Chief Operating Officer

Overview

In this Board-level role, you will lead the Trust’s multi-site operations to deliver safe, high-quality care while driving system-wide transformation. You will build a unified operating model, strengthen governance, and enable clinical and operational leaders to own delivery. The role focuses on improving access, productivity, and patient experience amid NHS standards and local priorities. You will lead with pace, integrity, and compassion, shaping services during a period of significant national investment and digital-enabled change.

Pay / Benefits

• flexible working schemes
• 27–33 days annual leave
• occupational health services
• staff discounts
• salary sacrifice options (nursery, car schemes)
• NHS Pension scheme

Responsibilities

• Lead a high-performing operating model across the Trust and embed it in clinical and operational leadership structures
• Drive delivery against NHS constitutional standards, regulatory requirements, and local priorities (access, flow, elective recovery, urgent/emergency care, productivity)
• Strengthen accountability, governance, and execution while devolving ownership to care groups and teams
• Apply continuous improvement methods (GIRFT, 3Rs) to remove unwarranted variation and redesign pathways
• Act as Accountable Officer for Emergency Preparedness, Resilience and Response (EPRR) and lead major incident response
• Participate in the Executive Director on-call rota and contribute to systemwide transformation and resilience
• Engage with clinicians, staff, partners, and regulators to build trust and foster accountability and compassion
• Support leadership development and sustain performance improvements across a multisite NHS trust

Key requirements

• Substantive COO or Deputy COO experience in a large multisite acute NHS trust
• Proven track record in turnaround or recovery contexts with sustained improvements in performance, productivity, quality, and patient experience
• Ability to balance strategic breadth with operational grip and to deliver through complex organizations
• Visible, decisive leadership under pressure with collaborative and inclusive style
• Strong governance, accountability, and stakeholder management with clinicians, staff, partners and regulators

• decisiveness under pressure
• curiosity to challenge convention
• inclusive leadership and team-building
• operational leadership in complex health systems
• quality and performance improvement (continuous improvement, GIRFT, 3Rs)
• governance and accountability frameworks

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