Non-Executive Director

Black Country Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust; Wolverhampton; On-site; GBP 12,000 - 14,000; Part time

Job summary

Black Country Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust in Wolverhampton is seeking a part-time Non-Executive Director to chair the Audit Committee and provide expert oversight of financial governance, risk and assurance. The role requires a strong financial background and strategic leadership to challenge and support the Board.

You will join as a voting member of the Board, work with the Chair and other colleagues, and engage with the Council of Governors to hold the Board to account.

Qualifications

• Governance, financial expertise, and audit committee leadership experience.
• Strategic leadership experience in complex organisations.
• Independence and constructive challenge in board roles.
• Experience in mergers, acquisitions or complex transactions.

Responsibilities

• Provide independent judgement and advice on strategy, performance and governance.
• Chair or participate in board committees and support executive leadership.
• Ensure financial information quality and robust financial controls.
• Engage with stakeholders and represent the Trust publicly.

Skills

Governance

Financial expertise

Audit leadership

Job description

Main area We will require a candidate with a strong financial background and appropriate professional qualifications. This individual will be expected to Chair the Audit Committee, providing expert oversight of financial governance, risk, and assurance. This is a critical requirement. Grade Executives / VSM: Executives / VSM Contract 3 years (3 year fixed term contract) Hours Part time - 7.5 hours per week (3-4 days per month) Job ref 285-3069B-CORP

Employer Black Country Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust Employer type NHS Site Wolverhampton Civic Centre Town Wolverhampton Salary £13,000 £13,000 per annum Salary period Yearly Closing 23/10/2026 13:00 Interview date 06/11/2026

Non-Executive Director

Executives / VSM: Executives / VSM

Black Country Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust is growing and changing. We provide specialist mental health, learning disability and community services across Dudley, Sandwell, Walsall and Wolverhampton. We’re looking for people who care about others, take responsibility, treat people with respect and have the confidence to speak up and shape what comes next.

We’re focused on the future, with a clear Trust Strategy and our Best for the Black Country programme driving improvement across our services and communities.

What we do

• Adult and older adult mental health
• Children and young people’s mental health
• Specialist learning disability services
• Community healthcare for children, young people and families in Dudley

We’ve got real momentum. Clear priorities and our Best for the Black Country work mean things are moving in the right way, fast.

Our culture is built around being compassionate, accountable, respectful and empowering each other - you’ll see this in how teams support patients and colleagues every day.
You’ll be looked after. Flexible working, family-friendly policies, supportive teams, proper wellbeing support and opportunities to learn and develop.

There’s room to grow. A wide range of services, space to try ideas and a voice that’s heard.

It’s a great place to live. Diverse communities, good transport links, strong schools and green space, with a lower cost of living than many city regions.

What it’s like to work here

You’ll join friendly, skilled teams who look out for each other. We plan together, share pressures and celebrate wins. You’ll be encouraged to take ownership, speak up and learn from experience. New starters get a warm welcome and clear induction; early careers colleagues have preceptorship and buddying; experienced staff can lead, teach and innovate.

Who we are

As part of our commitment to fairness, transparency, and personal integrity, we ask all applicants to ensure that their job applications reflect their own experiences, skills, and motivations. While AI tools can support spelling, grammar, or formatting, we expect that the content of your application—especially personal statements and responses to role-specific questions—is written by you. This helps us get to know the real you and ensures that our recruitment process remains equitable and meaningful for everyone.

Job overview

Non-Executive Director – Audit Chair

The Non-Executive Director will work with the Chair and other Executive and Non-Executive colleagues as a voting member of the Board. You will also work in partnership with the Council of Governors who are charged with holding the Non-Executive Directors to account for the performance of the Board of Directors.

You will need to have a genuine commitment to patients and the delivery of high quality care to all service users. You will be someone who is passionate about representing the needs of the diverse communities across the Black Country.

we are seeking a person with:

Governance, Financial Expertise and Audit Committee Leadership

• Strategic Leadership Experience
• Commitment to Public Service Values
• Independence and Constructive Challenge
• Demonstrable experience in mergers, acquisitions, or complex commercial transactions, with the ability to provide strategic insight and challenge in relation to organisational partnerships, structural change, and commercial development.

Closing Date: Friday 23 October 2026

Interview Date: Friday 6 November 2026 (face to face – must be available for this date)

Stakeholder Panels: Friday 6 November 2026 (face to face – must be available for this date)

Salary: £13,000 per annum

Main duties of the job

Governance, Financial Expertise and Audit Committee Leadership

• Strategic Leadership Experience
• Commitment to Public Service Values
• Independence and Constructive Challenge
• Demonstrable experience in mergers, acquisitions, or complex commercial transactions, with the ability to provide strategic insight and challenge in relation to organisational partnerships, structural change, and commercial development.

