Job summaryJoin Us in Transforming Care Through Home FirstWe are launching an ambitious new
Home First Service on
1 September, bringing together health, social care and community partners to deliver a seamless, person-centred approach that supports people to remain independent in their own homes wherever possible.
We are seeking an experienced and dynamic
Countywide Service Lead to provide strategic and operational leadership for this new service, ensuring that people receive the right support, at the right time, in the right place.
This is a unique opportunity to shape a new model of care, improve system flow, reduce unnecessary hospital admissions, and strengthen integrated working across the whole county.
Main duties of the jobThe post holder will provide
strategic, operational and clinical/service leadership for the delivery and development of a high-quality, safe, and effective service.
They will be responsible for
managing day-to-day service performance, leading multidisciplinary teams, and ensuring the service meets organisational, regulatory, and financial requirements.
The role will drive
service improvement, transformation, and innovation, ensuring delivery aligns with national policy, local priorities, and patient/service user needs.
To build strong relationships with key stakeholders including primary care, health and care commissioners, social care, acute and community services and the care sector - deepening our partnerships to deliver great healthcare
The post holder will also drive teams to connect services in Neighbourhoods and support inclusive healthcare - reducing the gaps for access, experience and outcomes
About usWe have a skilled and dedicated workforce of over 5000 colleagues working in a diverse range of services over 55 sites and within people's homes. We strive to enable a welcoming workplace culture that builds and celebrates civility, inclusivity and diversity, while providing a sense of belonging and trust.
Annual staff surveys, regular Pulse surveys and other engagement opportunities provide our people with lots of opportunity to tell us about their experiences of working with us. In the latest staff survey, 61% of colleagues gave us their views. It was great to hear that:
- 72% of colleagues would recommend the Trust as a place to work, ranking us 1st for Provider Trusts in the South West region on this question.
- 76% would recommend the standard of care provided in our services if a friend or relative needed treatment, also ranking us 1st in the South West region.
- 81% said that care of patients and service users is the Trust's priority, compared with an average in comparable NHS Trusts in England of 64%.
This high-level overview shows we are in a healthy position, with higher scores than average for comparable organisations, alongside a great response rate, indicating good staff engagement. However, we also know we have plenty of room for improvement in many areas. To that end, we continue to prioritise and invest in our commitment to genuinely becoming a Great Place to Work with consistent top-quartile performance in the annual staff survey and Pulse surveys.
DetailsDate posted: 05 August 2026
Pay scheme: Agenda for change
Band: Band 8a
Salary: £57,528 to £64,750 a year per annum
Contract: Permanent
Working pattern: Full-time
Reference number: 327-26-636
Job locations: Edward Jenner Court, Pioneer Way, Gloucester, GL3 4AW, United Kingdom
Job descriptionJob responsibilitiesCore Responsibilities:
- Provide visible, professional leadership to staff across the service
- Provide strategic and operational leadership across the service, ensuring alignment with system-wide priorities and national discharge policy
- Ensure delivery of high-quality, safe, effective, and person-centred care service
- Lead the design, implementation, and continuous improvement of service/patient pathways, ensuring effective integration across acute, community, social care, and voluntary sector partners
- Lead and embed a robust culture of quality, safety, and continuous improvement across services
Provide assurance to senior leadership through regular reporting on quality, safety, and performance
- Foster a positive culture that promotes engagement, inclusion, continuous quality improvement and patient safety
- Establish and maintain strong strategic relationships with key stakeholders, including senior leaders in acute trusts, community services, Adult Social Care, commissioners, and the independent care sector
- Ensure compliance with escalation protocols and lead system responses to periods of operational pressure
- Promote a culture of partnership working, co-production, and person-centred care across all aspects of service delivery
Leadership, People Management and Development- Provide Line management to a range of Clinical and non -Clinical staff and support workforce development
Support staff with all relevant training and competencies with each job role
Champion staff wellbeing, engagement, and professional development
Support leadership development across all levels, including coaching, mentoring, and succession planning
Ensure compliance with mandatory training requirements and monitor completion rates
Ensure all staff have access to high-quality learning opportunities, professional development, and career progression pathways
The postholder needs to work as a dynamic, innovative leader using a positive, solution focussed, values based influencing style to ensure services are run effectively and to budget, ensuring that the Trust works in a positive and collaborative manner
- Lead on workforce planning, recruitment, retention, and succession planning.
- Manage staff performance, conduct, and appraisal processes
Service Delivery and Performance- Monitor, analyse and report on key performance indicators (KPIs).
