Job summary
- Main area
- 202150
- Grade
- AfC Band: Band 8d
- Contract
- Permanent
- Hours
- Full time - 37.5 hours per week
- Job ref
- 262-A-26-8291080
- Employer
- North Cumbria Integrated Care NHS Foundation Trust
- Employer type
- NHS
- Site
- Pillars Building - North Cumbria Integrated Care NHS Foundation Trust
- Town
- Carlisle
- Salary
- £94,356 - £108,814 Per Annum, Pro Rata
- Salary period
- Yearly
- Closing
- 27/09/2026 23:59
- Interview date
- 05/10/2026
Employer heading
Associate Director of Operations
AfC Band: Band 8d
Job overview
Associate Director of Operations B8d - 1 x 37.5 hour post available.
The post holder will be a highly motivated and effective manager with exceptional leadership and influencing skills. The post holder will have the ability to enthuse, motivate and involve teams to work towards and achieve the objectives as set out by the Executive Chief Operating Officer and the Trust Board.
The individual will work closely with the Executive Chief Operating Officer, the Deputy Chief Operating officer and the Clinical Collaboratives to deliver a range of key outcomes.
The role is instrumental in leading and maintaining an operational leadership structure that is cohesive with the integrated model of service delivery in the North Cumbria system.
Interviews to be held on Monday 5th October 2026
Main duties of the job
Reporting to the Executive Chief Operating Officer the post holder will provide leadership and management for all Clinical Services. The post holder will have responsibility providing strong and effective leadership, which includes:
Operational Leadership: Lead general managers and clinical teams to deliver safe, effective, and timely patient care.
Performance & Governance: Manage capacity, demand, clinical risks, and key national performance standards.
Financial Management: Oversee large departmental budgets, drive efficiency, and ensure financial discipline within a constrained environment.
Service Transformation: Lead digital innovation, pathway redesign, and service standardisation across multi-site operations.
Partnership Working: Collaborate with executive leads, Integrated Care Boards (ICBs), and primary or private care partners.
Working for our organisation
At NCIC, we have an ambition to deliver outstanding healthcare services to the population of North Cumbria. The Trust is committed to creating a centre of excellence in providing rural and remote healthcare and provides a wide range of community and acute services throughout our county.
Our 5 key principles demonstrate our belief in the delivery of ‘safe, high quality care every time’:
· Being a clinically led organisation
· Quality and safety at the heart of our Trust
· A positive patient experience every time
· A great place to work
· Managing our money well
As an organisation we are serious about supporting a diverse workforce that reflects our local community and are very much focused on being an inclusive and compassionate place to work.
Across the North East and North Cumbria we are working together to deliver our ambition to be the greenest region in England by 2030. All staff are expected to support sustainability.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
Please see attached job description and person specification for further information regarding the role and the essential and desirable criteria required to be met by applicants.
CERTIFICATE OF SPONSORSHIP
Please note, due to changes implemented by the Government to the UK immigration policy, individuals who require a Health and Care Visa or a Skilled Worker Visa may no longer be eligible for sponsorship where the UKVI salary threshold is not met or if the occupation is not included in the updated Immigration Salary List (ISL). Applicants must check their eligibility to be employed in any role they are interested in applying for, prior to completing an application for employment. Any applicants who do not meet the eligibility criteria will not be progressed. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).
If you are applying under the Disability Confident Scheme or Armed Forces Covenant and you meet all the essential criteria for a post, you will be guaranteed an interview.
Relocation assistance may be available for successful applicants moving to the region for certain posts. Please see our Policy for eligible vacancies.
Disclosure and Barring Service:
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.
The cost of the DBS must be met by the successful candidate(s) through salary deduction. DBS charges are as follows if applicable to the post:
Standard Check: £21.50 + Administration cost of £6.50 = £28.00 Deducted from salary over a 4 month period or a one-off payment.
Enhanced Check: £49.50 + administration cost of £6.50 = £56.00 Deducted from salary over a 4 month period or a one-off payment.
NCIC can offer successful future employees the following benefits:
27-day holiday scheme rising to 33 after 10 years
Flexible working Scheme
NHS Discounts*
Salary Sacrifice schemes including lease cars and Cycle to Work*
Excellent opportunities for development*
Competitive NHS Pension scheme
Vivup is a free, confidential counselling and information service to assist with personal or work-related problems
*Subject to eligibility
Important Information
Please ensure that you document evidence of meeting all the essential criteria in the supporting information.
If sufficient response is received this post could be closed earlier than the specified closing date, please apply as soon as possible to ensure that your application is considered.
Candidates who have been successfully shortlisted for interview will be asked via an email notification to log on to their Trac account to select an interview time. This will usually be within 2 weeks of the closing date
Person specification
Qualifications and Skills
Essential criteria
- • Masters Leadership Qualification or equivalent experience
- • Management qualification or equivalent experience
- • Evidence of continuous professional development and/ or management development
Knowledge and Experience
Essential criteria
- • Track record of success in managing complex multi-disciplinary services involving significant people, financial and other resources
- • Strong business orientation
- • Successful budget management experience
- • Experience of analysing the business environment and of developing strategies to meet changing organisational needs
- • Significant experience of quality, risk management and governance systems in a complex environment
- • Substantial knowledge and experience of strategic issues in contemporary health and social care
- • Corporate governance, performance management, risk management, and assurance frameworks
- • The role of Clinical Governance and the application of NICE guidelines
- • In depth knowledge of policies and legislation relating to health and social care
Desirable criteria
- • Knowledge of the area of acute and community Healthcare
- • Experience of the area of acute and community Healthcare
- • Evidence of contributions to local and national networks.
- • Experience of delivery across organisational boundaries
Skills and Aptitudes
Essential criteria
- • Ability to share accountability within a triumvirate model.
- • Proven leadership skills
- • Excellent interpersonal and communication skills with well-developed negotiating and influencing skills to engage effectively with a range of stakeholders and staff including service users, carers and the media including contentious situations.
- • Able to engage staff at all levels to become involved in transformational change
- • Effective written / report writing skills.
- • Ability to critically appraise and interpret complex data / statistic and information to support the improvement of services and clinical practice.
- • Effectively manage financial resources
- • Positive, professional approach and image; a role model to front line staff.
- • Resilient, able to challenge as well as deal with challenge
- • Able to work under pressure and to tight deadlines with a “can do” approach.
- • Manage own workload – self-starter, work with autonomy, able to prioritise and also to know when to escalate concerns and ask for help.
- • Politically astute.
- • Ability to negotiate and influence others.
- • Establish visibility and credibility in equal measure across all localities.
- • Proactive and able to find solutions to problems
- • Able to make informed and timely decisions
- • Project management skills
- • Ability to evaluate and learn from outcomes with a clear commitment to innovation, learning and improvement
- • Sound judgement and decision making skills.
- • Ability to challenge unacceptable behaviour
- • IT literate / Advanced keyboard skills (including spreadsheet manipulation and project software
Other requirements
Essential criteria
- • Participate in the Out of Hours/On Call system
- • Able to develop a culture that promotes equality and values diversity
Personal Circumstances
Essential criteria
- • Personal integrity and commitment
- • Flexible
- • Able to travel / work across a wide geographical area
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
- Vanessa Connor
- Job title
- Deputy Chief Operating Officer
- Email address
- [email protected]
- Telephone number
- 07919 576217
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