Working for our organisation

We are recruiting for a Non-Executive Director to serve on the Board at Black Country Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust. This is an excellent opportunity to share your expertise and skills to make a positive difference to the communities we serve.

The Non-Executive Director will work with the Chair and other Executive and Non-Executive colleagues as a voting member of the Board. You will also work in partnership with the Council of Governors who are charged with holding the Non-Executive Directors to account for the performance of the Board of Directors.

You will need to have a genuine commitment to patients and the delivery of high quality care to all service users. You will be someone who is passionate about representing the needs of the diverse communities across the Black Country.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

• Commit to working to, and encouraging within the Trust, the highest standards of probity, integrity and governance and contribute to ensuring that the Trust’s internal governance arrangements conform with best practice and statutory requirements;
• Provide independent judgement and advice on issues of strategy, vision, performance, resources and standards of conduct and constructively challenge, influence and help the Executive Team develop proposals on such strategies;
• In accordance with board procedure, monitor the performance and conduct of management in meeting agreed goals and objectives and statutory responsibilities, including the preparation of annual reports and annual accounts, including the quality reports and accounts, and other statutory duties;
• Obtain comfort that financial information is accurate and that financial controls and risk management systems are robust and defensible;
• Obtain comfort that information about the quality and safety of services is accurate and that the associated systems are robust and defensible;
• Contribute to the determination of appropriate levels of remuneration for Executive Directors and other very senior managers;
• Participate in and if required chair the Trust committees, as well as take an active part in other committees established by the Board of Directors to exercise delegated responsibility;
• As a member of board committees, appoint, remove, support, encourage and where appropriate ‘mentor’ senior executives;
• Bring independent judgement and experience based on expertise from outside the Trust and apply this to the benefit of the Trust, its stakeholders and its wider community;
• Assist fellow Directors in setting the Trust’s strategic aims, ensuring that the necessary financial, human and other resources are in place for the Trust to meet its objectives, and that performance is effectively monitored and reviewed;
• Assist fellow Directors in providing entrepreneurial leadership to the Trust within a framework of prudent and effective controls, which enable risk to be assessed and managed;
• Assist fellow Directors in setting the Trust’s values and standards and ensure its obligations to its stakeholders and the wider community are understood and fairly balanced at all times;
• Engage positively and collaboratively in board discussion of agenda items and act as an ambassador for the Trust in engagement with stakeholders including the local community, dealing with the media when appropriate;

Person specification

Applying and timelines

As part of our commitment to fairness, openness and accountability, we ask all applicants to ensure that their job applications reflect their own experiences, skills and motivations. While AI tools can support spelling, grammar or formatting, we expect that the content of your application especially personal statements and responses to role-specific questions is written by you.

Pay and contracts

Most NHS roles are paid under NHS Agenda for Change. With us, your starting point is set against the advertised band and your relevant NHS service, with progression through annual increments.

Medical and Very Senior Manager roles follow separate national pay frameworks, not Agenda for Change. Details are provided in each advert and during recruitment.

Standards and checks

• Clinical posts up to and including Band 4 are expected to hold the Care Certificate. If you don’t have it yet, we’ll support you to complete it in post.
• Some roles require a Standard or Enhanced DBS check under part V of the Police Act 1997. Having a criminal record won’t automatically prevent employment - we consider the role and individual circumstances.
• We are an equal opportunities employer, offer flexible working, and are a smoke‑free Trust.

Inclusion, equality and adjustments

• We are an equal opportunities employer and are committed to creating an environment where everyone is treated with dignity, feels respected and is able to thrive.
• We are an anti‑racist, disability‑inclusive and LGBTQ+‑inclusive Trust.
• We welcome applications from under‑represented groups and people with lived experience relevant to our services.
• Disabled applicants can request consideration under our Guaranteed Interview Scheme where essential criteria are met, and you can ask for reasonable adjustments at any stage.

Our culture and values

Best for the Black Country is our improvement journey. Our values Compassionate, Accountable, Respectful and Empowered guide how we work every day.

That means:

• taking time to understand people and respond with kindness
• being open and taking responsibility for our actions
• listening and valuing different perspectives
• supporting each other to speak up, improve and make a difference

You’ll see this in how teams work together and in the impact you can have on local people.

Employer certification / accreditation badges

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.