National Priority Programme Director - Mental Health

NHS England; City Of London; On-site; GBP 90,000 - 120,000; Full time

Job summary

A national health organization in the UK is seeking a National Priority Programme Director for Mental Health and Disabilities. The role involves setting strategic direction, leading transformation efforts, and engaging with government ministers. The successful candidate should have senior leadership experience and a strong track record in healthcare. This position emphasizes partnership building and change management.

Qualifications

• Experience in senior leadership roles within healthcare.
• Proven ability to set and deliver strategic direction.
• Strong communication and advisory skills at ministerial level.

Responsibilities

• Set strategic direction for mental health and disabilities initiatives.
• Lead transformation efforts within the organization.
• Engage regularly with the Secretary of State and ministerial teams.

Skills

Leadership

Strategic planning

Partnership building

Change management

Influencing skills

Education

Master's degree or equivalent experience

Job description

Overview

Our National Priority Programme Director for Mental Health, Learning Disabilities and Neurodevelopmental Conditions provides senior, credible and visible leadership to the department and system on these topics — setting clear delivery priorities, breaking down silos, driving improvement out in the system and responsible for catalysing change across services that support people with mental health needs, people with a learning disability, and people who are neurodiverse.

You will be responsible for setting the strategic direction for mental health, learning disabilities and neurodevelopmental conditions in line with Ministerial expectations and then working with leads from across the department and NHS England to ensure robust delivery plans are in place and delivering.

You will act as the Secretary of State’s key advisor on this area, as the leading voice in this field and should expect regular engagement with the Secretary of State, wider ministerial teams and with other areas of government, including Department for Work and Pensions, Home Office, Department for Education and Cabinet Office for the delivery of the Government\'s Missions (growth, opportunity and safer streets).

As National Priority Programme Director you will develop the strong partnerships required to drive forward delivery of your programmes, across the system and externally, and may spend a substantial amount of time speaking to systems – to understand risks and issues in their areas, support change in behaviours, galvanize partners, and use ‘soft’ levers to improve quality/performance.

You will report to the NHS Chief Executive and crucially act as an advisor to Ministers.

In the immediate term, you will help lead the organisation through transformation, working with the national executive of the Department and NHS England to design an effective approach to delivering national priorities in Mental Health, Learning Disabilities and Neurodevelopmental Conditions. You will ensure the Department is equipped to meet Ministerial priorities and delivers the benefits envisaged through the organisational redesign. This will include a focus on efficiency savings and creating a new operating model that empowers local systems.

Our work supports the NHS to deliver high quality services for patients and best value for taxpayers.

Our staff bring expertise across hundreds of specialisms — including clinical, operational, commissioning, technology, data science, cyber security, software engineering, education, and commercial — enabling us to design and deliver high-quality NHS services.

We Lead The NHS In England By

• Enabling local systems and providers to improve the health of their people and patients and reduce health inequalities
• Making the NHS a great place to work, where our people can make a difference and achieve their potential
• Working collaboratively to ensure our healthcare workforce has the right knowledge, skills, values and behaviours to deliver accessible, compassionate care
• Optimising the use of digital technology, research, and innovation
• Delivering value for money

Earlier this year, the Government announced that NHS England will gradually merge with the Department of Health and Social Care, leading to full integration. The aim is to create a smaller, more strategic centre that reduces duplication and eliminates waste.

If successful at interview, we will initiate an Inter Authority Transfer (IAT) via the Electronic Staff Record (ESR). This retrieves key data from your current or previous NHS employer to support onboarding, including competency status, Continuous Service Dates (CSD), and annual leave entitlement. You may opt out at any stage of the recruitment process.

For further details / informal visits contact: Name: Lauren Hughes
Job title: Chief of Staff to Chair and CEO NHS England
Email address: [e-mail]