Kent County Council - Director of Adult Social Care and Health (Operations)

Director of Adult Social Care and Health (Operations)

Salary: £Competitive / Kent County Council / Hybrid

Lead at scale. Improve lives. Shape the future.

The Role

This is an opportunity to lead at significant scale, deliver tangible improvement and help shape the future of adult social care in Kent.

Reporting to the Corporate Director of Adult Social Care and Health, you will be a key member of the Directorate’s senior leadership team, providing strategic and operational leadership across a substantial portfolio of adult social care services. You will lead services that support some of Kent’s most vulnerable residents, while working across the Council and with health and other partners to improve outcomes, manage demand and ensure consistently high-quality practice.

There is a clear and immediate improvement agenda. A particular priority will be reviewing and strengthening Kent’s approach to adult safeguarding, ensuring that referrals are assessed and triaged effectively, that the right policies, processes and systems are in place and consistently followed, and that resources are focused where they can have the greatest impact.

You will also help reset Kent’s approach to hospital discharge, working closely and constructively with NHS partners to establish effective pathways, clarify expectations and ensure the right arrangements are in place for residents moving from hospital into appropriate care and support.

This is therefore much more than a role maintaining existing services. It offers the opportunity to lead change at scale and pace, improve performance and practice, strengthen partnerships and translate Kent’s ambition for person-centred, preventative adult social care into consistently excellent delivery.

The Organisation

Kent County Council operates one of the largest and most complex adult social care systems in the country, serving a county of around 1.6 million residents. It is an organisation where the scale of the challenge is matched by the opportunity to make a significant difference.

Kent’s ambition is clear: to support people to lead the lives they want to live, putting people at the heart of decision-making, promoting independence and preventing, reducing or delaying the need for care and support. Its Adult Social Care Strategy is built around three principles: putting the person first, improving all the time and measuring what matters.

And the wider context makes this an especially interesting time to join. Local Government Reorganisation will reshape local government across Kent. For the successful candidate, that creates a rare opportunity: to gain experience leading services at the scale and complexity of one of England’s largest county councils while contributing to the improvement and development of services that will ultimately transition into new organisations.

For an ambitious adult social care leader, this is an opportunity to make an impact now while helping shape what comes next.

Candidates

We are looking for an experienced and credible adult services leader who combines strong operational leadership with the ability to lead significant and sustained improvement.

You might already be operating at Director level, or you could be an accomplished senior leader ready to take on a broader and more complex leadership role. You do not necessarily need to be a qualified social worker. What matters is that you bring relevant leadership experience within adult social care and a strong understanding of areas such as safeguarding, referrals, assessment and/or front-door services.

For those aspiring ultimately to a DASS role, or considering a future interim career, the scale, visibility and complexity of this appointment also offer exceptional professional development.

Next Steps

If you are excited by the opportunity to lead adult social care at scale, deliver meaningful improvement and play a part in shaping the future of services across Kent, we would be delighted to hear from you.

To download a job description, click here.

For a confidential discussion about the opportunity, please contact Andrew Tromans at Penna on 07805 226301 or andrew.tromans@penna.com.

Closing date: Midnight 27 September, 2026.

How to Apply

1. Upload your CV under “Please select one of the options below.”
2. Complete the short mandatory fields on the next page.
3. Use ‘Add Attachments’ to upload your Supporting Statement and any other documents.
4. Please ensure that the file name of your CV and supporting statement includes your full name.
5. Ensure both CV and Supporting Statement are uploaded before submitting your application.
6. If you have a long-term health condition or disability and would like your application to be considered in accordance with a Disability Confident Scheme, please email: execapplications@penna.com, to inform the Penna team.