand, mission, values, and impact in the community  

• Represent the charity at external meetings and presentations as needed.  

• Maintain working knowledge of cancer support services in the region. 

Standards 

• Ensure relevant safeguarding policies are in place and adhered to across services.  

• Ensure that Health & Safety policies are adhered to, including carrying out regular risk assessments. 

• Recruit counselling and therapy staff according to appropriate qualifications and professional membership. 

• Ensure all services activity is compliant with relevant WCS policies and procedures.  

Other 

• Undertake any other duties as required by the CEO and Board. 

Skills, knowledge and experience 

Essential = E; Desirable = D 

• Significant experience in a similar leadership role. E 

• A strong understanding of the value and complexity of providing support services for people living in vulnerable or traumatic circumstances. E 

• Strong track record of people management with multi-disciplinary teams, and evidence of inspiring and leading people to success. E 

• Knowledge of cancer services and the role that VCSEs play in provision of cancer support. D 

• Experience of grant management and compliance. D 

• Microsoft Office Suite. D 

• Excellent communication and listening skills, with ability to motivate others. E  

• Experience working within the charity sector or demonstrable understanding of the voluntary sector and the role that charities play in health care. E 

• Demonstrable experience of managing service delivery programmes and/or projects. E 

• Experience of setting, monitoring and reporting against key performance indicators. E 

• Experience of budget management across multiple cost centres, able to forecast and assess performance. E 

• Commitment to Wessex Cancer Support’s values and behaviours. E 

• Knowledge and understanding of how to deliver in line with relevant legislation including health and safety and safeguarding. E  

• Current driving licence and willingness to travel around the region to meet the needs of the role. E 

• Flexible and resilient personality. E 

• Evidence of problem-solving skills. E  

• Practiced at operating effectively in collaboration with Boards and senior colleagues. D 

• Ability to effectively liaise with multiple varied internal and external stakeholders to deliver outcomes. D