From Aspiration to Action: Your Path to Becoming a Director of Adult Social Services

Becoming a Director of Adult Social Services is one of the most demanding and arguably one of the most rewarding leadership roles in local government. It is a position that sits at the intersection of policy, people, and purpose. The role requires not only deep sector knowledge and strategic vision, but also emotional intelligence, political acumen, and a relentless commitment to improving lives.

This is not a job for the faint-hearted. It is a role that demands courage, clarity, and compassion in equal measure. As one Director put it:

“You’re not just managing services you’re shaping the future of care in your community. You’re the voice for people who often don’t have one.” 

Charlotte Walton, Executive Director of Adult Services, Cheshire West and Chester Council

The scale of the challenge is significant. According to the April 2025 Adult Social Care Workforce Survey, 71% of providers reported recruitment as a major challenge, and 37% expressed concern about sustaining service levels over the next six months. Morale remains fragile, with 46% of domiciliary care settings reporting low staff morale. Yet, despite these pressures, the opportunity to lead transformation is immense. The sector employs over 1.6 million people, representing 5.8% of the UK workforce, and touches the lives of millions more through care, support, and community engagement.

Whether you're an Assistant Director preparing for the next step, a senior leader from another part of the system, or someone with a passion for public service and social justice, this guide is for you. It explores:

• What you need to know to develop the skills and mindset for the role

• What to focus on from day one to build credibility and momentum

• What to avoid to ensure you lead with integrity, impact, and resilience

In the words of one Director of Adult Social Services:

“Any leadership that does exist does so in the vacuum of a nationally defined vision and plan meaning it’s a diffuse mess. That’s why local leadership matters more than ever.”

In this context, the Director of Adult Social Services becomes more than a job title. It is a stewardship role one that requires you to hold the line on statutory duties while also pushing for innovation, equity, and sustainability. This is your moment to step forward. But to do so successfully, you must be prepared to lead with both your head and your heart.

What You Need to Know to Be Ready

The Director of Adult Social Services is not just a service manager it’s a system leader. This role requires you to think beyond your department and lead across boundaries, shaping how health, housing, voluntary, and community services come together to support people to live independently, safely, and with dignity.

To be ready, you’ll need to develop and demonstrate the following core capabilities:

1. System Leadership

You must be able to lead across complex systems, not just within your own organisation. This means:

• Building shared purpose across health and care systems

• Navigating competing priorities and fragmented funding

• Designing integrated, person-centred services

As the Local Government Association puts it:

“Systems leadership is essential for developing effective policies, allocating resources efficiently, and responding to changing demographics and needs.”

2. Political Acumen

You’ll need to work closely with elected members, understand the political context of your council, and influence both local and national policy. This includes:

• Navigating scrutiny and governance processes

• Managing reputational risk

• Translating political priorities into operational delivery

A 2024 BMJ study on political skills in health leadership found:

“The primary method of acquiring political skill is through direct experience. Mentoring and reflective practice are key to developing the ability to read the room, build alliances, and influence outcomes.”

3. Emotional Intelligence

Leadership in adult social care is emotionally demanding. You’ll need to lead with empathy, self-awareness, and resilience. Emotional intelligence helps you:

• Build trust with staff, partners, and communities

• Navigate conflict and change

• Sustain your own wellbeing and that of your teams

According to the London School of Planning and Management:

“Leaders with high emotional intelligence are more likely to create a supportive and inclusive work culture, leading to higher levels of staff engagement and retention.”

4. Strengths-Based Practice

You must champion a shift from deficit-based models to strengths-based, person-led approaches. This includes:

• Promoting independence and choice

• Embedding co-production with people who draw on care

• Supporting community-led solutions

As Jenny Pitts, Programme Director at the National Development Team for Inclusion, puts it:

“Leading collaborative, strengths-based change is an ambition and a challenge faced by all leaders in adult social care.”

