Improvement Advisor

Transformation Unit; Worthing; Hybrid; GBP 49,000 - 57,000; Full time

Job summary

Sussex Partnership NHS Foundation Trust is seeking an Improvement Advisor (NHS AfC Band 7) to support and embed continuous improvement across inpatient, community and corporate services. You will coach frontline teams, implement a new Quality Management System and help drive trust-wide priorities.

The role involves on-site work, cross-site travel and collaboration with divisions to build capability in improvement methods, coaching and performance monitoring.

Qualifications

• Trained and accredited in Operational Excellence to Yellow Belt level or equivalent.
• Educated to Degree Level or equivalent experience.
• Experience delivering improvement or change programmes in challenging environments.
• Experience leading projects with measurable impact.
• Ability to work independently and adapt to changing demands/priorities.
• Experience in coaching and training in improvement methods.

Responsibilities

• Coach and support teams to apply improvement methods in day-to-day practice.
• Help implement improvement huddles, driver meetings and standard work.
• Deliver improvement training and capability-building activities.
• Support use of A3 thinking, PDSA and other tools.
• Collaborate with leaders to identify, deliver, measure and sustain improvements.
• Ensure clear communication and sharing of good practice across divisions.

Skills

Operational Excellence Yellow Belt

Improvement coaching

Project leadership

Independent working

Change management

Training delivery

Knowledge of PDSA/A3

Education

Degree level or equivalent

Job description

Main area Administration Grade NHS AfC: Band 7 Contract Permanent Hours

• Full time
• Part time
• Flexible working
• Compressed hours

37.5 hours per week (Expectation of on-site and cross-site working to support frontline improvement roll-out) Job ref 354-CO-22027

Employer Sussex Partnership NHS Foundation Trust Employer type NHS Site Portland House Town Worthing Salary £49,387 - £56,515 pa Salary period Yearly Closing 12/11/2026 08:00

NHS AfC: Band 7

Come and join us

We’re looking for people who share our values of compassion, accountability and optimism to help us provide high quality care for the patients, carers, families and communities we serve. We specialise in NHS mental health and learning disability services and we’re proud to make a difference every day.

At SPFT we put people first. We’ll do everything possible to help you feel respected, valued and included. You’ll have opportunities to learn, grow and gain new experiences to support your career, with access to lifelong learning and professional development.

We actively promote flexible working and understand how important work life balance is, especially in healthcare. Whether it’s part time hours, hybrid working or flexible start and finish times, we’ll explore what works for you and the role.

We recognise that tools like AI are becoming part of everyday life and you may choose to use them when preparing your application. We welcome this, as long as what you submit reflects your own experience, skills and voice. AI can be helpful for structuring or refining your answers, but it should not replace your own examples or create content that isn’t based on your real experience.

Our recruitment process is designed to get to know you, and we’ll explore your examples further at interview, so it’s important your application genuinely represents what you bring. You can read more about using AI in applications and interviews on our recruitment process page .

We’re shaping a workplace where ideas are encouraged, technology supports you and everyone has a voice in how we improve. If that sounds like the kind of organisation you want to be part of, we’d love to hear from you.

Job overview

The Improvement Advisor will support the delivery and embedding of continuous improvement across Sussex Partnership NHS Foundation Trust. Working with divisional, corporate and frontline teams, the post holder will help services use improvement methods, coaching and practical tools to improve quality, safety, experience and effectiveness for people who use our services, staff and partners.

The role will implement a new Trust Quality Management System with frontline teams, as well as supporting divisional and Trustwide improvement priorities, capability building and the development of a consistent improvement management system.

The role will work directly with frontline teams in inpatient, community and corporate settings to coach and deliver improvement and performance monitoring through day-to-day practice and routines.

Main duties of the job

The post holder will coach and support teams to apply improvement methods in day-to-day practice; help implement improvement huddles, driver meetings and standard work; deliver improvement training and capability-building activity; support the use of A3 thinking, PDSA and other improvement tools; and work with leaders and teams to identify, deliver, measure and sustain improvements. The role will also support clear communication, learning and sharing of good practice across divisions and the wider Trust.

The roles will expect to work on-site and travel Trustwide based as the management system is rolled out across teams and services.

Working for our organisation

Sussex Partnership NHS Foundation Trust are fully committed to embracing quality in patient and staff safety, experience and effectiveness. We work to ensure we provide the very best care to the people who use our services, utilising resources, expertise and energy to think creatively and differently about service delivery. Embedding quality improvement across the Trust as the method for change is fully supported by our Executive board and equally by our staff, patients and partners, who are excited about the prospect of not only thinking about but doing things differently.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

As detailed within the job description and main duties above.

Person specification

Qualifications

• Trained and accredited in Operational Excellence to Yellow Belt level; or equivalent experience
• Educated to Degree Level or equivalent experience

Knowledge/Experience

• Experience of successfully managing and delivering improvement or change programmes in challenging environments
• Experience of leading projects which are recognised as being successful and where the project or change management supported the departmental or organisation’s success
• Ability to work independently, make informed decisions and achieve objectives whilst working with continually changing demands and priorities
• Knowledge and experience of improvement tools and methodology
• Experience of providing improvement training
• Knowledge and experience of Coaching and coaching standards/ practises
• Experience of programme planning and delivery, including all aspects of programme governance and control
• Experience of training large groups
• Experience of forming effective working relationships with colleagues to achieve common goals
• Ability to work independently, make informed decisions and achieve objectives whilst working with continually changing demands and priorities
• Demonstrate background of delivering projects in complex and challenging environments

SPFT is committed to building a workforce that reflects the communities we serve. We particularly welcome applications from people from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic backgrounds and from disabled candidates, as these groups are currently underrepresented.

Successful candidates are normally appointed to the bottom of the pay scale unless previous NHS experience in a similar role can be evidenced.

SPFT takes its responsibilities for safeguarding children, young people and adults at risk very seriously. We expect all staff and bank workers to share this commitment and complete the relevant safeguarding training for their role.

If you have not heard from us within three weeks of the closing date, please assume your application has been unsuccessful. However, we’ll always do our best to keep you informed as we know how much time and care goes into applying for a role.

In the event of a high number of applications, we may close this vacancy early.

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 James Atkinson Job title Deputy Director Improvement & Effectiveness Email address [e-mail]