Associate Non-Executive Director

Enherts Tr; Stevenage; Remote; GBP 12,000 - 14,000; Part time

Job summary

East and North Hertfordshire Teaching NHS Trust in Stevenage is seeking an Associate Non-Executive Director (ANED) to join the Board on a fixed-term basis. The role involves working closely with patients, staff and system partners to drive improvements in access, outcomes and experience, with emphasis on inclusion and leadership development.

The ANED may be considered for future appointment as a full NED and will participate in board-level governance while not voting on board matters at this

Qualifications

• Senior-level governance experience is required.
• Experience in healthcare/NHS governance is preferred.
• Ability to contribute independent judgement at board level.

Responsibilities

• Assist in strategic decisions to improve patient access, outcomes and experience.
• Support a more inclusive and representative workforce at senior levels.

Skills

NED experience

Governance & risk

Clinical leadership

Independent judgement

Inclusive leadership

Job description

Main area Associate Non-Executive Director Contract Fixed term: 1 year (Initial term) Hours Part time - 11.25 hours per week (A minimum of 3 days a month, but up to 6 days a month) Job ref 361-8402272

Site Lister Hospital Town Stevenage Salary £13,000 per annum Salary period Yearly Closing 19/11/2026 23:59

Here at East and North Hertfordshire Teaching NHS Trust

Our mission is:Providing high-quality, compassionate care for our communities

Our vision to 2030 is:To be trusted to provide consistently outstanding care and exemplary service

Our values - We want our staff to believe in, demonstrate and live our values in everything we do. Our values are:

IncludeWe value the diversity and experience of our community colleagues and partners, creating relationships and climates that provide an opportunity to share, collaborate and grow together.

RespectWe create a safe environment where we are curious of the lived experience of others, seek out best practice and are open to listening and hearing new ideas.

ImproveWe are committed to consistently delivering excellent services and continuously looking to improve through a creative workforce that feels empowered to act in service of our shared purpose.

Job overview

East and North Hertfordshire Teaching NHS Trust is currently looking for an Associate Non-Executive Director (ANED).

As one of our new Board members, you will be joining East and North Hertfordshire Teaching NHS Trust at an incredibly exciting time. We were awarded Teaching Hospital status in April 2025 and became the host provider for the local place partnership in 2025 as well. The Trust was shortlisted for 2025 HSJ Trust of the Year and 2024 saw the Trust being one of the top five most improved Trusts in the country for staff survey results. In June 2026, we were delighted to appoint Martin Armstrong as our Chief Executive. Martin has been with the Trust for ten years and was previously our Deputy Chief Executive and Chief Finance Officer. We are focused on becoming an outstanding Trust with people-centred leadership supporting our 6,800 dedicated staff to provide high-quality, compassionate care to our patients. We continue to undergo significant cultural and organisational transformation and continue to embed a lean-based quality management system across the Trust. To help achieve these ambitions we are increasing NED representation on the Board.

Main duties of the job

We are looking for a Board colleague who is committed to working with our patients, staff, local communities, and system partners to bring about improvements in patient access, outcomes and experience, and so achieve better health outcomes and healthier life expectancies. Increasingly, this will require an individual who is able to think laterally and creatively to help us solve our patients’ challenges and so start to tackle the health inequalities which exist in Hertfordshire. We are also actively working to achieve a more inclusive and representative workforce where diversity is actively valued and celebrated, and this is especially important at senior levels, including the Board.

Working for our organisation

The Trust predominantly serves the population of East and North Hertfordshire and parts of south Bedfordshire, covering 600,000 people. A further 2 million people living in Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire, Northwest London, and part of the Thames Valley are eligible for care at the Trust’s Cancer Centre at Mount Vernon.

It is also expected that just under 17,000 new houses are planned to be built in the Trust’s core catchment area by 2030, potentially leading to a further significant increase in our patient numbers.

The population is generally healthy and affluent compared to England averages, although there are some pockets of deprivation – most notably in parts of Cheshunt, Hatfield, Letchworth, Stevenage and Welwyn Garden City. Approximately 26,000 people across our system are living in areas that are considered the most deprived, based on national measures.

Black and minority ethnic groups (i.e. non-white British) currently make up approximately 10% of the population in east and north Hertfordshire and is forecast to increase in the coming years.

The birth rate is slightly lower than the England average, with the Trust’s core catchment population forecast to rise by approximately 6% in the years to 2030.