5. Technical and Strategic Competence

You’ll also need a strong grasp of:

• Safeguarding: Ensuring robust systems to protect vulnerable adults

• Commissioning: Designing and procuring services that deliver outcomes

• Workforce Development: Tackling recruitment, retention, and morale

• Performance Management: Using data to drive improvement and accountability

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6. Values-Driven Leadership

The Care Workforce Pathway, launched by the Department of Health and Social Care in 2024, outlines the values and behaviours expected of leaders in adult social care. These include:

• Inclusivity: Creating psychologically safe, anti-racist, and equitable workplaces

• Innovation: Embracing change and digital transformation

• Accountability: Being transparent, ethical, and evidence-informed

The pathway is designed to professionalise the sector and provide a clear career structure. It’s a response to the urgent need for 470,000 new care roles by 2040 to meet the demands of an ageing population.

“Leadership is not about titles or hierarchy. It’s about behaviour, culture, and the ability to inspire others to act with purpose.” Skills for Care, Leadership Qualities Framework

This is the foundation. The next step is knowing how to apply these capabilities from day one when the spotlight is on, the inbox is full, and the expectations are high.

What to Focus on from Day One

The first 100 days in post as a Director of Adult Social Services are not simply a probationary period they are a critical window in which to establish your credibility, build trust, and set the tone for your leadership. The way you show up in this period will shape how others perceive your values, your priorities, and your ability to lead through complexity. As the NHS Leadership Academy has observed, the early days in a senior leadership role are often the most intense, but they also offer a unique opportunity to demonstrate your commitment to listening, learning, and leading with purpose.

Build Relationships

Your first priority should be to build strong, authentic relationships. This means spending time with your internal teams, listening to frontline staff, and understanding the lived experience of people who draw on care and support. It also means forging partnerships with elected members, NHS colleagues, Integrated Care System leaders, and the voluntary and community sector.

Trust is your most valuable currency. Without it, even the best strategies will falter. With it, you can lead change that sticks. As one Director put it in the West Midlands ADASS leadership guide,

“Leadership in adult social care is about relationships, not hierarchy. It’s about building coalitions of the willing to get things done.”

Understand the Landscape

Before you act, take time to observe. Review your council’s performance data, budget forecasts, inspection history, and workforce metrics. Understand the political context what matters to your elected members, what’s in the corporate plan, and where adult social care fits within wider council priorities. This is also the time to understand the culture of your organisation. What are the unspoken norms? Where are the pressure points? What are staff proud of, and what are they worried about?

As one leadership development programme advises,

“You only get one chance to make a first impression. Use it to understand, not to fix.”

Clarify Your Vision and Values

People will look to you for clarity, especially in times of uncertainty. Be intentional about articulating your leadership values what you stand for, what you expect from others, and what they can expect from you. Set a clear and inclusive vision for adult social care. Communicate it consistently, and make sure it is grounded in the realities of your community and your workforce. As Skills for Care notes in its New Directors Programme,

“Leadership is about setting the tone. Your first 100 days are your opportunity to show who you are and what matters to you.”

Champion Prevention

It is tempting, especially under financial pressure, to focus solely on crisis response. But prevention is not a luxury it is a necessity. The evidence is clear: early intervention, reablement, and community-based support not only improve outcomes but also reduce long-term demand on services. The Centre for Adult Social Care Research describes prevention as “complex and emergent,” requiring long-term thinking and sustained investment. But it is also one of the most powerful levers you have to improve lives and manage demand.

Model Inclusive Leadership

Your leadership sets the tone for the culture of your organisation. From day one, demonstrate your commitment to anti-racist, trauma-informed, and person-centred practice. Create psychologically safe spaces where staff feel heard, valued, and supported. Inclusive leadership is not a ‘nice to have’ it is a moral and operational imperative. It builds trust, improves outcomes, and reflects the values of the social care profession. As the British Journal of Social Work has noted,

“Inclusive leadership in social care is essential. It is the foundation of ethical practice and effective service delivery.”

One Director captured it best in the West Midlands ADASS guide:

“This is a role where you must lead with both your head and your heart. The decisions are tough, but the impact is real and immediate.”

