Head of Service (Offender Management Unit) at Catch22

Royal Borough of Greenwich, England, United Kingdom -

Full Time

Start Date

Immediate

Expiry Date

08 Jun, 26

Salary

47950.0

Posted On

10 Mar, 26

Experience

10 year(s) or above

Remote Job

Yes

Telecommute

Yes

Sponsor Visa

Skills

Leadership, Offender Management, Service Delivery, Strategic Oversight, Operational Oversight, Performance Management, Governance, Service Innovation, Risk Management, Safeguarding, Team Leadership, Stakeholder Management, Business Development, Audit Preparation, HMPPS Policy, ViSOR

Industry

Non-profit Organization Management

Description

Company Description At Catch22, we are proud of our reputation as a modern and progressive employer. Our 1,300 colleagues and 300 volunteers work at every stage of the social welfare cycle, supporting over 60,000 individuals from cradle to career. Our work builds a better society - one where everyone has good people around them, a purpose, and a good place to live. Read our latest Annual Review and Voice from the Frontline summary here. In Justice, we work with young people and adults in custody and in the community, providing a range of services including offender management and resettlement, veterans in custody, victim services, gangs work and youth justice.b Catch22's Offender Management Unit (OMU) offers management support to men who have been convicted or remanded at HMP Thameside from point of sentence or recall, up until transfer or release. Job Description Catch22 is seeking an exceptional Head of Service to lead our Offender Management Unit (OMU) and Gangs & Violence Reduction services at HMP Thameside. This is a senior leadership opportunity within a busy Category B resettlement prison in South-East London. You will provide strategic and operational oversight of the OMU, ensuring high-quality, contractually compliant delivery aligned with HMPPS policy frameworks, public protection standards and organisational policies & Procedures. Reporting to the Assistant Director, you will drive performance, governance, and service innovation, ensuring key performance targets and audit requirements (including HMIP inspections) are met. Acting as the ViSOR (HMPPS database) lead for the establishment, you will oversee offender flows, inter-prison transfers, and compliance processes. You will work closely with prison leadership, Serco, HMPPS, and a wide range of internal and external partners to deliver impactful offender management services. A key part of this opportunity is leading and developing high-performing teams, including a Deputy Head of Service and OMU Coordinators, creating a culture of accountability, engagement, and continuous improvement. This opportunity also contributes to business development, supporting tender activity, and identifying opportunities to expand Catch22’s custodial services and impact in society. We are looking for a confident, resilient leader who thrives in complex environments and is committed to improving outcomes for people in custody. Qualifications Essential: Significant leadership experience within custodial or criminal justice settings Strong understanding of offender rehabilitation models, risk management, and safeguarding Proven experience managing high-risk individuals and high-performing teams Ability to operate strategically while maintaining strong operational oversight Excellent communication, analytical, and IT skills Desirable: Relevant qualification (e.g. Criminology, Criminal Justice, Social Care, Mental Health) Management qualification Experience leading audit preparation and performance frameworks PQIP qualified and/or experience using OASys Additional Information Those interested in applying for this opportunity should review the Job Description & Person Specification to find out more. If you have any questions about the role or recruitment process, please see our contact information on the Candidate Help Page. Please use reference REF3854O in your message so that we can identify the opportunity. When applying please be cautious over the answers you provide. If you select “NO” to the screening question regarding Right to Work in the UK, your application will automatically be closed. Contract: Permanent Hours & work pattern: Full time, 38 hours per week. Salary: from £47,950 Location: HM Prison Thameside, Griffin Manor Way, London SE28 0FJ Closing Date: 1630 on 13th of March 2026. Catch22 reserves the right to withdraw the vacancy at any time, for any reason before the stated closing date. Screening: Successful admission to post subject to enhanced DBS check, HMPPS vetting check, and employer Right To Work in the UK check. The post-holder must have right to work in the UK. Catch22 does not currently provide a licence to sponsor visas but please see this register to see those that do. To Apply: Please provide your CV and cover letter, along with the completion of the screening questions to express your interest in this opportunity. Please note, in the interest of safer recruitment and ensuring that applicants are a right fit for the role, submitted applications must contain a CV, satisfactory responses to the screening questions, and information detailing interest in the role, to be considered for this position. Use of AI (Artificial Intelligence) should not be used to exaggerate skills & experiences, create generic responses that are not unique to the individual, and for any assessments used by the Hiring Team to measure an individual's natural abilities. Catch22’s Commitment to Opportunity & Progression At Catch22 we are proud of our commitment in supporting people develop in their careers and progress in our organisation. In 2024, within our Justice Hub, we have 68% of those in management roles that originally joined Catch22 in the frontline workforce and some worked across a number of roles and Leadership positions before joining management. This allows us to have a highly experienced management group and provides development opportunities for those in our much valued front-line. Catch22’s Commitment to Ban the Box Catch22 is proud to have “Banned the Box”. This means that we do not ask for candidates to disclose criminal convictions at the application stage. Instead, we invite disclosures at interview stage, and encourage them at the offer stage. Please see our statement of commitment on hiring people with convictions for more information. Missing Links? A number of our job aggregators do not allow for us to use hyperlinks in our advertisements. To view information contained within these links, please click apply, where you will be taken to the advert in our ATS. This will allow you to view and access the links contained within our adverts. Social Media Search Please note, we may conduct an online search as part of our due diligence checks for successful candidate(s). This will involve a search of all publicly available information online and in social media. Vetting Requirements This role is subject to the satisfactory completion of relevant pre-employment checks, which may include HMPPS vetting, NPPV, or other role-specific security clearances. Any offer of employment will be conditional upon the successful outcome of these checks. Where clearance is not granted, or is subsequently withdrawn, Catch22 reserves the right to withdraw the offer of employment. Catch22 Justice requests no contact from agencies or media sales Benefits / Apply for Opportunities / recruitment process / Recruitment Policy / Set up Job Alerts Catch22 is committed to rigorous safeguarding and safer recruitment practices; ensuring that every individual within the organisation has been safely and appropriately checked. Contract type: Permanent Department: Justice Service type: Offender Management Unit - HMP Thameside Compensation: from GBP 47950 - yearly

Responsibilities

This senior leadership role involves providing strategic and operational oversight for the Offender Management Unit (OMU) and Gangs & Violence Reduction services at HMP Thameside, ensuring high-quality, contractually compliant delivery aligned with policy frameworks. The Head of Service will drive performance, governance, and innovation while leading and developing high-performing teams within a complex custodial environment.