Now recruiting · Ref OW-2026-HSM-01
Health Services Manager
We are looking for someone to take professional responsibility for the quality and safety of the counselling service Ostwalden provides. This is a senior, hands-on role in a small organisation: you would own our clinical governance and safeguarding framework, and you would be accountable for the standard of care people receive.
- Salary
- £50,300 per annum
- Contract
- Permanent, full time
- Hours
- 37.5 hours per week, Monday to Friday
- Location
- Suite 5, 5th Floor City Reach, 5 Greenwich View Place, London E14 9NN
- Reports to
- Director
- Start date
- By arrangement
- Date posted
- 22 September 2026
- Closing date
- 31 March 2027
What you would be responsible for
- Own the clinical governance framework for the service — set the standards counselling is delivered to, audit against them, and report on quality and outcomes to the director.
- Hold responsibility for safeguarding: maintain the safeguarding policy, make sure risk and escalation procedures are understood and followed, and act as the point of escalation for concerns about an adult at risk.
- Run the complaints procedure end to end, investigate concerns about care, and make sure lessons from complaints change what the service does.
- Assure the professional standing of every counsellor delivering the service: verify professional-body registration, qualifications, supervision arrangements and indemnity insurance before they begin, and re-check them on a defined cycle.
- Make sure the service operates within the ethical frameworks of the relevant professional bodies, and that arrangements for counsellors still in training meet the supervision requirements their registration demands.
- Lead recruitment, induction and performance management for the counselling team, including supervision arrangements and continuing professional development.
- Own information governance for a service handling sensitive health information — retention, access, confidentiality and its limits, and breach response — working with our advisers.
- Plan the development of the service so it reaches people who are currently poorly served, including those who would prefer to be seen in a language other than English.
What we need you to bring
- A bachelor's degree or above in psychology, health or social care management, or a closely related field.
- At least two years' operational or service management experience in health services or mental health.
- Practical experience of clinical governance, safeguarding or service quality assurance, and the confidence to hold others to a standard.
- A working understanding of the professional and ethical frameworks that govern counselling in the UK.
- Sound judgement on confidentiality and information governance when handling sensitive personal information.
- Excellent written and spoken English.
Also useful, but not essential
- Experience in a service working across more than one language or cultural context.
- Experience of supporting practitioners who are working towards professional registration.
- Familiarity with remote or digitally delivered health services.
What we offer
- 28 days’ holiday including UK bank holidays
- Workplace pension
- An annual budget for training and professional development
- Flexible start and finish times
- A genuine say in how a young service is built
How to apply
Send a CV and a short covering note telling us how you have handled responsibility for the quality or safety of a service before, to info@ostwalden.co.uk, quoting reference OW-2026-HSM-01. Applications close on 31 March 2027. We will acknowledge every application.
This post involves responsibility for safeguarding adults who may be at risk, and an offer would be subject to satisfactory references and to the checks the role requires.