The most significant growth is expected in people aged 65 and over (25%) and this age group is more likely to have the greatest impact in terms of health needs- with the over 85s population already higher than national averages and forecast to increase sharply by 2030.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

The Associate NED role could be suitable for an experienced NED or someone who has not been a NED in the NHS before. Associate NEDs perform very similar roles to NEDs but cannot participate in formal votes at Board meetings.

The successful candidate may also be considered for appointment as a NED on the Board in future, should a vacancy arise for which they have the appropriate skills.

Please refer to the information pack for further details.

Person specification

Experience, Skills, Knowledge and Behaviours

• A senior qualified clinician with current or recent professional as a nurse, midwife or AHP, with experience in clinical leadership and quality improvement preferably within an acute/ secondary care setting; and with the ability to bring independent clinical insight to Board-level decision making.
• Experience of operating at Board or equivalent senior leadership level in a complex organisation
• The ability to provide constructive challenge and independent judgement
• Strong understanding of governance, risk and assurance
• The ability to work collaboratively across organisational and system boundaries
• A commitment to improving patient outcomes, reducing inequalities and promoting inclusion
• Personal credibility, integrity and alignment with the Nolan Principles of Public Life.

When you apply...

Please note we do not offer visa sponsorship for roles unless clearly stated in our adverts. This means even if you have the right to work currently but will require a new sponsorship to work for our Trust your application will not be considered.

Vacancies may close earlier than the advertised closing date where a high volume of applications are received. We therefore encourage you to submit your application as soon as possible to avoid missing out on the opportunity to join the Trust or develop your career with us.

While we recognise that AI can support in drafting an application, you are encouraged to clearly demonstrate your personal skills, experience and behaviours that align with the role, and this is usually best done in your own words. We reserve the right to review all applications for the use of AI tools and where this is inconsistent with our values and standards of behaviour your application may be rejected

All correspondence relating to vacancies will be via the e‑mail address you have provided on your application form. Some servers automatically send e‑mail to your junk mail so please check as well as your inbox.

We are committed to fair, transparent and ethical recruitment. We will never ask applicants to pay fees at any stage of the recruitment process. All vacancies are advertised on our Trust Careers webpage and NHS Jobs, with applications managed through TRAC. We will only contact applicants through our official recruitment channels and Trust contact details.

Secondments/Fixed term

Where a vacancy is advertised as a temporary position, the duration will be specified in the advert. If the vacancy becomes permanent towards the end of the specified duration, the successful applicant may not be required to re-apply and can be slotted into the role on a permanent basis if appropriate.

If you are an internal applicant applying for a temporary working arrangement, please see the attached notes on secondments.

Committed to our Community

East and North Hertfordshire Teaching NHS Trust is committed to equality, diversity and inclusion for all job applicants, staff, patients and the wider community. We want to create a workforce which represents the communities we serve. We are on a journey to become a more inclusive organisation and we welcome applications from everyone regardless of their background. In particular we encourage applications from candidates with disabilities, and candidates from Black, Asian and Minority ethnic (BAME) backgrounds who are currently under-represented in various parts of our workforce .

We understand the importance of balancing work and home life. We are committed to support flexible working for our staff wherever possible and all our employees are given the opportunity to discuss potential for flexible working.

We are proud to be a Disability Confident employer and achieved our status in 2019.

We will remove barriers that prospective candidates might face at any stage of our recruitment process. If you have a disability and would like the advert in an alternative format, or would like to talk about how we can adjust the interview process to best support you, please contact us by emailing [e-mail]

We are also proud to support our UK armed forces by supporting Reservists, Cadet Instructors, Veterans and military spouses/partners into employment and offering supportive policies that value their contribution to the community and to our Trust.

We are committed to being a carer-friendly environment, addressing the complex needs of families with caring responsibilities. In partnership with Carers in Hertfordshire, all our working carers have access to support from recruitment. We are also a member of Carers UK, providing resources to make balancing work and caring easier. Our approach is inclusive, recognizing diverse challenges and creating a supportive environment where carers feel valued.

King's Trust Support

If you’re aged between 16 and 30 years-old, you can get FREE employability support from The King’s Trust. The King’s Trust will help build your CV and cover letter, offer advice and top tips for future interviews and support you with research about working in the NHS. Please contact Enquiries.H&[e-mail] for support.

Employer certification / accreditation badges

You must have appropriate UK professional registration.

The postholder will have access to vulnerable people in the course of their normal duties and as such this post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service to check for any previous criminal convictions.

Name Kim Walker Job title Business Manager to the Chair & Chief Executive Email address [e-mail]