Current jobs related to Chief People Officer - Wigan - Wwl

Main area Chief People Officer Grade Executives / VSM: Executives / VSM Contract Permanent Hours Full time - 37.5 hours per week (Participation in on call rota) Job ref 302-25-7635903CPRSite Trust Headquarters Town Wigan Salary Competitive salary aligned with experience Closing 15/12/2025 23:59Choose Well - Choose WWLJob overviewWrightington, Wigan & Leigh Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (WWL) is seeking an exceptional, values-led Chief People Officer (CPO) to join our Board and Executive Team at a crucial moment in our organisation’s evolution. This is an outstanding opportunity for a strategic, system-minded people leader to shape the future of a major acute and community teaching trust serving more than 329,000 residents across the Wigan Borough.A pivotal moment for our organisationWWL is delivering a £4.8m transformation programme — the only one of its kind in Greater Manchester — in partnership with our local authority and ICB, reshaping urgent and emergency care, improving patient flow and accelerating our acute-to-community shift. Alongside this, our three-year financial recovery plan is progressing successfully, supported by a refreshed Executive Team and a new Chair passionate about integrated care. With two new divisions, Start Well and Live Well, we have reshaped our operating model to meet the borough’s health needs across the life course and deliver care closer to home.We are an organisation defined by our culture: low turnover, high engagement, a strong ethos of continuous improvement, and deep partnership with our local system. As an anchor institution — with 70% of colleagues living in or near the borough — WWL plays a vital role in improving population wellbeing, tackling inequality, and supporting the local workforce pipeline.Main duties of the jobAbout you: We are seeking an accomplished senior People & OD leader with experience gained in a complex environment, ideally within the NHS or wider public sector. You will bring:A track record of developing and delivering impactful People & OD strategiesSignificant experience of organisational development, workforce transformation and culture changeDeep expertise in equality, diversity and inclusion with demonstrable commitment to anti-racismStrong partnership skills, including working with multi-agency stakeholders and Trade UnionsVisible, compassionate leadership and the ability to inspire followershipThe confidence, credibility and strategic insight to influence at Board levelA personal style that reflects our values — compassionate, collaborative, authentic and ambitiousWorking for our organisationWrightington, Wigan and Leigh Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust are the proud providers of acute hospital and community services to the people of the Wigan Borough and surrounding areas. At WWL, we value our staff believing that ‘happy staff, makes for happy patients’. We have a recognised track record in staff engagement, and living our values ‘the WWL Way’.WWL are committed to placing the patient at the heart of everything we do, and in the provision of safe, effective care that acknowledges and ensures dignity. With this in mind we are seeking to recruit people who share our values and beliefs.At WWL we value the benefits a rich and diverse workforce brings to our community and therefore welcome applications from all sections of society.Detailed job description and main responsibilitiesAbout the role: As CPO, you will be a strategic equal at the Board table, responsible for the design, implementation and evaluation of our People & Culture Strategy, aligned with the NHS People Plan, NHS People Promise and long-term workforce ambitions. You will lead the full portfolio of workforce, organisational development, culture, leadership, digital people services, education, recruitment, wellbeing and Equality, Diversity & Inclusion (EDI) — including leading our journey to become a fully anti-racist organisation.You will provide visible, inclusive and compassionate executive leadership, strengthening people management capability across the Trust and driving service improvement, modernisation and high performance. You will also play a key system leadership role through the Greater Manchester HR Directors’ Network, the Healthier Wigan Partnership and wider locality programmes.Will be required to travel to all Trust sites.Key priorities include:Leading and embedding our People & Culture StrategyOverseeing workforce planning, modernisation and future workforce designDriving the acute-to-community shift and redesigning workforce models to meet growing demandStrengthening leadership capability, succession planning and talent developmentImproving colleague experience, wellbeing, psychological safety and engagementLeading EDI strategy and reporting, with explicit responsibility for anti-racismEnsuring robust employee relations, partnership working and Trade Union collaborationSupporting organisational transformation through high-impact OD and cultural change programmesDelivering People Services excellence with grip, control and service improvement