What to Avoid

Even the most experienced leaders can stumble when stepping into a new role. The first 100 days are not just about what you do they’re also about what you choose not to do. Avoiding common pitfalls can be just as important as taking the right actions. The social care sector is complex, emotionally charged, and politically sensitive. Missteps in these early days can erode trust, damage morale, and set back your ability to lead effectively. Here are the most common traps to avoid and how to navigate around them.

Acting Too Quickly Without Context

One of the most frequent mistakes new leaders make is rushing to make changes before fully understanding the organisation’s culture, history, and dynamics. While the desire to prove yourself is natural, premature decisions can alienate staff and disrupt what’s already working.

As Erika Hale notes in her leadership reflections:

“The urge to ‘fix’ everything can be strong. But reacting without fully understanding your organisation’s systems, culture, and community needs can lead to confusion, burnout, and broken trust.”

Instead, spend your first few weeks observing, listening, and asking questions. Use this time to build a complete picture before implementing change.

Over-Relying on Hierarchy

Leadership in adult social care is relational, not positional. You may hold the title, but your influence will come from how you engage with others, not from your job description.

Avoid the trap of assuming authority will automatically translate into impact. Instead, focus on building coalitions, empowering others, and co-producing solutions with staff, partners, and people who draw on care. As one contributor to the King’s Fund’s Stories from Social Care Leadership put it:

“The more local the leadership, the more powerful it could be. It’s not about command and control it’s about connection and credibility.”

Neglecting Your Own Wellbeing

The demands of the role can be all-consuming. New Directors often feel pressure to be constantly available, solve every problem, and prove their worth. But without boundaries and self-care, burnout is inevitable. A 2025 report from Care England highlighted that high turnover in leadership roles is often driven by exhaustion, isolation, and a lack of support. Make time for reflection, peer support, and rest. Model healthy working practices for your team. Remember: sustainable leadership starts with self-awareness and self-care.

Ignoring Organisational Culture

Culture eats strategy for breakfast. If you focus solely on systems and structures without attending to values, behaviours, and relationships, your efforts will stall. The Skills for Care leadership guide warns:

“Leaders who overlook team dynamics and culture may experience high turnover, poor communication, and disengagement. Culture is not a side issue it’s the soil in which everything else grows.”

Take time to understand the informal norms, stories, and rituals that shape how people behave. Then, lead by example to shape the culture you want to see.

Failing to Plan for Succession

Leadership turnover is a strategic risk. Yet many services still rely on reactive recruitment when a senior leader leaves. This creates instability and undermines continuity of care.

Invest in your future leaders from day one. Identify talent, offer development opportunities, and create a culture where leadership is everyone’s business.

As noted in The Realities of Effective Leadership in UK Social Care:

“Succession planning is no longer optional. It’s a strategic imperative. The most effective leaders are those who prepare others to lead.”

Avoiding these pitfalls doesn’t mean playing it safe. It means leading with intention, humility, and a deep respect for the people and systems you’re stepping into. As one Director wisely said:

“You don’t have to have all the answers. But you do need to ask the right questions and be brave enough to listen to the answers.”

Final Thoughts

Leadership in adult social care is not for the faint-hearted. It is a role that demands resilience in the face of complexity, compassion in the face of human vulnerability, and clarity in the face of political and financial pressure. But for those with the courage and capability to step forward, it offers something rare: the chance to make a lasting difference to people’s lives, to shape the systems that support them, and to build stronger, more inclusive communities. This is not a role defined by hierarchy or status. It is defined by service, by values, and by the ability to lead through relationships. As the King’s Fund so powerfully put it:

“The most inspiring leadership we heard about was local… rooted in relationships, not hierarchy.”

The Director of Adult Social Services is a role that sits at the heart of place leadership. It is about bringing people together across health, housing, community, and voluntary sectors. It is about listening to those who draw on care and support, and ensuring their voices shape the services they receive. It is about holding the line on statutory duties while also pushing for innovation, equity, and sustainability.

If you are ready to lead with purpose, to challenge the status quo, and to put people at the heart of care, then this role might just be your calling. Because in adult social care, leadership is not about being in charge it’s about being accountable, being visible, and being human.

And in a world that often undervalues care, that kind of leadership has never been more needed.