Job overview

Please note applications for the post should be submitted with a CV and personal statement as detailed in ‘How to apply’ on page 23 of the recruitment pack.

We are seeking to appoint an Associate Non-Executive Director (NED) with financial management experience. To facilitative effective succession planning, it is intended that when the current finance NED concludes their term of office in July 2026, the successful candidate will move into the role. This will be subject to a satisfactory appraisal outcome at month 6 and a recommendation from the Chair to the Nominations Committee, and in turn to the Council of Governors, for appointment as finance NED.

It is an important time for our Trust as we are increasingly working together with Northumbria Healthcare, Gateshead Health and North Cumbria Integrated Care NHS Foundation Trusts as the Great North Healthcare Alliance (‘the Alliance’) to deliver excellence in healthcare.
We have over 2 million patient contacts each year in our main hospitals, making us one of the biggest providers of specialist care in the UK, and we serve people from across the North East, North Cumbria and beyond.

We are continuing our journey towards greater collaboration to develop, enhance, and improve clinical pathways resulting in better patient experience and outcomes.

Main duties of the job

We are part of one of Europe’s leading centres for research and innovation in partnership with Newcastle University and the University of Northumbria in Newcastle, and through our work with the National Institute of Health and Care Research. We are a core member of Health Innovation Northeast and North Cumbria (HI NENC), and the Northern Health Science Alliance (NHSA), and we continue to attract major awards and commercial opportunities to the Northeast.

We acknowledge that these are very challenging times for the NHS both locally and nationally. We are on an improvement journey, and have made good progress since our most recent Care Quality Commission (CQC) inspection and are focussed on re-establishing the Trust as one of the highest performing in the country.

This is an exceptional opportunity to share your talents and expertise to make a positive difference to the lives of people in the North East.

Working for our organisation

Essential criteria for the role includes:

• Board or senior level financial leadership experience gained in a large and complex public facing organisation with experience as a member of a Board Committee.
• Financial management expertise
• qualified financial accountant with current professional registration
• Able to demonstrate through experience to be able to:

• - work alongside other Non-executives and Executive colleagues and add value.
  - have an ongoing dialogue with Council of Governors on progress in delivery of the Trusts performance.
  - work in conjunction with the Council of Governors to promote public sector values and the interests of Foundation Trust members through good corporate governance.
  - bring independence, external perspectives, skills and challenge to  strategy development.
  - hold the Executive Team to account by providing purposeful, constructive scrutiny and challenge.
  - demonstrate a genuine commitment to patients and the promotion of excellent health care services.
  - balance organisational governance priorities with system collaboration.
  - uphold the highest standards of conduct and display the principles of selflessness, integrity, objectivity, accountability, openness, honesty and leadership through demonstrating the Trusts values and the NHS values and principles.