*Closes 16th January*

NHS England (NHSE) shares responsibility with the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care for promoting a comprehensive health system in England, for securing improvements in physical and mental health, and for the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of ill-health.
NHS England is responsible for arranging the provision of health services and for more than £186 billion of funds.
The Government sets out its priorities for NHSE in a statutory mandate. The Secretary of State has a legal duty to keep NHSE’s performance against the mandate under review and publish an assessment of its overall performance annually.
The Government has decided that NHS England and the Department will increasingly work as ‘one team’ and this will be reflected in both the working practices of staff and the leadership expectations of the Chair and others.  While the organisations will remain distinct legal entities, collaborative working will be the default approach.
This will support NHS England in its work to address both the near-term challenges of performance recovery and the longer-term challenges which will be the focus of the forthcoming Ten Year Plan.
The Secretary of State also delegates responsibility to NHSE for certain public health services – including for example, national immunisation programmes, cancer and non-cancer screening programmes, Child Health Information Services and public health services for adults and children in secure settings. Since October, additional public health functions were conferred upon NHSE following the abolition of Public Health England.
The primary role of NHS England’s Non-Executive Directors is, within a unitary Board, to assist in developing the strategy for NHS England, and then overseeing performance delivery.
Non-Executive Directors also play a part in representing NHS England externally, alongside the Chief Executive, the Chair and the wider Executive team.

The responsibilities of the Non-Executive Directors of NHS England are:
  • working with the Chair and the Executive Board members to develop NHS England’s strategy to ensure that it fulfils its statutory responsibilities and delivers its mandate, meeting its targets and objectives, and ensuring that the Executive Team is held to account for doing so
  • ensuring the board reinforces the values of the organisation by setting a high standard for ethics and responsible business, and by maintaining and enhancing NHS England’s reputation as an open and independent body, which puts the interests of the public and patients first
  • contributing to the meetings of the Board, taking an active part in discussions, providing counsel, advice, challenge and support to the Executive Team; contributing to an environment of constructive debate on key issues in order to build consensus
  • ensuring that the Executive Team develops and maintains strong working relationships with the Department of Health and Social Care, the other health arms-length bodies and other stakeholders
  • promoting the Government’s health policy, with an understanding of the value of strategic communication and engagement
  • contributing across a range of specific areas, including: setting and maintaining an appropriate clinical agenda for NHS England and ensuring appropriate resource is dedicated to preventing disease as well as treating disease; ensuring the board drives strong integration between health and care; ensuring the Board listens to the patient voice; ensuring appropriate financial controls are in place, and risks are managed accordingly; contributing to the change management agenda; ensuring focus on productivity; and ensuring that best practice is followed in all workforce and leadership policies and behaviour
  • ensuring that the Executive Team is held to account for putting in place appropriate financial controls and ensuring compliance throughout the organisation
  • ensuring the Executive Team is held to account for performance management across the major interfaces for patients with the service
  • reducing waste and driving efficiencies to enable as much taxpayer’s money as possible is directed towards patient care
  • ensure that the executive team have in place appropriate arrangements for the commissioning of primary care and complex specialist health services including delegation of these services where appropriate

Non-Executive Directors of NHS England

Number of vacancies x 4

Time commitment x 3 day(s) per month

Remuneration£7883 per annum

Length of term Ministers will determine the length of the appointment, which will be for 3 years.

 Person specification

Essential criteria

To be considered, you must be able to demonstrate that you have the qualities, skills and experience to meet all the essential criteria for appointment.
• A career track record of delivery, with an ability to operate effectively on the board of a high-profile national organisation, and an understanding of corporate governance.
• Sound judgement, with the ability to consider and provide challenge on complex issues from an impartial and balanced viewpoint and to hold the executive team to account.
• Strong strategic skills, with an ability to guide NHS England’s strategic direction and a bias towards effective delivery and implementation.
• Good communication skills, with a positive and constructive style, able to work as part of a team and take collective responsibility.
• In addition, candidates should bring skills and senior experience in one or more of the following areas:
– delivering transformational change in large and complex organisations
– NHS leadership
– technology and digital
– innovation and research
– primary care, community care, neighbourhood health or mental health care
– local government
– voluntary and charity sector
– representing patients’ experience
Board meetings are mainly held in London.
  • NHS England
  • Wellington House, 133-155 Waterloo Rd, London SE1 8UG

Regulation of appointment

This post is regulated by the Commissioner for Public Appointments. For more information, please refer to the Commissioner’s website 

How to apply

In order to apply you will need to create an account or sign in on the ‘Apply for a public appointment’ website.

Once you are logged into your account, click on ‘apply for this role’ and follow the on-screen instructions. To apply, all candidates are required to provide:

  • a Curriculum Vitae (CV)
  • a supporting statement
  • equality information
  • information relating to any outside interests or reputational issues

Guidance on what to include in your CV/Supporting Statement and tips for applying can be found in the corresponding sections below and on the public appointment website: Publicappointments – GOV.UK.

We will ask you to check and confirm your personal details to ensure your application is accurate.

You will also have the opportunity to make a reasonable adjustment request or apply under the disability confident scheme before you submit your application.

You will also be required to make any declarations related to standards in public life and ensuring public confidence in your supporting statement.  Further information on this can be found in the relevant section below.

If you are unable to create an account and apply online, or if you have any problems submitting your application online, please contact Rachael Gingell on rachael.gingell@dhsc.gov.uk or 0207 484 9424.

The Advisory Assessment Panel reserves the right to only consider applications that contain all of the elements listed above, and that arrive before the published deadline for applications.