Position: Service Operations Manager
Location: Canterbury Real Group office (Kent)
Hours: Full-time, core hours 9am–5pm Monday–Friday (37.5 hours per week). This is a fixed term contract until 25th August 2028.
Salary: £40,000
Reports to: Head of Operations and People
This is an opportunity for a highly motivated and experienced operational manager and leader to join our Parent and Infant Relationship Service (PAIRS) in Kent. PAIRS provides emotional wellbeing and therapeutic support to families across Kent. The service is funded by Best Start in Life through Kent County Council and delivered by Real Group Ltd. This employment contract will be with Real Group Ltd.
About the role
The Service Operations Manager plays a key role in managing the operational delivery, administration, and referral screening functions of PAIRS Kent. Working closely with Clinical Leads and Directors following a strict clinical governance framework, you will ensure a supportive, safe, efficient, and responsive referral-to-treatment workflow, manage service demand, and ensure optimal utilisation of clinical venues and our Case Management System (Iaptus).
Because PAIRS supports families experiencing complex parent-infant relationship difficulties for parents and caregivers who are potentially vulnerable or anxious and in need of support, we are seeking someone who is approachable, emotionally intelligent, and highly resilient. The successful candidate will need these attributes to navigate the complexities of incoming referrals, processing sensitive and potentially challenging clinical content calmly, empathetically, and professionally.
Key tasks and responsibilities include
- Referral and triage management: Lead initial screening and work closely with Clinical Leads to run and expedite the triage process in Iaptus (our case management system), ensuring strict wait-time KPIs are met.
- Case management through care pathway: Apply high emotional intelligence and personal resilience to review complex referral content calmly and professionally, guiding cases through our care pathways.
- Family and referrer feedback: Oversee appointment scheduling and handle sensitive conversations with primary caregivers (parents) and multi-agency referrers with care and sensitivity.
- Venues and logistics: Negotiate contracts and SLAs for clinical spaces (such as Family Hubs and community venues), ensuring spaces meet clinical standards while optimising room usage and travel times within budget.
- Family and referrer feedback: Oversee appointment scheduling and handle sensitive conversations with primary caregivers (parents) and multi-agency referrers with care and sensitivity.
- Venues and logistics: Negotiate contracts and SLAs for clinical spaces (such as Family Hubs and community venues), ensuring spaces meet clinical standards while optimising room usage and travel times within budget.
- Data governance and risk management: Maintain data integrity within Iaptus, collate performance reports, manage risk registers alongside senior leads, and adhere strictly to GDPR and safeguarding guidelines.
- Stakeholder collaboration and continuous improvement: Foster strong partnerships with Kent County Council commissioners, external agencies, and lived-experience teams to drive service accessibility and ongoing quality improvement.
About you:
The ideal candidate will be an emotionally intelligent, resilient, and highly organised operational manager with a proven background in administration and service delivery, ideally within a healthcare, psychological, or clinical setting. You will combine excellent logistical capabilities and Case Management System (CMS) technical competence with the personal maturity to handle complex referral information calmly under pressure.
Person Specification:
- Emotional intelligence and resilience: High emotional awareness and personal resilience, with the capacity to digest complex, sensitive referral content and communicate with families and referrers calmly, empathetically, and professionally.
- Experience: Proven background in operational management and administration, ideally within a healthcare, psychological, or clinical setting.
- Technical skills: Strong competence in utilising and overseeing electronic Case Management Systems (e.g. Iaptus) and digital workflows.
- Communication and stakeholder skills: Excellent communication skills, capable of liaising with multi-agency partners (KCC commissioners, referrers, Clinical Leads) and managing delicate discussions with parents.
- Logistics and planning: Exceptional logistical and capacity planning skills, including diary management and external venue SLA/contract negotiations.
- Governance and vetting: Strong understanding of Data Protection/GDPR compliance, safeguarding principles, and Information Governance within a clinical setting. Must pass Real Group’s Safer Recruitment processes and enhanced DBS checks.
About us
Real Group is a dynamic, growing organisation with an established reputation for providing CPD training, qualifications, apprenticeships and direct psychological services to schools and families. Our other services are delivered under the names: Real Training (realtraining.co.uk), Real Psychology (realpsychology.co.uk), Dyslexia Action (dyslexiaaction.co.uk), and ESF Apprenticeships (esfapprenticeships.co.uk).
We are proud of our innovative range of services that combine psychology, education and technology. We are now delivering clinical services under a contract with Kent County Council to support parent and infant relationships across Kent via PAIRS Kent (pairskent.info). If recruited, your work will initially focus on PAIRS, although you may also be required to provide relevant professional services across Real Group.
Our Values
- Inclusivity – Valuing others, respecting others, recognising and celebrating the contribution of all.
- Positivity – Taking a positive outlook to challenges and embracing change and opportunity.
- Curiosity – Seeking to reflect, learn, ask questions and challenge orthodoxies.
- Integrity – Acting fairly, honestly, and consistently.
- Growth – Seeking growth and positive change for individuals and organisations.
- Sustainability – Helping regain ecological balance.
Benefits
We build our team with talented, positive-thinking and experienced individuals from diverse backgrounds. Working at Real Group brings many benefits including:
- Flexible working within a friendly, supportive team
- Competitive salary
- Pension
- Training and professional development opportunities
- Health and dental plan
- Access to free mental health support
- Salary sacrifice options for purchasing a bicycle or leasing an electric car
Real Group is an equal opportunity employer. We value diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees. We welcome applications from all.
How to apply
To apply, please contact hr@realgroup.co.uk to receive a Safer Recruitment Application Form which you will submit alongside a CV to demonstrate how you meet the person specification and job description. We will be continuously reviewing applications as we receive them as part of an ongoing recruitment process, so early applications are encouraged.
We are planning to host face to face interviews in our Canterbury Office on Tuesday 13th October 2026.