focusA full Job Description and Person Specification is available in the attached candidate pack.Applications are via CV and Cover Letter. Please email: jp@seymourjohn.com using the subject line: “WWL CPO Application”For an informal and confidential conversation, please contact: Jonathan Phillips – 07817 988490Key datesFirst-stage assessment: Week commencing 15 December 2025Final interviews: Week commencing 12 January 2026Person specificationQualificationsMA in HR Management / associated subject (or equivalent experience)MCIPDRecognised Leadership DevelopmentEvidence of continuing professional and leadership developmentFCIPDExperienceSenior People & OD leadership experience in a highly complex organisationEvidence of successful development, implementation and delivery of People & OD strategyEvidence of effective partnership working with multi-agency stakeholders & trade unionsRecord of successful delivery against HR / OD improvement targetsLeadership of equality and diversity function (or significant elements of them)Previous HR Director / CPO experience in an Acute and/or Community TrustKnowledgeDetailed knowledge and understanding of NHS People Plan, NHS People Promise, Transforming People Services and local workforce imperativesExpert understanding of principles of inclusion and diversity (with strong commitment to delivery)Detailed knowledge of regulatory frameworks (i.e. CQC, GMC, NMC, HCPC, MHPS, etc)Understanding of the GM ICS and the associated workforce prioritiesSkills and AbilitiesHighly visible and inclusive leadership style – able to quickly build credibility and followshipPassionate about people, partnership and inclusion, including demonstrable commitment to anti-racism, with ability to inspire othersDemonstrates that people are at the heart of everything they doAbility to lead strategic and tactical transformational programmes, deploying proven quality and service improvement methodologyAbility to build effective relationship and allyships with stakeholders and regulatorsAble to demonstrate strong personal values of integrity and compassionProven ability to convert vision into reality, with outcomes embedded long-termDemonstrate ability to build, lead, develop and motivate effective team(s)Quality & Service Improvement abilitiesProven influencing and negotiation skills, particularly across organisational boundaries and at regional/national levelsThe Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014 introduced new rules relating to the recruitment of executive and non-executive directors, known as the Fit and Proper Persons Requirements (FPPR), placing obligations on NHS organisations to seek the necessary assurances that all directors are suitable and fit to undertake the role.You will be asked to complete an FPPR declaration form during the recruitment process that will enable us complete a number of checks to ensure that you are;Of good character;Have the necessary qualifications, skills and experience;Are able to perform the work that they are employed for after reasonable adjustments are madeOur Trust prefers candidates to submit applications online. Please contact the Recruitment Team on 01942 244000 if you have difficulty applying online.Using AI when writing job applicationsIf you choose to use Artificial Intelligence (AI) or other tools to assist in writing your application, it’s essential to personalise this information, particularly your supporting statement to reflect the skills and experience to match your job application. Relying solely on AI to write your application or supporting statement is not advocated by Wrightington Wigan and Leigh Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust as it could negatively impact your chances of success in the application process. Please refer to the attached "Applying for a role in the NHS guidance" for further information regarding the use of AI.The Trust reserves the right to close adverts earlier than the stated closing date if there is a high volume of applications.We endeavour to inform all applicants of the outcome of their application by email or SMS text message.Guidance on Completing Your ApplicationApplications are scored against the person specification, therefore we recommend that you use the supporting information section of your application form to demonstrate how you meet the essential and desirable criteria for the role, providing illustrative examples where possible.On-CallPlease note that some roles may require you to participate in an on-call rota, if the role is predominantly operational.WWL has signed up to the Greater Manchester Continuous Service Commitment. and will recognise your continuous or ‘unbroken’ service in any Greater Manchester Local Authority or NHS organisation, Transport for Greater Manchester, Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service or Greater Manchester Combined Authority; giving you access to our service-related benefits.Employer certification / accreditation badgesYou must have appropriate UK professional registration.This post will require a submission for Disclosure to be made to check for any unspent criminal convictions. #J-18808-Ljbffr