Chief Executive Officer

Inspiring Lives, Changing Futures

Child Action Northwest (CANW) has been helping children, young people, families and communities to thrive for nearly 140 years. From our beginnings as the Blackburn Orphanage in 1886 to the diverse, forward-looking charity we are today, our purpose has remained constant: to ensure that everyone gets the support they need, when they need it, to navigate life’s challenges and reach their full potential.

We are now seeking an outstanding new Chief Executive to lead our next phase of growth and innovation. With a turnover of £8m and services spanning fostering, family support, emotional health and wellbeing, restorative justice, and young carers’ programmes, CANW is a trusted delivery partner for local authorities and commissioners across the North West and beyond. Our holistic, trauma-informed approach sets us apart — combining care, therapeutic support and community connection to create stability and lasting impact.

You’ll be joining a passionate and values-driven team of over 100 colleagues, supported by a dedicated Board of Trustees. Together, you’ll build on a strong foundation: a recent Ofsted ‘Good’ for our fostering service, major national contracts with MoJ and Cafcass, and some exciting new ventures. We’re ambitious to expand our children’s homes offer and develop new income streams that allow us to reinvest even more into local communities — care, not profit, is at the heart of everything we do.

We’re looking for a collaborative, commercially minded leader with a deep understanding of children’s and family services. You’ll bring credibility with regulators, commissioners and partners, alongside the strategic vision to steer CANW through a fast-evolving care landscape. Resilient and compassionate, you’ll empower our talented team, strengthen our partnerships, and champion innovation that meets the needs of children and families today and tomorrow.

This is a rare opportunity to shape the future of one of the North West’s most respected children’s charities. You’ll inherit a financially stable, well-regarded organisation — and the freedom to drive bold, purposeful growth that changes lives.

Visit www.leadingcanw.co.uk to find out more and to apply. Or, for a confidential conversation, call Chris Barrow (07437 839048), David Needham (07442 783934), or Anita Denton (07725 554802) at Tile Hill.

Closing date: Midnight on Sunday 14th December 2025

To apply:
To apply, please submit an up-to-date copy of your CV (three sides of A4 maximum), along with a supporting statement (three sides of A4 maximum) detailing your experience, and achievements and addressing the key criteria for the role set out on this site and using examples to demonstrate how you meet the requirements. Documents should be uploaded via our website, please include and upload the below information in two documents only. If you experience any issues whilst applying, please contact rebecca.keen@tile-hill.co.uk.
 
Applications should include:

• Full contact details;
• Names, positions, organisations and contact details for two referees (we will ask your permission before contacting referees);
• Details of your notice period
• Notification of any dates when you are not available for an interview.

At Tile Hill, we are committed to inclusion and accessibility. We champion and support all individuals to ensure everyone feels valued, listened to and motivated to get the very best out of each recruitment process and that processes are designed to meet the needs of individuals. If you have any specific requests and would like a confidential discussion with the Tile Hill team, then please email inclusion@tile-hill.co.uk.