Job Advert
Flexible Location: Based throughout Scotland, NES is a remote friendly employer supporting office and hybrid working. Occasional presence at the Glasgow, Edinburgh, Aberdeen or Inverness office is a requirement of this role.
Work Pattern: Fixed-term, Full Time, 37.5 hours per week.
Fixed-term or Secondment** until 30th September 2025
**For NHS applicants, an NHS secondment will be offered in the first instance. For non-NHS applicants, a fixed-term or secondment would be considered.
You must have eligibility and entitlement to work in the UK which is required to be maintained throughout your period of employment.
Who We Are
NHS Education for Scotland (NES) is the national health board with statutory responsibilities to effect sustainable change through workforce development, education and training across the health and social care system in Scotland, while working at UK level with partner organisations.
We are leaders in remote, rural and island healthcare educational design, delivery and quality assurance and provide wide-ranging support for workforce development. We support national workforce planning and develop digital technologies that support innovation and transformation.
Our purpose is to drive change and improve the quality of care experienced by citizens across Scotland by ensuring that we have the right staff, with the right skills, in the right place, at the right time. NES is integral to improving outcomes for people and in ensuring a skilled and capable workforce underpins the design and delivery of services. As an organisation, we recognise the significant contribution we can make to improving population health, reducing inequalities and economic development.
We are looking for a Head of Programme to join our specialist and highly talented team to help address some of the most complex challenges in health and social care.
The National Centre (The Centre) for Remote and Rural Health and Care was established by NES on behalf of the Scottish Government in 2023. As a valued member of our team, you will support the delivery of improved care for remote, rural and island communities across Scotland and reduce remote, rural and island health and wellbeing inequalities through focused work to improve the sustainability, capacity, and capability of remote, rural and island primary care and community-based workforce and service delivery.
Your work will support excellence in the design, delivery and evaluation of remote and rural primary health and care research, training, education, recruitment, leadership and good practice.
As the Head of Programme for Remote and Rural Research and Evaluation you will provide strategic leadership and direction, working collaboratively across multiple workstreams and liaising with a wide range of stakeholders.
Do you want to play a key role in addressing health inequalities for people living in remote and rural communities across Scotland?
Do you want to work as an innovative leader who responds flexibly to changing requirements and helps others to do the same?
Do you enjoy collaborating and problem solving with a wide range of stakeholders?
Do you thrive in a team that continuously learns from success as well as setbacks?
Do you enjoy the challenge of working across professional, clinical, and organisational boundaries internally and externally to achieve our objectives?
Working within the National Centre for Remote and Rural Health and Care team you will have the opportunity to bring your unique skills and experience to the table, collaborating across multiple workstreams to effect real change within NES, and further afield.
Does this sound like you?
What We Love to See
Heads of Programme need to offer a broad range of skills and experience, if you can offer some or all of these, we would love you to apply:
- Proven experience leading and delivering on the development, implementation and evaluation of organisational policies, business, management processes and systems to support strategic organisational and programme objectives
- Effective leadership experience with proven ability to deliver key strategic outcomes while engaging with a range of national & international stakeholders to inform policy and programme delivery
- A track record in collaborating, influencing and building key networks and strategic alliances across a complex system of national & international stakeholders within the public, private and 3rd sector
- A clear understanding of the key factors and practices essential to high-quality research, evaluation, education and training including how to embed and continually enhance these within an organisation
- Ability to demonstrate a creative and innovative approach to problem solving
- A strong communicator with extensive mentoring and line management experience
- Ability to work on own initiative, to organise and prioritise workloads, and those of others, and to meet strict deadlines
Benefits Which Matter
As a valued employee of NHS Scotland, you can enjoy an extensive range of benefits including:
- Life-work balance - with opportunities for flexible working and remote working
- Generous NHS pension scheme
- Annual incremental salary progression (up to the maximum of the salary band) plus annual NHS salary scale review
- Annual Leave - 27 Days increasing in line with service plus 8 days public holiday
- NHS discounts and more
Diversity and Inclusion
Developing a successful national service for Scotland is impossible without ensuring we consider the diverse needs, perspectives, and backgrounds of everyone in Scotland in our work.
We are focused on hiring the very best talent available for NES, and actively encourage applications from candidates of all backgrounds and aim to ensure everyone is treated fairly, with respect and has a positive recruitment experience – regardless of the outcome.
It’s not essential to be in a Head of Programme role right now. You may be returning from a career break (e.g., maternity, paternity, caring for others) or returning after working in another field. Your experiences elsewhere can bring a fresh perspective to our work.
If you are considering applying and feel it would be helpful to discuss this initially, please contact Dr Pam Nicoll, Associate Director of Medicine, National Centre for Remote and Rural Health and Care at pam.nicoll@nhs.scot
Next Steps
**NHS candidates will be considered firstly on a secondment basis, and so are strongly encouraged to discuss this with their current NHS employer at the earliest opportunity, ideally prior to application.
Our recruitment process is currently 100% remote and if successful you would initially work remotely, working from our offices as operationally required
All applicants who are shortlisted for interview will be contacted by e-mail.
Online interviews (including a presentation/exercise) will take place on Friday 24th November 2023. The presentation/exercise topic will be sent to candidates selected for interview.
For further information please refer to the Job Information Pack below.
Unless otherwise stated the deadline for applications is 23:59 hours on the closing date. Please note, CV’s will not be accepted.