Job summary
- Main area
- Patient Experience
- Grade
- Band 8b
- Contract
- Permanent: n/a
- Hours
- Full time
- Part time
- Flexible working
- Job ref
- 180-F-CVA553
- Employer
- Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
- Employer type
- NHS
- Site
- Addenbrookes Hospital-Division Corporate
- Town
- Cambridge
- Salary
- £64,455 - £74,896 per annum pro rata
- Salary period
- Yearly
- Closing
- 01/03/2026 23:59
Employer heading
Deputy Head of Patient Experience
Band 8b
Job overview
The Deputy Head of Patient Experience will report directly to the Head of Nursing Patient Experience and hold an individualised portfolio of programmes aligned to the Trust’s patient experience priorities.
The post holder will deputise for the Head of Nursing Patient Experience at internal and external Trust meetings as required.
The role will support the development and delivery of the Trust’s Patient Experience Strategy, working closely with senior nursing and operational leaders to ensure patient feedback drives continuous improvement.
Main duties of the job
The post holder will provide professional leadership and line management to the Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS), Complaints Team, and Patient Experience Teams, ensuring the delivery of high-quality, responsive services that place patients at the centre of care. They will maintain a highly visible presence across the Trust and act as a senior, accessible leader for patients, staff, and visitors.
The role requires strong leadership and influencing skills, with the ability to operate effectively at senior and board level. The post holder will demonstrate excellent analytical capability, including interpreting patient experience data, identifying key themes and risks, and producing high-quality reports for Trust committees and boards.
Working in partnership with the Head of Nursing Patient Experience and the Divisional and Chief Nurse leadership teams, the post holder will ensure the effective and efficient delivery of patient experience programmes, meeting agreed objectives within available resources. They will be accountable for delegated programmes of work, monitor standards and key performance indicators, and provide expert advice across the Trust to ensure consistent delivery of the Patient Experience Strategy.
Working for our organisation
Our Trust
Cambridge University Hospitals (CUH) NHS Foundation Trust comprises Addenbrooke’s Hospital and the Rosie Hospital in Cambridge. With over 13,000 staff and over 1100 beds the priorities of the Trust focus on a quality service which is all about people – patients, staff and partners. Recognised as providing ‘outstanding’ care to our patients and rated ‘Good’ overall by the Care Quality Commissioner, is testament to the skill and dedication of the people who work here. CUH’s values – Together - Safe, Kind, Excellent – are at the heart of patient care, defining the way all staff work and behave. The Trust provides accessible high-quality healthcare for the local people of Cambridge, together with specialist services, dealing with rare or complex conditions for a regional, national and international population.
CUH is committed to promoting a diverse and inclusive community - a place where we can all be ourselves. We value our differences and fully advocate and support an inclusive working environment where every individual can fulfil their potential. We want to ensure our people are truly representative of all the communities that we serve. We welcome applications for all positions in the organisation irrespective of people’s age, disability, ethnicity, race, nationality, gender identity, sex, sexual orientation, religion or belief, marriage and civil partnership status, or pregnancy and maternity status or social economic background.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
Please see the attached Applicant Information Pack (combined Job Description and Person Specification) for key duties and responsibilities.
Due to Home Office immigration rules, a full time permanent vacancy cannot be filled by individuals on a Student visa. Therefore, please be advised that if you are a Student visa holder, we will not be able to offer you a full time permanent contract unless you have:
- applied for a Graduate visa
- or you will have successfully completed your course and have applied for a Graduate visa before the anticipated start date of your employment
- or the Trust has agreed that they will Sponsor you as a Skilled Worker and you will complete your studies within 3 months of the anticipated start date of employment
This vacancy will close at midnight on…
Interviews are due to be held on…
Benefits to you
At Cambridge University Hospitals, we want to do all we can to support good working days. We offer development opportunities and a wide range of benefits, including on-site leisure facilities, shopping concourse and day nurseries. Our good work programme currently includes providing reduced cost Stagecoach bus travel to and from Cambridge University Hospital site. Park and Ride bus journeys between Babraham Road and Trumpington sites are free, as is the route to and from Cambridge train station and our hospitals. We also subsidise the cost of parking on site for eligible staff.
On CUH campus, hot food is available 24/7 and at a reduced cost for colleagues. Recently we launched the first of our staff pod break spaces. Located in the Deakin Centre, we have a purpose-created colleague-only café, with free tea and coffee, a break space and private outside area for colleagues to rest, refuel and recharge. Just one of the ways we are working hard to support good working days at CUH.
CUH is committed to assisting employees in achieving a good work-life balance irrespective of role or personal circumstances. Flexible arrangements may include, but are not limited to, part-time working, job-share, term-time working and flexible start and finish times.
Please note if you would like to discuss the required hours of this role further, you should approach the contact given. In some cases, alternative working hours will be considered.
We welcome applications from the Armed Forces.
Person specification
Qualifications
Essential criteria
- Master’s degree (or working towards)
- In-depth knowledge of patient experience frameworks, including complaints handling, PALS, FFT, and duty of candour.
- Strong understanding of NHS governance, quality assurance, and regulatory requirements (e.g. CQC, Ombudsman).
- Leadership development training
Desirable criteria
- Current and relevant registration on NMC /AHP Register
- Relevant postgraduate qualification
- Leadership qualification
Experience
Essential criteria
- Evidence of substantial experience working with the patient experience space demonstrating a depth and breadth of knowledge
- Able to demonstrate collaborative working across professions and services
- Significant senior-level experience in patient experience, quality, or governance within a complex healthcare setting.
- Demonstrable experience of analysing patient feedback (quantitative and qualitative) and translating insight into service improvement.
- Experience of effectively leading and implementing transformational change
- Experience of delivering education and developing and implementing evidence-based practice
- Experience of managing teams including significant experience of staff management, including the setting of objectives, team and individual appraisal, recruitment and disciplinary issues
- Budget management experience, including reducing costs, monitoring and determining corrective action
Desirable criteria
- Research experience
Knowledge
Essential criteria
- Knowledge of current developments in patient experience and current NHS issues
- Knowledge of quality improvement and experience of leading projects and / or implementing new policies across a service
- In-depth knowledge of clinical governance processes, risk management and health and safety
- In-depth knowledge of workforce planning principles, Trust workforce policies and recruitment and retention strategy
- Able to articulate the evolving vision for the future of patient experience and engagement and to demonstrate opportunities this can bring to teams
Skills
Essential criteria
- Well-developed leadership and influencing skills with the ability to enthuse, motivate and involve individuals and teams across the trust.
- Highly developed communications skills, including liaison/negotiation skills and writing/presentation skills
- Able to demonstrate sound political judgement and astuteness in understanding and working with complex policy, diverse interest groups and common sense in knowing ‘when to brief up the line’
- Able to advise and influence senior managers in relation to governance concerns
- Developing and implementing policies, guidelines and projects from initiation to completion
- Computer literacy
- Ability to prioritise work, meet tight deadlines and work independently
Additional Requirements
Essential criteria
- Willingness to work anywhere in the Trust and to travel, on occasions, within the region and nationally
- Ability to work flexible hours
- The ability to understand and behave at all times, towards patients, visitors and colleagues according to the Trust values of together; safe, kind and excellent. This behaviour is outlined on the final page of this person specification.
Employer certification / accreditation badges
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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
- Clare Hawkins
- Job title
- Head Of Nursing Patient Experience
- Email address
- [email protected]
- Additional information
Please email Clare on the email address provided if you have any queries relating to this vacancy
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