Job summary
- Main area
- Communications
- Grade
- NHS AfC: Band 8c
- Contract
- Permanent
- Hours
- Full time
- Flexible working
- Job ref
- 381-CO-6833624
- Employer
- Sandwell and West Birmingham NHS Trust
- Employer type
- NHS
- Site
- Sandwell and West Birmingham NHS Trust
- Town
- West Bromwich
- Salary
- £74,290 - £85,601 per annum
- Salary period
- Yearly
- Closing
- 20/12/2024 23:59
Employer heading
Associate Director of Communications
NHS AfC: Band 8c
Sandwell & West Birmingham NHS Trust is a friendly, integrated healthcare provider focused on improving the life chances and health outcomes of our diverse population.
We have three strategic objectives:
People: To cultivate and sustain happy, productive and engaged staff;
Patients: To be good or outstanding at everything we do;
Population: To work seamlessly with partners to improve lives;
We run services from Sandwell, City and Rowley Regis Hospitals, Birmingham & Midland Eye Centre, Birmingham Treatment Centre, the Lyng and Leasowes Intermediate Care Centre. Our GP practices and community teams provide care in schools, healthcare centres and at home.
Our next milestone is opening the Midland Metropolitan University Hospital (MMUH), a once in a career opportunity to shape care transformation within and beyond the hospital walls.
Developing and caring for our People is fundamental. We were one of the first Trusts to provide the Real Living Wage, as well as a Live and Work scheme to support people at risk of homelessness into paid work and training. We offer a range of staff benefits, health & wellbeing support and will help you to bring your ambition to life through our bespoke training and development programmes. As “People” is one of our three strategic objectives, we make a continued commitment to prioritise support for all our colleagues.
Healthcare services have a significant impact on the environment. We are committed to embedding sustainable practices. We expect all colleagues to support the delivery of our Green Strategic Plan and to drive positive changes in their department.
Job overview
Associate Director of Communications
Sandwell and West Birmingham NHS Trust
Do you have the ability to tell our story- to capture and share narratives that inspire trust, convey purpose, and foster meaningful connections with our stakeholders?
At Sandwell and West Birmingham NHS Trust, we are much more than a hospital-based service. We play a vital role in improving life chances for our local communities, extending our impact through partnerships to serve over 530,000 people.
Main duties of the job
We are seeking an exceptional Associate Director of Communications to lead the delivery of our communications strategy, fostering meaningful connections among our 7,000 staff, stakeholders, and the diverse communities we serve. This is a pivotal role in shaping how we communicate, both internally and externally, to achieve our vision of being the best integrated care provider.
You will report into a joint Director of Communications, a new post, shared with our neighbouring Trust in Dudley and you will lead a team of professional leads in engagement and communications, and work alongside a peer network of senior clinical and professional leads across the Trust.
Working for our organisation
Sandwell and West Birmingham NHS Trust (SWBT) is an integrated care organisation with a budget of approximately £600 million and over 7,000 staff. Diversity and social care is at the core of what we do as the Trust provides Community and Acute Services to over half a million people in an urban centre that demands massive regeneration and has substantial premature mortality.
Our new acute hospital, the Midland Metropolitan University Hospital (MMUH), opens this year and will provide care to our local population from first class, purpose-built premises. As a result, the base of this role may change to MMUH . If this is applicable to your role, you will be informed during the recruitment process and continue your application with this understanding. The development of the new hospital will play an important role in the regeneration of the wider area and in improving the lives of local people and reducing health inequalities.
We have three strategic objectives:
- Our People – to cultivate and sustain happy, productive and engaged staff
- Our Patients – to be good or outstanding in everything we do
- Our Population – to work seamlessly with our partners to improve lives
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
For a comprehensive overview of this role and its key responsibilities, please refer to the job description and person specification provided with this vacancy.
Person specification
Qualifications
Essential criteria
- Training to relevant degree level or equivalent plus training and/or experience in communications field to master’s level equivalent.
Desirable criteria
- Member of the Chartered Institute of Public Relations, Communications or Marketing qualification or equivalent experience, graduate qualification in communications, public relations or marketing, Management qualification or equivalent managerial experience
Experience
Essential criteria
- Substantial experience in communications / public relations in complex organisation at senior management level including at head of department level
- Experience as a line manager in a communications environment.
- Substantial experience of developing and implementing complex policies and strategies across large, highly complex organisations
- Experience of developing and monitoring strategic action plans
Desirable criteria
- NHS communications/ public relations experience at senior management level
- Experience working at Executive or Board level
Knowledge
Essential criteria
- Highly developed specialist knowledge, expertise and experience in the fields of communications, press and the media, public relations, marketing, engagement, consultation and design and print
- Highly developed specialist knowledge of the health service and national policies on public and patient involvement
- Operational knowledge of large, acute Trusts and the development of strategic objectives and delivery of targets
- Specialist knowledge of staff engagement techniques
Written Skills
Essential criteria
- Excellent writing skills, across a range of formats
- Able to write formal reports, policies, business cases and strategies for Trust Board and external agencies to exceptionally high standards
- Ability to write clear, succinct and appropriate responses to press enquiries
- Consideration of complex, sensitive and ‘political’ issues affecting the reputation of the organisation when producing all written information
Financial Responsibilty
Essential criteria
- Ability to effectively manage a budget Ability to ensure SFIs are complied with in relation to spend
Employer certification / accreditation badges
Applicant requirements
The postholder will have access to vulnerable people in the course of their normal duties and as such this post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service to check for any previous criminal convictions.
Documents to download
Further details / informal visits contact
- Name
- Julie Green
- Job title
- Executive Assistant Chief People Officer
- Email address
- [email protected]
- Telephone number
- 07812771204
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