Job summary
- Main area
- Technical Services, Project and Programmes (Technical)
- Grade
- NHS AfC: Band 8d
- Contract
- Permanent
- Hours
- Full time
- Part time
- Job share
- Flexible working
- Job ref
- 990-TDD-TEC-EC5252-E
- Employer
- NHS England
- Employer type
- NHS
- Site
- Wellington Place, Leeds LS1 4AP or Wellington House, London SE1 8UG
- Town
- Leeds or London
- Salary
- £94,356 - £108,814 per annum (exclusive of London weighting)
- Salary period
- Yearly
- Closing
- 28/10/2026 23:59
Employer heading
Head of Technical Programmes
NHS AfC: Band 8d
Our Organisation
We share the core values set out in the NHS Constitution, which all colleagues are expected to demonstrate.
We support you to work in a way that is best for the NHS, our patients and you and your colleagues. Talk to us about how we might be able to accommodate a flexible working arrangement, whether that’s a job share, part time, hybrid working or another flexible pattern.
As part of our commitment to improving patient safety and maintaining safe and trusted services, all successful candidates will be subject to Baseline Personnel Security Screening (BPSS), which includes a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check. By submitting your application, you are confirming your agreement to these checks being undertaken as part of the recruitment process.
Anyone who has received a voluntary or compulsory redundancy payment from NHS England since the start of the 2026/27 financial year is not eligible to apply.
Job overview
Delivery Management
Provision central capabilities that support the efficient and effective delivery of the Technology environment. Drive performance, accountability, and transparency in business operations. Efficiently and effectively deliver and support business operations. Deliver technical projects within a live service environment.
The post holder will provide strategic and operational leadership across complex, large‑scale technical programmes, ensuring the successful delivery, operation and continual improvement of critical digital technology services that support NHS England and the wider health and care system
The role requires deep technical expertise, strong programme and service management capability. The post holder will work closely with internal teams, senior stakeholders, and external suppliers to deliver technology programmes aligned to organisational strategy, manage risk and assurance, and ensure high‑quality, reliable digital services that enable improved outcomes for NHS England
Main duties of the job
· Provide leadership and strategic direction for the delivery of complex technical programmes and technology services, ensuring alignment with NHS England’s technology strategy and wider organisational objectives including the 10 year health plan.
· Develop, implement and assure the directorates technical strategy, providing clarity and direction in a complex and constantly evolving digital environment.
· Lead and manage large‑scale programme structures across multiple locations, including mixed environments of insourced and outsourced teams and suppliers, ensuring effective governance and risk management.
· Provide expert technical and operational assurance into system design, infrastructure architecture and service introduction, ensuring solutions meet customer needs, budget constraints and agreed standards.
Working for our organisation
NHS England has a wide range of statutory functions, responsibilities and regulatory powers. These are focused on supporting the wider NHS to deliver high quality care, as well as doing those things that are best done once for the whole NHS.
Our staff bring expertise across clinical, operational, commissioning, technology, data science, cyber security, software engineering, education, and commercial specialisms — enabling us to design and deliver high-quality NHS services.
In March 2025, the Government announced that NHS England and the Department of Health and Social Care will increasingly merge functions, ultimately leading to NHS England being fully integrated into the department.
If you currently work within the NHS and if successful at interview, we will initiate an Inter Authority Transfer (IAT) via the Electronic Staff Record (ESR). This retrieves key data from your current or previous NHS employer to support onboarding, including competency status, Continuous Service Dates (CSD), and annual leave entitlement. You may opt out at any stage of the process.
Colleagues with a contractual office base are expected to spend, on average, at least 40% of their time working in our offices.
Staff recruited from outside the NHS will usually be appointed at the bottom of the pay band.
We cannot offer visa sponsorship for any vacancies.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
You can find further details about the role, including key responsibilities and accountabilities, alongside the organisational structure and person specification in the attached Job Description and other supporting documents.
Person specification
Knowledge & Experience
Essential criteria
- Extensive senior level knowledge and experience of working within a technical environment, with a strong understanding of technology services, infrastructure, service support and maintenance.
- Significant experience of leading and delivering large scale, complex technical or digital programmes, including responsibility for risk, quality, assurance, and benefits realisation.
- Experience of managing outsourced and insourced service models, including supplier management and performance oversight.
Skills
Essential criteria
- Strong programme and delivery management skills, including planning, dependency management, risk and issue management.
- Excellent stakeholder management and influencing skills, with the ability to communicate complex technical information clearly to a wide range of audiences.
- Strong analytical and problem solving skills, with the ability to make balanced and effective decisions in complex, high risk, or ambiguous situations.
Qualifications
Essential criteria
- Education to Master’s level or equivalent level of professional experience.
- Evidence of ongoing professional development relevant to technology, digital delivery, or programme management.
Interpersonal Skills
Essential criteria
- Strong influencing and negotiation skills, with evidence of achieving outcomes through collaboration, persuasion and constructive challenge rather than authority alone.
Equality, diversity and inclusion
Essential criteria
- A clear understanding of, and commitment to, equality, diversity and inclusion, in line with NHS values, policies and statutory responsibilities.
Employer certification / accreditation badges
Applicant requirements
This post will require a submission for Disclosure to be made to check for any unspent criminal convictions.
Documents to download
Further details / informal visits contact
- Name
- Oliver Holmes
- Job title
- Deputy Director of Delivery Management
- Email address
- [email protected]
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