Head Of Connections – HMP Millsike – East Riding of Yorkshire
Permanent52,000 – 65,000
We’re looking for an exceptional leader to join us as Head of Connections at HMP Millsikea flagship leadership role at the heart of one of the UK’s most innovative prison partnerships.
About the Role
As Head of Connections, you’ll be a member of both The Forward Trust and HMP Millsike Senior Leadership Teams, leading the strategic delivery of our pioneering Connections model.
Working in partnership with Mitie and PeoplePlus, you’ll shape and deliver a whole-person, whole-system approach to rehabilitation, integrating family support, substance misuse recovery and incentivised substance-free living to help people build sustainable lives beyond custody.
This is a unique opportunity to influence prison culture, lead innovative services, and demonstrate how rehabilitation and recovery can reduce reoffending and improve lives.
You’ll provide strategic and operational leadership across three integrated service areas:
- Family and Relationships leading services that strengthen family ties, parenting and positive relationships including visits and the visitors center.
- Drug Strategy owning and delivering the establishment’s Drug Strategy, driving innovation, recovery and harm reduction.
- More Than My Past leading our flagship ISFL Houseblock, & our first of a kind More Than My Past programme, along with other short interventions.
You’ll also:
- Provide inspirational leadership to multidisciplinary teams.
- Own the prison’s Drug Strategy, Family & Relationships Strategy and Visits Operating Procedures.
- Lead contractual performance, governance, compliance and impact reporting.
- Manage significant budgets and ensure financial performance.
- Develop strong partnerships across prison leadership, commissioners and external stakeholders.
- Promote lived experience, co-production and recovery-focused practice throughout the establishment.
- Drive innovation, continuous improvement and evidence-based practice.
- Represent The Forward Trust as a senior ambassador both internally and externally.
We’re looking for an experienced senior leader with a passion for rehabilitation and transformational change.
You’ll bring:
Essential
- Significant senior leadership experience within a custodial environment.
- Operational experience managing prison services such as visits, residential units, therapeutic environments or similar.
- Experience delivering complex contracts within Criminal Justice settings, including public or privately managed prisons.
- Experience managing large budgets (circa 1 million+) and contractual performance linked to financial outcomes.
- A proven track record of delivering high-quality services within regulated, audited and inspected environments.
- Outstanding leadership, organisational and programme management skills.
- Excellent stakeholder management with the ability to build trusted relationships across multiple organisations.
- Strong analytical skills with experience in impact measurement, governance and performance reporting.
- Excellent communication skills, with the ability to influence at all levels.
- Knowledge of desistance theory and approaches.
Desirable
- Knowledge or experience of Narrative Therapy and narrative-based approaches.
- Understanding of recovery-focused practice and lived experience models.
- Experience of Dynamic Framework contracts or privately managed prisons.
Please provide an up to date CV with examples of your skills and impact chosen specifically to demonstrate how you meet the criteria for this role.
About Us
We are The Forward Trust, the social enterprise with charitable status that empowers people to break the often interlinked cycles of crime and addiction to move forward with their lives. For more than 25 years we have been working with people to build positive and productive lives, whatever their past. We believe that anyone is capable of lasting change. Our services have supported thousands of people to make positive changes and build productive lives with a job, family, friends and a sense of community.
We are committed to our cause and the work we carry out as a charity. Equally the wellbeing and the employees who work for us are also important. Joining us an employee, we will offer you the following benefits –
- Flexible working
- Training and development opportunities
- BHSF Cashback Scheme (optional)
- Season Ticket Loan Scheme
- Cycle to work scheme
- Crisis Loan Scheme
- Electric Car Scheme
- 3 x Wellbeing Days (pro rata’d for part time employees)
- Access to Blue Light Card
- 25 days (rising to 30 with length of service) Annual Leave plus Bank Holidays
- Contributory Pension Scheme Employer matched contributions of up to 6% in the first two years service and up to 9% thereafter
- Death in Service Payment (2x annual salary)
- Critical Illness Insurance (subject to qualifying criteria)
Please note that we may close this vacancy early if we receive a high volume of suitable applications.
Diversity at Forward Trust
The Forward Trust commits to providing opportunities to everyone. We want to ensure we have a diverse team with a range of lived and professional experiences. This includes those with Lived Experience of addiction, offending, or homelessness.Some of our roles may require a minimum period of sustained recovery (normally around3years). This is assessed on a case-by-case basis, and exceptions may be considered depending on the role and individual circumstances.
When we recruit, we welcome applications from everyone. This is inclusive of age, gender, ethnicity, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion and/or belief, marriage and civil partnerships, pregnancy and maternity and socio-economic background. Where operationally possible, we will consider flexible working requests and make reasonable adjustments for all roles.
To find out more about Forwards commitment to being an inclusive employer and our current EDI strategy clickhere.
We want our recruitment process to be accessible to everyone. If you require any reasonable adjustments at any stage, please let us know.
Employee Screening and Eligibility to Work
Dependent on role you may be required to undertake a Disclosure and Barring Service Check, details of which will be shared with you at interview.
If successful in your application, you will be required to provide eligibility to work evidence in line with the Eligibility to Work in the UK requirements.
Our Commitment to Safeguarding We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people, and adults at risk. Forward Trust follow safer recruitment practices and support a culture of openness and accountability.
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