Job vacancy: Head of People, South Warwickshire University NHS Foundation Trust, Warwick

Job summary

Main area

Human Resources

Grade

NHS AfC: Band 8b

Contract

Permanent

Hours

Full time
Flexible working

37.5 hours per week (Full Time 37.5 hours per week)

Job ref

203-C2976

Employer: South Warwickshire University NHS Foundation Trust
Employer type: NHS
Site: Warwick Hospital
Town: Warwick
Salary: £64,455 - £74,896 per annum
Salary period: Yearly
Closing: 12/12/2025 23:59

Head of People

NHS AfC: Band 8b

South Warwickshire University NHS Foundation Trust is one of the top performing organisations within the NHS. Our staff think this is a great place to work and we hope you will agree. We have recently been rated as 'Outstanding' by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) following our most recent inspection.

We provide services across Warwickshire and beyond ranging from Hospitals in Warwick, Stratford-Upon-Avon, Royal Leamington Spa and Shipston-on Stour to Community Services across the whole county. This includes our Community Teams in North Warwickshire.

We are a progressive, expanding organisation with great ambition around improving quality, integrating pathways and delivering high levels of productivity. Over 6000 people work for the Trust and many of them have been here a long time. People find they don’t need to go elsewhere to find a fulfilling career in healthcare.

The first thing you will notice about us is how we take our values seriously. We believe that our values underpin everything we do. If you are interested in a role with us you need to make sure our values match your own.

Our values can be summed up in one sentence. We are ‘Trusted to provide inclusive, safe, effective and compassionate care’. Throughout the recruitment process you will be asked to think about how you demonstrate these values and how they impact on your work. It doesn’t matter what role you do, whether it is patient facing or not, we are all working in the same way with our values at the core.

Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) Checks

Many of the roles we advertise have a requirement for a DBS check to be carried out. If you are successful for a role and it requires a DBS check the Trust will carry out the initial check and subscription to the DBS Update Service, however successful candidates will be expected to cover the associated costs . Details of this will be sent to successful candidates in their offer letter.

Probationary Period

All new staff to the Trust will be subject to a standard 6 month probationary period, the details of which will duly follow in your contract of employment.

Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion

South Warwickshire University NHS Foundation Trust is committed to creating and sustaining a positive and inclusive working environment for all our employees. Our aim is to ensure that employees are equally valued and respected and that our organisation is representative of all members of society. We define diversity as valuing everyone as an individual – we value our employees, job applicants, students, patients and visitors as people. This is reflected within our values of being Inclusive, Safe, Effective, Compassionate and Trusted.

As part of our commitment to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion we encourage all applicants to complete a short survey. This can be accessed via the link below:

https://forms.office.com/e/ahWY3eAGM2

We appreciate you completing the survey.

Agile and Flexible Working

All our staff will have a work base. However the Trust operates as an Agile Working Team therefore staff may be working from home on a regular basis as required by the service. However, occasionally travel around Warwickshire and into your base will be required so access to your own transport would be helpful.

The Trust also welcome staff to work flexibly and we would welcome the conversation at interview regarding flexible working.

Staff Benefits

The Trust offer a wide range of additional benefits to staff. Anyone who joins us on a substantive basis can assess things such as the Lease Car Scheme, Electronics Scheme, Discounted Leisure and Travel, Cycle to work scheme amongst many others available.

Car Parking

The Trust currently have limited availability of car parking spaces, as such are operating a waiting list for new starters joining the organisation.

To keep up to date on our latest recruitment activity follow us on twitter @swftrecruit or look us up on Facebook (Recruitment - South Warwickshire NHS Foundation Trust).

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Service Delivery and Improvement

Lead the People & Workforce Team in relation to human resources and general management issues, enabling them to fully contribute to the business and take responsibility and lead on HR issues within the Directorates with confidence.

Continually review the Trust’s approach to employment and contractual issues and legislation and DoH policy changes, taking lead responsibility for all legal issues in relation to employee relation cases, in conjunction with the Associate Director of People.

Anaylse and interpret highly complex employment legislation and guidance to deliver a full range of Workforce and HR professional services across the Trusts, providing information, advice, recommendations and decisions relating to complex cases with legal, financial and organisational wide complications.

Lead the development, implementation and monitoring of effective and staff centred local employment policies and procedures that foster good employee relations which complete with employment legislation and relevant codes of practice within the context of a partnership approach.

Ensure all operational Workforce & HR services meet the requirements of legislation, Internal Audit, Care Quality Commission (CQC) and the NHSLA standards for Trusts.

Support the People & Workforce Business Partners to develop integrated workforce plans to in order to ensure that the developing staffing needs of directorates are captured and described, contributing these workforces plans towards the implementation of a workforce development strategy.

Cover for senior HR, Workforce and Education colleagues and deputise for the Associate Director as required, as appropriate, to ensure that a professional senior People & Education service can be maintained across the organisations at all times.

Work flexibly with the People and Workforce Team to manage the employment relations caseload, ensuring that best practice and staff centered processes are followed. This may also include directly managing some cases as appropriate.

