Director of Governance

NHS; Eastleigh; On-site; GBP 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

27 days annual leave

Sick pay policy

Occupational health services

Flexible working and family-friendly

Retirement vouchers

Job summary

NHS Hampshire and Isle of Wight ICB invites applications for Director of Governance. Reporting to the Chief Executive, you will advise the Chair, Board and executives on governance, statutory compliance and board effectiveness.

You will lead the governance framework across the organisation and its partnerships. You will build robust assurance, risk management, and accountability across corporate services, information governance, safety and major change programmes, ensuring transparent, confident

Qualifications

• Masters level education or equivalent.
• Company secretarial or governance qualifications.
• Experience in senior governance roles in public or private sector.
• Knowledge of NHS landscape and regulatory environment.
• Ability to lead and manage change.

Responsibilities

• Lead Corporate Governance function and board assurance.
• Provide strategic governance leadership to Chair and Board.
• Develop governance framework with risk and assurance.
• Ensure statutory compliance and high-quality decision-making.
• Engage with NHS England and regulatory bodies.
• Oversee information governance, data protection, and safety.

Skills

Corporate governance

Board facilitation

Risk assessment

Strategic leadership

Stakeholder engagement

Regulatory compliance

Education

Masters degree

Chartered Secretary qualification

Company secretarial qualification

Leadership qualification

Job description

An exceptional executive leadership opportunity

NHS Hampshire and Isle of Wight Integrated Care Board (ICB) is one of the largest Integrated Care Boards in England, serving a population of over 2 million people. Working alongside our NHS providers, local authorities, voluntary sector organisations and wider partners, we are committed to improving health outcomes, tackling inequalities and delivering sustainable, high-quality health and care services.

We are seeking an exceptional leader to join our Executive Leadership Team and work closely with our Board, as our Director of Governance.

Reporting directly to the Chief Executive, this is a pivotal leadership role supporting our Chair, NEDs and the Board, that sits at the heart of our organisation. You will be the principal adviser on governance to the Chief Executive, Chair, Executive Directors and Non-Executive Directors, ensuring that the highest standards of corporate governance, assurance, transparency and accountability support everything we do including the wider portfolio covering legal advice and accountability for our corporate services.

Please note this organisation does not hold a sponsorship licence, we regret to inform you that we are unable to consider applications from individuals who require sponsorship.

Main duties of the job

This is an exciting opportunity to influence strategic decision-making across one of the country's most complex health Systems, helping to shape governance that enables innovation, partnership working and improved outcomes for the communities we serve, and will include a wider portfolio

We are looking to recruit and interview early September 2026. If you think this role is for you, please contact Tom Gurney, Director of Public Insight and Communications and Director of Transition Email: [e-mail]- telephone : [phone]

About us

Why join NHS Hampshire and Isle of Wight ICB?

This is a unique opportunity to join an ambitious Executive Leadership Team at a time of significant transformation across the NHS.

If you are passionate about excellent governance, collaborative leadership and improving outcomes for local people, we would be delighted to hear from you.

We offer excellent employment opportunities to new and existing staff. We aim to be a model employer by embedding best HR practice and to support new ways of working.

We pride ourselves on offering good working conditions, job security, lifelong learning, fair pay and benefits, staff involvement and a balance between work and personal life.

We enjoy a forward thinking and innovative culture and our vision is to have healthy people, living healthy lives in healthy communities. We understand the only way to deliver this is to have the right people with the right skills.

Here is a summary of some of the benefits and services which are on offer to staff:

• 27 days paid minimum holiday and bank holiday entitlement
• Sick pay policy
• Occupational health services including staff counselling services
• Flexible working and family friendly policies
• Flexible retirement and retirement vouchers

Job responsibilities

About the role

As Director of Governance, you will lead the Corporate Governance function and provide strategic leadership across the full governance agenda for the Integrated Care Board.

Working closely with the Chair, Chief Executive and Board, you will ensure that governance arrangements support effective organisational leadership, statutory compliance and high‑quality decision‑making. You will provide expert advice on constitutional matters, corporate governance, Board effectiveness and regulatory requirements, enabling the Board to discharge its responsibilities with confidence.

You will lead the development and continuous improvement of the ICB's governance framework, ensuring robust systems of assurance, risk management and accountability are embedded throughout the organisation.

The role will require excellent communication and engagement skills with our internal and wider stakeholders and where required support collaborative and efficient ways of working.

You will also provide executive leadership for a broad portfolio including:

• Corporate governance and Board assurance.
• Board and committee governance.
• Corporate risk management and the Board Assurance Framework.
• Information Governance, Data Protection and Freedom of Information.
• Executive administration and corporate office services.
• Health and Safety compliance.
• Corporate business support and facilities management.
• Governance support for major organisational and system transformation programmes.

As the Director of Governance you will build strong relationships across the NHS, local government and partner organisations, acting as the principal point of contact with NHS England and regulatory bodies on governance matters.

Person Specification

Qualifications and experience

• Company secretarial training and qualification and/or qualified legal practitioner (Solicitor/Barrister) or equivalent experience.
• Chartered Secretary or Chartered Governance Professional or equivalent experience (CGI)
• Educated to Masters level or equivalent experience.
• Management or Leadership qualification, or equivalent experience.
• Experience of developing strategies and plans.
• Demonstrable technical understanding of the NHS landscape including providers, commissioners and systems, the corporate processes they require for success, and the regulatory/control environment, in which they operate.
• Previous experience working in a company secretariat or in a senior governance role either in public or private sector.
• Regulated industry or public sector experience.
• Broad-based corporate governance experience.
• Experience of leading and working at a senior level in a large and complex organisation.
• Managing and supporting others through change.

Skills and abilities

• Understands the principles of Corporate Governance.
• Able to assess risk and assign strategic priorities.
• Ability to prioritise, work to deadlines, adapt to change, provide pragmatic solutions to problems.
• Able to guide and facilitate both experienced and inexperienced Board members.
• Intellectually flexible and able to look beyond existing structures, ways of working, boundaries and organisations to produce more effective and innovative service delivery.
• Comfortable and credible operating at Board level.

Knowledge

• Able to quickly understand issues involving highly complex, sensitive and /or contentious information and communicate them clearly and succinctly to all levels within and outside the ICB, including where there are significant barriers to understanding.
• Able to flex between thinking on their feet and planning strategically over a longer-term period.
• Clear understanding of the Integrated Care System agenda.

Communication and interpersonal skills

• Clear understanding of the Integrated Care System agenda I Communication and interpersonal skills Highly effective interpersonal and communication (both verbal and written) skills.
• Experience of line management of a team with evidence of developing others and supporting individuals to flourish.
• Evidence of successfully handling sensitive situations efficiently and confidentially.
• Able to deliver in a complex and ambiguous environment.
• Able to present complex issues in a way that is easy to understand to support effective decision making.

Disclosure and Barring Service Check

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.

Director of Public Insight and Communications