Head of Patient Care Contracts - Band 8b

NHS; United Kingdom; Hybrid; GBP 64,000 - 75,000; Full time

Job summary

A healthcare organization is seeking a Head of Patient Care Contracts to manage and negotiate contracts with stakeholders. This senior role involves working closely with finance and operational teams to ensure delivery of high-quality services. Responsibilities include contract management, developing key relationships, and providing expert advice in healthcare contracting. Candidates should have extensive experience with NHS systems and strong project management skills.

Qualifications

• Evidence of continued professional development with a particular emphasis on healthcare commissioning or performance management.
• Experience and expert knowledge of NHS.

Responsibilities

• Lead and support contract negotiations with external stakeholders.
• Manage a portfolio of Trust contracts and ensure performance targets are achieved.
• Develop key working relationships with NHS provider organisations.

Skills

Contracting and commissioning systems within an NHS provider organisation

Strong communication skills

Project management skills

Ability to present information clearly

Excellent organisational skills

Education

Healthcare commissioning or performance management

CIPS qualified (minimum level 4)

Job description

Job Summary

The Head of Patient Care Contracts will be a member of the senior management team reporting directly to the Associate Director of Income and Contracting. The post holder will support the Associate Director in relation to all healthcare contract discussions with internal and external stakeholders.

The role supports the contract management process for the Trust, provider to provider and third sector contracts, to ensure delivery of services that are high quality, better value for money and to achieve the Trust objectives.

The post holder will also be expected to provide expert advice on contract management matters to Executives, Divisional Managers and clinicians from a variety of disciplines.

The post holder will be responsible for supporting the development of the Trust to contracting with non-commissioning bodies as well as developing capability within the team and of individual team members.

Expected interview date: 29 Jan 2026

Main Duties of the Job

Key Dimensions

• Contract Management – Successful delivery of this role involves ensuring contract management for all contract services by ensuring robust systems for proactive contract performance monitoring that enable performance indicators to be specified, monitored, performance issues to be acted upon and future procurement decisions to be made.
• Safeguarding – Provision of in-house contractual expertise on how the Trust's interests can be safeguarded in contracts and partnerships with other organisations, and how those safeguards can be documented.
• Portfolio Management – Manage a portfolio of Trust contracts, supporting clinical and operational teams with their understanding of contract terms and parameters.
• Finance Liaison – Work closely with the finance team so as to ensure the Contracting & Income department provides a seamless service on all income issues.
• Relationship Development – Development of key working relationships with Directors and Senior Managers of NHS provider organisations, suppliers and third sector bodies.

About Us

We are a small team of ten who work closely together within the Finance function as our roles across finance, contracting and income overlap. We are in effect a small multi-disciplinary team. Our role means that we interact with many internal and external clients and need to build good working relationships, often leading in workshops to resolve multifaceted issues.

Details

Date posted: 22 December 2025

Salary

£64,455 to £74,896 a year (pa pro rata if part-time)

Contract

Permanent

Working Pattern

Full-time, Flexible working, Home or remote working

Reference Number

318-25-T0774

Job Locations

Riverside House (1st floor)

College Baths Road

Cheltenham

GL53 7QB

Job Responsibilities

• Lead, support and contribute to formal contract negotiations with senior level staff from external stakeholders, providing a high level of negotiating expertise to secure the most advantageous arrangements.
• Work closely with operational colleges to ensure contractual performance targets are achieved.
• Work closely with the Heads of other Departments or Directorate to ensure that units understand and adhere to rules and standards, intervening as appropriate.
• Ensure the securing of value for money, giving due consideration to all relevant factors including risk, quality and other factors.
• Ensure contracts are in place, especially for provider to provider arrangements, including clear clinical specifications.
• Review contracted services at regular intervals, and identify any fundamental changes required.
• Use high level contracting and commercial expertise to deliver an innovative and ambitious approach to the Trusts business obligations and opportunities and the associated contract structures.
• Undertake highly complex and contentious negotiations with Directors and Senior Managers of Commercial and public sector organisations to ensure best value and minimising risk to the Trust.
• Protect the financial and contractual integrity of the Trust through the analysis of third‑party contracts.
• Work with the Associate Director of Income & Contracting and the Director of Finance to ensure the strong development and continued growth of the Trusts contract management function, including robust systems and processes to deliver contractual obligations and management of sub‑contracts and provider to provider agreements.
• Ensure that best practice is developed and delivered at organisational and departmental levels, challenge ways of working and persuade, motivate and influence other senior managers to realign their practice where necessary.
• Maintain compliance with Standing Orders and Standing Financial Instructions.
• Act as deputy to the Associate Director of Income and Contracting on agreed and appropriate occasions.
• Maintain an overseas database ensuring it is up to date.
• Support the Associate Director of Income & Contracting on non‑commissioning income management for the Trust with particular reference to Provider to Provider agreements.
• Develop and maintain up to date processes to ensure all income is reported and contracted (where applicable) so disclosed correctly in the financial position.
• Provide expert knowledge and financial advice on negotiating and agreeing contracts.
• Participate actively in developing the vision, strategy and plans for income and contracting, taking account of the impact across the service lines and the organisation overall.
• Report contractual issues and effects to various Boards and sub‑committees.
• Familiarity with PSR and how it effects contracting.
• Liaise with the Procurement Department.
• Support in the production of an annual price list to support the Private Patient office in line with Trust strategy.
• Support on the financial support to the Private Patients Office.
• Support with Private Patient insurance company negotiations.
• Support on financial support for Overseas Visitors.
• Support, in general, to the Research & Development department of the Trust.
• Responsible for developing, implementing and maintaining the policies and procedures associated with the management of contracts.
• Contribute to the strategic direction of the Finance team including reviewing the key external partnership collaborations.
• Require excellent interpersonal, negotiation and communication skills.
• Present highly complex and highly sensitive financial information to large audiences of varying experience, requiring highly developed presentation and influencing skills.
• Require negotiation and persuasive skills when communicating contentious information to staff and directorates where there may be significant barriers to acceptance.
• Be responsible for the overall management of the Contracting and Costing team, including motivating staff to meet deadlines and targets, recruitment, training, appraisal, implementation of HR policies and dealing with disciplinary/performance issues.
• Be responsible for the personal development of the teams and ensure that every member of staff is regularly appraised and has a Personal Development Plan.
• Maintain an up to date, in depth specialist knowledge of contract management, contractual and financial aspects of NHS legislation and NHS policies.
• Ensure relevant finance and service staff are appropriately briefed on contract developments through the use of seminars, briefing papers and targeted distribution lists.

Person Specification

Qualifications and Training (Essential)

• Evidence of continued professional development with a particular emphasis on healthcare commissioning or performance management

Desirable

• Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply (CIPS) qualified (minimum level 4) and currently registered

Knowledge and Skills (Essential)

• Contracting and commissioning systems within an NHS provider organisation
• Experience and expert knowledge of NHS
• Significant staff and budgetary management
• Able to analyse highly complex issues involving material drawn from various sources, sometimes conflicting
• Project management skills
• Excellent organisational and time management skills
• Strong communication skills, both orally and in writing
• Ability to present information clearly to a range of audiences including the public
• Able to influence and persuade others and inspire and motivate staff

Personal Attributes (Essential)

• Team worker
• Able to cope under pressure
• Proactive / takes own initiative

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.

Employer Details

Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

Riverside House (1st floor)

College Baths Road

Cheltenham

GL53 7QB

Employer's Website

https://www.gloshospitals.nhs.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)