At Compass Community, we believe every child deserves a future filled with opportunity, stability and support. As one of the UK’s leading providers of children’s residential care, fostering and education services, we use a therapeutic and innovative approach to help children thrive.

We are looking for a Senior Residential Placements Officer to play a key role in managing residential referrals and supporting the placement process across our growing national network of services.

This is a fantastic opportunity for someone experienced in children’s services placements, referrals, or residential care administration who wants to make a meaningful impact while working within a collaborative and mission-driven team.

The Role

As Senior Residential Placements Officer, you will lead the day-to-day coordination of residential referrals, ensuring every enquiry is managed efficiently, professionally and in line with safeguarding standards.

You will oversee the administrative processes that underpin placements, supporting accurate data management, strong communication with commissioners, and effective matching of children to services.

Working closely with the Head of Residential Placements and operational teams, you will help ensure placement decisions are timely, well-informed and centred around the needs of children.

Key Responsibilities

Referral Management

• Oversee incoming residential referrals from enquiry through to outcome

• Ensure referrals are logged, acknowledged and allocated within agreed timeframes

• Coordinate referral distribution across the placements team

• Track referral progress and follow up on outstanding information

• Escalate complex or high-risk referrals when appropriate

• Maintain clear communication with commissioners throughout the process

Administrative Leadership

• Lead the administrative coordination of the placements function

• Maintain accurate records across CRM systems and internal databases

• Ensure documentation is organised, compliant and audit-ready

• Standardise templates, documentation and tracking processes

• Support onboarding of new placement team members

• Identify and implement improvements to workflow and efficiency

Placement Matching & Coordination

• Support effective matching of children to suitable residential services

• Coordinate communication between Registered Managers, Regional Operations Managers and operational leaders

• Monitor internal vacancies and service capacity

• Ensure placement start-up processes are smooth and well organised

Data & Performance Management

• Maintain accurate referral and placement data within CRM systems

• Produce reports on referral activity, response times and occupancy levels

• Monitor key performance indicators such as:

  • Referral response times

  • Conversion rates

  • Time from referral to decision

  • Administrative accuracy

• Provide insights to support operational performance and planning

Stakeholder Engagement

• Act as a professional point of contact for commissioners and local authorities

• Build positive working relationships with internal operational teams

• Support preparation for commissioner meetings and service reviews

Safeguarding & Compliance

• Ensure all placement activity follows safeguarding and regulatory standards

• Maintain confidentiality in line with GDPR and the Data Protection Act

• Ensure all records are clear, accurate and defensible

About You

We’re looking for someone organised, proactive and committed to achieving the best outcomes for children.

You will likely have:

• Experience working within children’s residential care, fostering or placements environments

• A strong understanding of the needs of looked-after children

• Experience managing high-volume administrative or referral processes

• Experience using CRM or case management systems

• Confidence working with data, reporting and operational metrics

• Excellent communication and organisational skills

Desirable:

• Experience supervising or supporting administrative colleagues.

What Success Looks Like

• Referrals are acknowledged and processed quickly and efficiently

• Administrative systems are organised, accurate and audit-ready

• Commissioners receive professional and responsive communication

• Placement decisions are supported by clear, reliable data

• Teams work collaboratively with minimal bottlenecks in the referral process

• Children experience timely and well-coordinated placements

Why Join Compass Community?

Compass Community exists to create a future of strength and opportunity for every child.

We are building the UK’s leading children’s services organisation, and we are committed to being:

• The best place to work in children’s services

• A provider that puts children first

• A force for positive change across the sector

Our values guide everything we do:

Integrity – We do the right thing
Courage – We challenge and improve
Care – We put children and people first

When you join Compass Community, you become part of a team of Life Changers dedicated to transforming lives.