Ensure all medical workforce matters are managed in accordance with the required policy framework (MHPS).

Take the lead in, or contribute to, other appropriate projects which meet strategic/operational objectives and as directed by the Associate Director of People and Workforce.

Participate in regional and/or national workforce & HR related forums as a representative of the Trust taking appropriate action as required.

Equality, Diversity & Inclusion

Identify and support the delivery of measures in relation to the embedding of Equality, Diversity and Inclusion across the Trusts, both in relation to employment practice and staff experience.

Act as the Trust HR lead for employment matters in relation to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion. This will require specialist knowledge for the development of Trust wide policies, procedures, processes and training courses.

Ensure there are effective plans that ensure compliance with the Equality Act 2010, the Trust’s statutory duties and NHS requirements through EDS2, WRES and WDES. These should be developed in partnership with staff networks and Staff Side colleagues and EDI Leads.

Health & Wellbeing

Support with the implementation of a staff Health and Wellbeing Strategy in line with the aspiration to create excellent staff experience to excel at patient care. To ensure through this strategy that we support our staff’s physical and mental health & wellbeing, supporting good attendance and looking after staff with long-term conditions. To engage with a wide range of managers/staff/staff side representatives in order to develop and implement the strategy.

To lead on specific health and wellbeing initiatives as indicated by the Health and Wellbeing Strategy and annual action plan.

Organisational

Provide comprehensive and professional employment advice and support managers and staff across the Trusts, investigating and advising on complex employment issues.

Support the Leadership Management Teams by ensuring effective performance management processes are in place for the provision of employment advice and support.

To provide professional leadership to the People and Workforce Team, providing or facilitating coaching, mentoring, support and advice on all aspects of the Divisions work relating to service delivery, ensuring the highest standards are met and consistently monitored.

To develop and maintain effective business partner relationships with Trust senior managers, clinicians and key stakeholders.

To manage and monitor shared services, Service Level Agreements for subsidiary companies, ensuring they continue to meet organisational needs and regulatory requirements.

Professional

Support the ongoing development of a positive employee relations climate through the promotion of effective partnership working with staff side colleagues, ensuring effective mechanisms for staff representation, communication and consultation, developing an environment of trust, cooperation and involvement.

Lead coordination of Joint Negotiating Committee and Joint Local Negotiating Committee Forum meetings, ensuring that Trust standards in regard the productions of agendas, minutes and associated papers are adhered to.

Establish links with Partner Organisations to enable and facilitate joint initiatives and benchmarking on employment practices where appropriate.

Communication

Support the People and Workforce team to develop skills to deal with a range of highly complex and/or sensitive situations where a high level of communication is necessary, imparting such information in possible hostile, antagonistic or emotive atmospheres often against significant barriers to acceptance i.e. redundancies, terminations of employment, disciplinary outcomes, absence management, grievance issues, appeals and closure of units.

Design and deliver training sessions on a range of workforce & HR topics to groups of staff across the Trust and provide continuous support and guidance in these matters.

Possess exceptional communication and negotiation skills with the personal creditability to influence and lead key stakeholders in your area.

Project Management

Lead and have responsibility for specific projects across the Trust. This will include the development and management of robust project plans, including the management of risks.

Effectively engage and manage stakeholders and key staff.

Develop appropriate communication strategies to support projects and ensure they are integrated with trust-wide communication plans.

Monitor and manage performance against project milestones and action plans.

Establish procedures/protocols to ensure ongoing compliance/maintenance of standard/topic areas as projects end and integrate into business as usual.

Ensure effective IT systems are in place to aid implementation, monitoring and reporting.

Person specification

Experience

Essential criteria

Please see detailed Job Description and Personal Specification

Desirable criteria

Please see detailed Job Description and Personal Specification

IMPORTANT INFORMATION

Sometimes we get a lot of applications for our roles. On those occasions we might close the job early. If you don’t want to miss out we recommend submitting your application as early as possible.

The Trust use an Applicant Management System called TRAC which helps us manage the recruitment process. All communications regarding your application will come via TRAC (even if you applied via NHS Jobs).

Please check your TRAC account regularly and ensure your email is set up to accept messages so they don't go into your junk/spam folder.

We aim to shortlist all vacancies within 2 days of the vacancy closing, we will get back to all candidates ASAP.

Please ensure all sections of the application form are completed fully. Please particularly ensure that you provide full details of all referees including business email address, telephone contact details and postal address.

South Warwickshire University NHS Foundation Trust is an equal opportunities employer who is committed to Equality and Diversity and does not tolerate discrimination or harassment on the grounds of any protected characteristic as defined by the Equality Act 2010.

All South Warwickshire University NHS Foundation Trust sites are smoke free. We feel it’s a great way to help our patients, visitors and staff stay healthy.

The Trust is part of a ‘Foundation Group’ through a strategic alliance with Wye Valley NHS Trust, George Eliot Hospital NHS Trust and Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust. This partnership is great for the sustainability of all four organisations and allows us to share learning and maximise opportunities to ensure the delivery of high quality health and care services for our local populations.