- Ensure compliance with national targets, regulatory standards (e.g. CQC), and organisational policies
- Lead the development and implementation of service plans/pathways and operational policies
Work collaboratively across organisational boundaries to support integration and partnership working
Manage change effectively, supporting staff through transition and embedding new ways of working
Ensure alignment of service developments with wider organisational strategy and regulatory requirements
Financial Management- Hold delegated responsibility for the service budget
- Monitor income and expenditure to ensure financial balance
- Identify and deliver efficiency savings and cost improvement programmes (CIPs)
- Ensure resources are used effectively to deliver value for money
Quality, Governance and Patient SafetyDevelop, implement, and monitor governance frameworks to support safe and effective service delivery
Oversee risk management processes, ensuring risks are identified, assessed, mitigated, and escalated appropriately
- Ensure the patient record is appropriately maintained
- Lead on clinical/service governance, ensuring adherence to quality standards
- Investigate incidents, complaints, and serious events, ensuring learning is implemented
Promote a culture of openness, transparency, and learning, including adherence to Duty of Candour principles
- Ensure compliance with safeguarding, equality, and information governance requirements
- Oversee audits and ensure action plans are implemented
Service Development and TransformationLead and manage complex transformation programmes, ensuring delivery against agreed objectives, timelines, and benefits
Identify opportunities for service redesign in response to population needs, policy changes, and organisational priorities
Ensure alignment of service developments with wider organisational strategy and regulatory requirements
- Use data, evidence, and stakeholder feedback to inform improvements.
- Develop business cases and contribute to strategic planning
- Embed innovation and digital solutions into service delivery where appropriate
Partnership Working- Work collaboratively with internal and external stakeholders, including:
All Services within GHC
Local Authorities
Domiciliary Care Agencies
Primary Care Networks
Voluntary sector organisations
Primary and secondary care providers
Integrated Care Board Clusters
- Represent the service at relevant forums and networks.
- Build strong relationships to improve integrated and coordinated care
Communication and Engagement- To establish and maintain effective communication across teams and stakeholders
- Timely delivery of sometimes contentious and highly sensitive information with potentially significant impact on the local care and health system
Ensure consistent and transparent communication with staff, promoting engagement, inclusivity, and alignment with organisational values
Act as a key point of contact and representative for the service at meetings, networks, and partnership boards
- Manage complex and sensitive communication, including complaints and performance issues
Promote open communication and a culture where staff feel able to speak up and share ideas or concerns
Ensure communication approaches are accessible, inclusive, and tailored to diverse audiences
- Develop and deliver communication strategies to support service delivery, change, and transformation programmes
Lead and promote meaningful engagement with staff, service users, carers, and communities to inform service delivery and improvement
- To ensure that stakeholders are aware of, and can contribute, to specific service needs and objectives and other key local/national strategies and policies and service developments
Produce high-quality reports, briefings, and presentations for senior leadership and governance forum
Information, Data and Reporting- Ensure accurate data collection and reporting systems
- Work with Business Intelligence (BI) teams within this Trust and in partner organisations to help develop comprehensive whole pathway metrics and reporting that overcomes the challenge of spanning different organisations with different technologies and differing BI capabilities
- Provide robust performance oversight, including the development and monitoring of key performance indicators, ensuring delivery against operational and strategic targets
- Use data analytics to drive service improvement and performance management
- Provide regular reports to senior leadership on performance, risks, and outcomes
- Maintain the high level of confidentiality that is required in relation to information and data and ensure sufficient security of such information in carrying out the duties of the post
People InvolvementLead and champion a culture of meaningful involvement of people who use services, carers, and communities in all aspects of service design, delivery, and evaluation
Promote the use of lived experience to inform service improvement, policy development, and transformation programmes
Ensure feedback from people and carers is systematically gathered, analysed, and acted upon
Evaluate the impact of people involvement on service quality, experience, and outcome
Person SpecificationQualificationEssential- A relevant Nursing or Allied Health Professional or Social Work qualification Current registration with HCPC, NMC or Social Work England
- Evidence of continuous professional development in leadership and management.
Desirable- Educated to a Masters level or equivalent experience
ExperienceEssential- Significant senior management experience within health, social care, or integrated services demonstrating increasing levels of responsibility
- Demonstrate experience of working at a system level with multiple stakeholders, including acute, community, social care, and voluntary sector partners.
Desirable- Experience of leading and delivering service transformation across organisational boundaries
Personal Skills and AttributesEssential- Credible, visible, and resilient leader with a strong commitment to improving patient outcomes and experience.
- Innovative and solution-focused, with the ability to challenge constructively and drive change
Disclosure and Barring Service CheckThis post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.
Certificate of SponsorshipApplications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).
From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).
UK RegistrationApplicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).
Employer detailsEmployer name: Gloucestershire Health and Care NHS Foundation Trust
Address: Edward Jenner Court, Pioneer Way, Gloucester, GL3 4AW, United Kingdom
Employer's website: https://www.ghc.nhs.uk/who-we-are/jobs/ (Opens in a new tab)
Employer contact detailsFor questions about the job, contact:Deputy Service Director
Jackie Jenkins
jackie.jenkins@ghc.nhs.uk
07879488257
Supporting documentsPrivacy noticeGloucestershire Health and Care NHS Foundation Trust's privacy notice (opens in a new tab)
This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website (opens in a new window). 
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