Head of Lived Experience Staff - Maternity Cover

Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust; City Of London; On-site; GBP 60,000 - 80,000; Full time

Job summary

A major healthcare provider in the UK seeks an experienced leader for the Trust Head of Lived Experience Workforce. This one-year fixed-term contract is responsible for providing strategic leadership, developing best practices, and ensuring compliance. Ideal candidates should have substantial lived experience, leadership skills, and a postgraduate degree. The role emphasizes recovery-focused approaches, community engagement, and professional oversight within a dynamic healthcare setting.

Benefits

Monthly supervision

Access to training opportunities

Annual personal development plans/appraisals

Qualifications

• Completion of Peer Support Training required.
• Postgraduate degree or equivalent in research, writing or analysis.
• Extensive leadership and mentoring experience necessary.

Responsibilities

• Provide strategic leadership for the lived experience workforce.
• Develop best practices for peer support.
• Ensure compliance with professional standards.

Skills

Lived experience of recovery

Leadership experience

Extensive peer work experience

Co-production methodology

Public speaking

Education

Postgraduate degree or equivalent skills

Leadership training

Completion of Peer Support Training

Job description

Job Overview

We are seeking an experienced and inspirational lived experience leader to take on the role of Trust Head of Lived Experience Workforce on a one-year fixed term contract (maternity cover). This is an exciting opportunity to provide strategic leadership and professional oversight of our growing peer and lived experience workforce, shaping best practice and driving innovation across the Trust. Working closely with senior leaders, external partners and peer and lived experience staff, you will represent the workforce as its head of profession at every level of the organisation and play a pivotal role in embedding recovery-focused, co‑produced approaches. If this opportunity aligns with your skills, experience and aspirations, we encourage you to apply.

Main duties of the job

The postholder will advise the Director of Therapies, The Chief Nurse, the Trust Board and Service/Clinical Directors on the strategic development of this professional group, ensuring that they meet professional standards and are compliant with recognised best practice.

Holding expertise in lived experience working in both clinical and training contexts, and applying a lived experience and experiential lens to strategic work, the postholder will work highly autonomously to uphold systemic governance and high-quality service delivery across the peer/ lived experience workforce as a whole. The postholder should provide consultation, guidance and support on Lived Experience Practice & Peer Support across CNWL and its related partners.

The post holder will ensure that all Divisional/Borough/Service Line peer and lived experience leaders operate within a robust framework which ensures professional leadership for all lived experience workers, timely interpretation of national and local policies; and ensures systematic and appropriate governance of peer support and lived experience practice within the borough/service line. The postholder also holds ultimate responsibility for ensuring that systems for effective professional supervision and support are established and maintained across all services that have peer or lived experience workers, including systems for effective recruitment and retention.

Working for our organisation

Central and North West London (CNWL) NHS Foundation Trust is one of England's largest NHS Trusts.

With great size, comes fantastic opportunities, to develop, innovate and progress.

Along with the fully established benefits such as Monthly supervision; Annual personal development plans/appraisals; Support and guidance with Revalidation; Hidden Gem and annual award ceremonies. We are also able to offer access to a full range of internal and external training opportunities across our services.

The successful applicant may have contact with patients or service users. As an NHS Trust we strongly encourage and support vaccination as this remains the best way to protect yourself, your family, your colleagues and of course patients and service users when working on our healthcare settings.

Detailed Job Description And Main Responsibilities

Please refer to the attached Job Description and Person Specification on this advert for further info.

• To assume the role of most senior practitioner in the lived experience workforce in the Trust; providing effective strategic professional and clinical leadership to all lived experience workers across CNWL.
• Leading on the development and articulation of best practice in the lived experience workforce, providing assurance of effective governance across the professions they cover.
• To support the strategic direction and development of the Recovery & Wellbeing College as a co‑produced service.
• To contribute to a climate within the organisation that will allow the lived experience workforce to develop and fully support the organisation’s goals.
• Strategically planning the systematic growth of the lived experience workforce, supported by the Trustwide Lived Experience Practitioner and Peer Support Lead to ensure high levels of productivity and motivation and to ensure lived experience worker provision is responsive to need.
• To ensure personal recovery principles and a social inclusion framework are retained at the heart of all lived experience workforce roles, ensuring that people who use services and their supporters participate and contribute to the process.
• To provide support to community agencies in order to facilitate and promote recovery focused practice and social inclusion, in line with the Trust’s vision.
• To ensure that the Trust Board is kept informed of new requirements and developments related to the lived experience workforce.
• To provide reports to the Trust Board, Executive Group and Divisional Boards as required.
• To ensure that the lived experience workforce are kept updated regarding national, London‑wide and Trust developments.
• To liaise regularly with Trust Professional Leads and Service/Clinical Directors regarding development of services within their area.
• To contribute to the positive public image of the Trust.
• To support the Trust in its contribution to the wider public understanding of what it means to have lived experience of mental health issues, and the reduction of stigma and discrimination.
• To represent the lived experience workforce and the Trust in relevant local, regional and national forums which benefit the Trust.
• To achieve key priorities and targets in line with Trust requirements.
• To lead in conjunction with the Service /Clinical Directors in the development and implementation of a strategy for the professional development of the lived experience workforce to meet the changing needs of services and Trust redesign to reflect care pathways and commissioning arrangements.
• To initiate and contribute to service developments and projects including creating and presenting business cases to local commissioners.
• To promote understanding of the principles and practice of the peer and lived experience practitioner roles across the Trust and at external forums and meetings as appropriate.
• To contribute to cultures across the Trust that is therapeutic, productive, accessible, inclusive, flexible and responsive to service users’ needs.
• Participate in and actively contribute to Lived Experience specific supervision, mandatory training and team meetings, and organisational events as required.
• Ensure excellent communication and liaison with colleagues within the wider services of the Trust, being an agent for change and a champion of recovery in all interactions both within and outside the organisation.
• Promote development of best practices in peer support and Lived Experience Practice active participation in internal and external training and development programmes.

Person specification

Education / Qualification

Essential criteria

• Completion of Peer Support Training
• Postgraduate degree or able to demonstrate equivalent skills in research, writing or analysis
• Leadership training
• Evidence of continuing professional and personal development

Desirable criteria

• Project Management qualification
• Adult Education qualification
• Mentorship or Supervision Training

Experience

Essential criteria

• Lived experience of recovery from mental and emotional distress, and of using secondary care mental health services
• Extensive working experience as a peer worker in both training and clinical contexts
• Extensive experience of providing leadership to a large number of peer workers
• Extensive experience of utilising co‑production as a methodology for undertaking programmes of work
• Experience of delivering mentoring and/or supervision/appraisal
• Experience of service redesign and development
• Experience of providing consultation to professional and non‑professional groups
• Track record of policy development and implementation
• Experience of teaching and training
• Experience of facilitating groupwork
• Experience of relationship building and partnership working
• Experience of public speaking
• Track record of contributing to the body of evidence related to lived experience working
• Experience of working collaboratively with regional and/or national bodies e.g. Health Education England, NHS London; NHSi

Desirable criteria

• Experience of developing and implementing strategy related to lived experience staff and/or a Recovery College