Deputy Chief People Officer

Job summary

Are you an inclusive, forward-thinking People Services leader committed to creating outstanding experiences for colleagues and the communities they serve? We are seeking a Deputy Chief People Officer to play a central role in shaping the future of People Services at South East Coast Ambulance NHS Foundation Trust. This is a pivotal leadership post, supporting the Chief People Officer in delivering a modern, high performing function that enables our people to thrive and supports the Trust's ambitious transformation journey.

Band 9: £109,179 - £125,637 (2025/2026 AFC Pay)

37.5 hours per week

Hybrid working

Travel across the South East

In this influential role, you will help drive strategic workforce initiatives, strengthen leadership capability, embed compassionate and values driven culture, and ensure our People Services teams are equipped to enable excellent care across the South East.

With a workforce of over 4,500 colleagues delivering urgent and emergency care across the region, every individual plays a critical role in our success. We also recognise that not all of our people currently feel valued, empowered, or heard. We are committed to changing this. We want to create an organisation where every member of staff feels they make a difference; where colleagues are involved in shaping outcomes; and where people are supported, developed, and trusted to reach their full potential. The Deputy Chief People Officer will be instrumental in helping us get there.

Main duties of the job

The Deputy Chief People Officer will ensure the delivery of a highly effective, forward looking People Services function that enables leaders to build a people centred, high performance culture where engagement, continuous improvement, and quality thrive. They will help shape a business focused, innovative organisation that supports the delivery of outstanding care to patients and communities across the South East. Operating in a period of significant transformation across the NHS and the wider health and care sector, the postholder will bring high personal resilience, adaptive leadership, and the ability to navigate complexity, uncertainty, and pace. They will play a crucial role in stabilising teams, supporting change readiness, and ensuring People Services remains a trusted strategic partner through ongoing system wide reform across the region. A compassionate, inclusive, and values led leadership style will be essential, with the Deputy Chief People Officer acting as a visible role model for the Trust's values and behaviours.

The Deputy Chief People Officer will also hold senior leadership responsibility for the core People Services portfolio, providing strategic oversight and operational leadership across Employee Relations, People Business Partnering, Workforce, and other key People functions that underpin a high quality, responsive service.

About us

• Option to join NHS pension scheme
• A minimum 27 days' holiday each year, increasing after 5 years' service
• Personal and professional development and training opportunities
• Salary Sacrifice schemes for cars or push bikes
• Access to occupational health and counselling services
• Award winning wellbeing hub
• Access to NHS discounts, offering NHS employees a range of money saving deals

Other than in exceptional circumstances, the starting salary for staff new to the NHS will be the bottom point of the band to which they have been appointed.

Job responsibilities

• As a senior leader within People Services, the postholder will take strategic ownership for the development, modernisation, and continuous improvement of key People Services functions, systems, and policies ensuring they enable the Trust's corporate aims and objectives and reflect national priorities such as the NHS People Plan.
• Support the Chief People Officer in shaping and delivering progressive remuneration, reward, and benefits strategies aligned with national NHS policy and designed to support the Trust's operational and financial priorities.
• Work closely with the senior People Services Team to drive forward the Trust's equality, diversity, and inclusion agenda ensuring best practice is embedded across all People Services activity and the wider workforce strategy.
• Hold strategic responsibility for effective change management, ensuring frameworks, processes, and advisory support are in place to enable seamless, people centred workforce transitions aligned to clinical, operational, and organisational transformation programmes.
• Provide strategic People Services leadership into organisational planning and business development, ensuring the Trust remains compliant with national and local NHS policy, workforce initiatives, and changes to terms and conditions, while anticipating and responding to future workforce risks and opportunities.
• Support the division in delivering a compelling, values led Recruitment & Retention Strategy that enables the Trust to attract, develop, and retain the best people ensuring the workforce is equipped to deliver high quality patient care now and in the future.

Person Specification Qualifications Essential

• Educated to Masters level or equivalent experience
• Evidence of strong and recent commitment to continued development
• Member of CIPD or equivalent

Knowledge and Skills Essential

• Demonstrable and credible experience in a senior management role, involving successful management of a diverse People Services team within a complex organisation
• Experience of leading the development of People Services strategies to support service and workforce transformation
• Experience of financial management, monitoring and control and evaluating competing budget demands
• A good understanding of equality, inclusion and diversity issues with a demonstrable commitment to equality of opportunity
• In depth working knowledge of UK employment law
• Expert knowledge of cultural change and leadership development tools and techniques and their application to change management

Experience Desirable

• Complex environments: Experience in a large, complex, and unionised environment (e.g., NHS, local government, large academic institutions)

Disclosure and Barring Service Check

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.

Certificate of Sponsorship

Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website.

Employer details Employer name

SECamb

Address

Crawley HQ

4 Gatwick Road

Crawley

RH10 9BG

Employer's website