Careers

About the Organisation

Life Without Barriers is a leading social purpose, not for profit organisation of 8,000 employees working in more than 500 communities across Australia. We support children, young people and families, people with disability, older people and people with mental illness. We work with people who are homeless and refugees and asylum seekers.   

Make a real difference in the lives of vulnerable Australians with this unique opportunity to provide both corporate expertise and community support. With a focus on people, not profit, Life Without Barriers’ corporate services team partners with our direct support staff, clients, and their families to ensure we continue our mission to change lives for the better.  If a truly inclusive, collaborative, and fast-paced work environment sounds like your next career move, this is an opening not to be missed.

We want to employ people who reflect the diversity of our clients to ensure we can support each client's individual needs and wants. We encourage people of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander background and people with disability to apply.

About the Role

We have an exciting opportunity for an experienced Operations Manager to lead and oversee Child, Youth & Family programs in the Mackay region, with a strong focus on Out of Home Care and Residential Care services.

This role is responsible for delivering high-quality, safe and therapeutic services for children and young people. You will provide strategic leadership across multiple programs, ensuring strong service delivery, financial sustainability, workforce capability, and positive outcomes for the young people in our care.

You will work closely with internal teams, government stakeholders and community partners to strengthen services, support staff, and drive continuous improvement across the region.

This is a permanent full-time opportunity based in our Mackay office.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead and support multiple Child, Youth & Family programs, including Residential Care and Out of Home Care services

• Drive high-quality, therapeutic service delivery focused on safety, stability and permanency outcomes for children and young people

• Manage program performance including budgets, KPIs, workforce planning and compliance requirements

• Build and support high-performing teams through coaching, supervision and reflective practice

• Maintain strong relationships with government departments, community partners and key stakeholders

• Ensure programs operate in line with organisational policies, funding agreements and regulatory requirements

• Promote culturally safe and responsive services, particularly for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people

Skills & Experience

• Degree qualification in Human Services or a related discipline

• Significant experience leading multi-site programs within the child protection or out-of-home care sector

• Demonstrated experience managing services for vulnerable children and young people

• Strong leadership capability with experience developing and supporting teams

• Proven ability to manage budgets, program performance and competing operational priorities

• Well-developed stakeholder engagement, communication and negotiation skills

• Strong problem-solving, risk management and decision-making capability

• Current Driver’s Licence

Successful candidates will be required to complete probity checks including a National Criminal History Check and Working with Children Check.

Benefits

• Competitive salary + vehicle allowance + superannuation

• Salary packaging options to increase your take-home pay

• Monthly rostered day off

• Mobile phone and laptop provided

• On-call allowance

• Access to a range of employee benefits through Maxxia

How to Apply

Include your resume and cover letter in one document, click ‘Apply’ and follow the prompts. For any enquiries relating to the position, contact Joelene at recruitment@lwb.org.au. Candidates with disabilities who require adjustments to the recruitment process or the application form in an alternate format can visit https://www.lwb.org.au/careers/ for information on our access and inclusion work and how to contact us directly.

Applications close midnight Thursday 19th March.