Health Improvement Practitioner

Job Introduction

Health Improvement Practitioner (Substance Use)

We are seeking an enthusiastic and committed Health Improvement Practitioner to join our innovative and supportive public health team

The successful candidate will work with the team to develop and drive initiatives to reduce drug and alcohol-related harm across Oxfordshire

About Us

It's an exciting time for public health in Oxfordshire with the council's vision of becoming a greener, fairer and healthier county aligning with public health priorities including a shift towards focusing on more preventative approaches. Oxfordshire recently committed to being a Marmot County and are actively taking steps to reduce the health inequalities gap between different communities across the county.

We have an ambitious Combatting Drugs Partnership who strive to reduce the harms associated with the use of alcohol and drugs. We have fostered strong relationships with a range of partners including those in the criminal justice system and health and social care, to work together to link agendas and meet the needs of local populations.

Oxfordshire has a high performing alcohol and drug treatment system, and increased funding following the publication of the national drug strategy From Harm to Hope, has increased opportunities to create and drive innovative solutions to enhance services and reduce inequalities.

This year's renewal of the local health needs assessment will inform the next steps for further development and revised focus on where we can further improve the health of the Oxfordshire population.

About the Role

To help deliver the national and local ambitions, we are looking for an enthusiastic, dynamic and innovative Health Improvement Practitioner who is passionate about improving health outcomes for individuals and their families across Oxfordshire.

Working as part of a small team you will report to the Public Health Programme Manager and sit within the Live Well, Improve and Enable portfolio in the Public Health Team.

This is a dual graded role with candidates having a clear progression route to the more senior grade. Candidates who can demonstrate that they already meet the grade escalation criteria may be appointed at the higher grade.

About you

You will have skills and experience in a health improvement role. You will have responsibility for understanding local population needs and proposing evidenced based and innovative new solutions, commissioning, and performance managing services to meet the needs of our local populations.

You will have excellent organisational and communication skills plus an ability to work under pressure on a suite of projects concurrently.

You will have:

• A clear grounding in public health principles
• A sound understanding of partnership working and experience of implementing partnership wide work streams
• Experience in scoping, developing and implementing public health work programmes
• The ability to interpret and present data, including producing internal and external reports
• The ability to deliver to targets and tight deadlines

Rewards and benefits

It really is true that every single job role here contributes to bettering the lives of the people in our county - we want to do this for our employees too. We are proud of our strong flexible working culture, including the opportunity for flexibility on working hours and the use of technology to support agile working. We offer some of the very best learning and development opportunities to support your ongoing development.

We have a generous holiday allowance which rises as you remain in employment with us up to 33 days, as well as giving you the option to buy additional holiday. You will also have access to a Local Government Pension Scheme with employer contributions of up to 19.9% of your salary; a range of local and national retail discounts; and a host of enhanced family friendly policies including carers leave and paid time off for volunteering.