Managing Director - Neurodevelopmental Service

Harrogate, North Yorkshire, United Kingdom

The Oakdale Group

Oakdale was established twenty-five years ago and is highly regarded as a professional therapy provider. We are a community-based organisation and our team is united by a commitment to provide flexible, bespoke, evidence-based and high quality clinical services.  Our services are designed to meet the individual needs of our clients as well as the requirements of commissioners for a collaborative service provided by a multidisciplinary team of skilled and experienced clinicians.

Oakdale provides a number of services including Interventions for families where there is an adopted, fostered or SGO child, Neuro Developmental Assessments and support, ADHD medication service, Building Underdeveloped Sensorimotor Systems (BUSS) for children who have experienced developmental trauma, Psychotherapy in Schools, Independent Psychology and Psychotherapy Services, Improving Access to Psychological Therapy (IAPT) Services and Specialist Psychological Therapy and Trauma Services for NHS staff.  Most of our services are commissioned by the NHS or Local Authorities.  

Oakdale has Clinical Centres in Horsforth and Farsley in Leeds, in Harrogate and in Halifax and also delivers services from consulting rooms in York, Selby and Skipton. Most of Oakdale’s services are currently delivered in the North of England, although some are now provided nationwide using online platforms. 

Oakdale’s outstanding multidisciplinary clinical team consistently receives excellent feedback from clients and commissioners.  Oakdale values its clinical and administrative teams and strives to ensure that both our clients and our colleagues are at the heart of all that we do.  Oakdale’s approach is collaborative, reflective and transparent.  We seek to work in partnership with clients and commissioners to achieve excellent clinical results and have in place a commitment to measuring outcomes, seeking feedback from all stakeholders, providing good value services and having in place processes for continuous improvement.

Oakdale’s Neurodevelopment Service

This service was developed in response to a demand in North, South and West Yorkshire and the Humber, initially for private paying clients and subsequently contracted work from the NHS to help with waiting lists. The majority of Oakdale’s assessment work is now commissioned by the NHS via ICB contracts or provided as part of the NHS Choice Agenda. 

The service has grown significantly year on year and Oakdale now has a team of administrators and clinicians, some are employed and many work on a sessional basis.  Oakdale has become a respected provider in this field and is well regarded for providing an ethical service in the best interest of both clients and commissioners. 

We are aware that demand for neurodevelopmental assessments is exceptionally high nationwide and that people seeking to access NHS diagnostic services face prohibitively long waits in many localities. The advent of the NHS Right to Choose Agenda (which entitles people to select any NHS Commissioned provider of their choice for Neurodevelopmental assessments, irrespective of whether or not they are their locally commissioned provider) has created a fresh opportunity for Oakdale to grow to help meet their needs. It is envisaged that the post holder will oversee Oakdale’s strategy for expanding our Neurodevelopmental services into new localities in a planned, sustainable way - and that they will line manage and guide Oakdale’s neurodevelopmental  ‘Service Development Lead and National Right to Choose Coordinator’ as they undertake this work.

The Role

Lead the strategic and operational evolution of the neurodevelopmental service, steering its growth and development. This senior position is tailored for an experienced leader with a proven track record, aligned with Oakdale's values. Inviting individuals who thrive in a collaborative and supportive team environment, offering the opportunity to contribute with commitment and flexibility to shape the future of the service.

Skills And Attributes

The role spearheads the Oakdale Centre's entrepreneurial journey, actively shaping its growth, cultivating a stellar reputation, and driving success and innovation. Your impact will be felt not just in the development of the centre, but in crafting exceptional client experiences and fostering dynamic partnerships with our commissioners. Join us in this venture, where your contributions will be instrumental in steering Oakdale toward new heights of success and positive impact.

