Programme Manager Review

As Programme Manager for the Supporting Care Leavers into Employment programme, my role is to design, deliver and manage initiatives that connect care‑experienced young people with meaningful employment opportunities. I work at the intersection of employers, delivery partners and young people, ensuring that business needs are aligned with inclusive, supportive pathways into work.
On a day‑to‑day basis, this involves building and maintaining strong relationships with employers to understand their workforce needs and co‑create employment offers such as traineeships, apprenticeships and entry‑level roles. I work closely with partner organisations and local stakeholders to identify suitable opportunities and remove barriers to participation for care‑experienced young people.
I also oversee the matching and progression of young people into roles, ensuring each placement is appropriate to their skills, aspirations and circumstances. This includes coordinating wrap‑around support, monitoring progress, problem‑solving challenges as they arise, and ensuring both the employer and the young person are supported to achieve sustainable outcomes.
Alongside delivery, I manage programme planning, reporting and performance, using data and feedback to continuously improve the programme and demonstrate impact. Ultimately, my role is about creating effective bridges between business and young people, enabling employers to access diverse talent while supporting care leavers to build confidence, skills and long‑term employment prospects.

Most of the time the programme has been well organised, there have been a couple of timetable errors causing disruption to the learning but overall very good. The structure of the programme is also very clear and aligns with my programmes at work very well.

Staffordshire County council have been fantastic with support in multiple sectors, from the Apprenticeship team through to my line manager I have been fully supported throughout and consistently.

The training provider has been good with support but can be a little slow when coming back to you about a query.

This is going to help me make the best of the current programme I am running, not only that it is going to aid my career at Staffordshire County Council when wanting to progress into more of a senior leadership role.

Yes

Staffordshire County Council are a fantastic employer, with flexible working this really allows me to be a parent whilst also working. With the support we get it really does empower me to do the best for the county and community. I have worked in some other employers that are no where near as good as SCC and I feel very grateful and lucky to have such a lovely environment, with growth and the understanding.