Duties and Responsibilities

• To lead and manage the neurodevelopmental service, in particular by ensuring that our agreed service and clinical quality standards are met.
• To work as an enthusiastic and committed team member, taking a key role in strategic planning, continued development and innovation within the service.
• To continue to develop the service, including building stakeholder relationships with relevant ICBs and other commissioners; and building our Right to Choose referrals - potentially on a nationwide basis. 
• To ensure high quality neurodevelopmental assessments and support are provided that meet the specific needs of the clients referred to Oakdale including creating and maintaining the appropriate organisational structures and resources required to deliver an effective, efficient, value for money service.  
• To ensure all operational processes are efficient and effective considering relevant legislation and clinical guidance.  
• To deliver a service compliant with relevant statutory, regulatory, and professional body requirements.
• To source any additional resources required to meet the needs of the service.
• To ensure cases are well managed and receive appropriate care through a collaborative working model with other members of the Oakdale Senior Leadership Team.  
• To work closely with Directors in responding to opportunities as well as developing external relationships so that Oakdale can be a partner of choice for the future.
• To provide leadership for the service and all team members by espousing Oakdale’s values and building a service that everyone is proud to be a part of. 
• To work with HR and Oakdale’s CPD coordinator in designing appropriate continuous professional development for the team, including commissioning both internal and external training courses in line with the professional development needs and interests of practitioners and the needs of the service.
• To use the Oakdale Case Management system to continue with the development of KPIs to monitor and evaluate the service, including both clinical and service quality and client and practitioner satisfaction.  This includes the regular production of MI packs, both as required by commissioners and for use within Oakdale as a means of service monitoring and as a management tool within the service. 
• To keep up to date with developments in the field and clinical best practices in order to inculcate within the service a process of continuous improvement.
• To comply with Oakdale’s policies and procedures, paying particular attention to risk and safeguarding.
• To line manage the senior members of the team and to work with the HR Manager ensuring compliance with all HR policies and procedures including having commitment to equality and diversity. 
  

Person Specification

• Educated to degree level in business administration/strategy or equivalent.
• Understanding of the field of neurodevelopmental assessments and support
• Knowledge of working in multidisciplinary teams.
• Knowledge of appropriate clinical instruments to measure clinical outcomes, service evaluation measures, service user feedback 
• Knowledge about management information including KPIs to measure service outputs and manage against agreed performance targets.
  

Experience & Skills

• An entrepreneurial mindset; with the vision and ability to conceptualise and lead Oakdale’s strategy as we expand the service in exceptional market conditions.
• An inspirational leader with the ability to galvanise Oakdale’s team 
• Knowledge about relevant legislation and clinical guidance in the field and statutory requirements for services
• Understanding and experience of NHS commissioning and contracts Understanding and experience of NHS commissioning and contracts
• Having a real passion for supporting people to improve their lives.
• Senior / board level experience 
• Leadership skills and experience including team management/ line management/ consultation/ quality assurance/ training/ strategic development and building external stakeholder relationships
• Ability and experience in positively influencing, developing and guiding clinicians and teams to achieve agreed outputs
• Ability to influence individuals and teams to achieve the best outcomes 
• Experience in designing and developing teams to meet the requirements of the service
• Experience in defining operational processes / writing procedure documents, business cases and proposals 
• A commitment to ethical practice and adherence to the highest standards of safeguarding for children, young people and adults  
• Ability to work effectively as part of a multidisciplinary team
• Having a naturally collaborative style and being a team player in order to genuinely support the delivery of high quality clinical service that you and your team can be proud of
• Good communication skills, being able to communicate well at all levels and build effective relationships with all stakeholders
• Experience providing professional staff appraisals and annual performance reviews
• Computer literacy (e.g. Google Workspace and database applications)
• Organisational skills to deliver agreed outputs and meet deadlines 
• Excellent written and verbal presentation skills 
• Excellent time management skills and ability to prioritise
• Wish to be part of the senior leadership team in a growing, dynamic, and responsive organisation where you can influence development and strategy as well as contribute to the success of the area under your responsibility.