Head of Clinical Service

The closing date is 10th May 2026 Job summaryThe Head of Clinical Services will provide strong, compassionate leadership and operational oversight within the inpatient Sub-division of Southampton & South West Hampshire (SSW). This role is key to overseeing a diverse range of services that support our local population, alongside providing highly specialized rehabilitation services. The unique offerings in SSW present an exciting opportunity to shape new ways of working, aligned with the government's 10-year health plan aimed at transitioning services toward community-based settings.

We take great pride in our inpatient services across 4 sites, which include: ambulatory care assessment centre, medical admissions unit, rehabilitation wards, specialized neuro-rehabilitation services & older persons' mental health beds.

The Head of Clinical Services is responsible for operational delivery of clinical services within a defined inpatient portfolio. As part of the senior leadership team, they will collaborate with other Heads of Clinical Services & work under the Associate Director (AD) to manage the integrated clinical, operational, staffing, governance, and financial performance of their teams.

The Head of Clinical Services will help the AD(s) bring the vision of integrated management and governance to life, ensuring safe, effective, and efficient service delivery. You will be a visible and accessible leader, demonstrating professionalism and offering supervision.

Main duties, tasks & skills required

• Work closely with the Associate Director to deliver integration and transformation plans, ensuring alignment with broader strategic objectives.
• Collaborate with the Associate Clinical Director and the Divisional Director of Quality and Professions to maintain clinical safety and effectiveness across SSW.
• Partner with other Heads of Clinical Services across the division to achieve broader divisional goals.
• Deputize for the Associate Director as required.
• Lead in a multi-agency environment, leveraging a strong clinical and professional background.
• Participate in the on-call rota, providing leadership as needed.

About usHampshire and Isle of Wight Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust provides joined-up mental and physical healthcare for around two million people across our communities. With over 13,000 staff working in the community and local hospitals, we deliver care at every stage of life, helping people live their best and healthiest lives.

Our mental health services include community-based support and early intervention in psychosis (EIP) for both adults and young people, alongside a network of specialist inpatient wards covering forensic, learning disability, eating disorder and older person's care.

We deliver extensive physical health services too, from urgent community response teams helping frail and older patients remain safely at home, to hospitals at home teams providing acute-level care in familiar surroundings. Our neurological services offer rehabilitation and treatment for conditions including Multiple Sclerosis, Parkinson's Disease, Motor Neurone Disease, Head Injury, Cerebral Palsy and Stroke. Across Hampshire, our community hospitals provide inpatient rehabilitation as a step down from acute care, and our dedicated teams also staff Treetops Sexual Assault Referral Centre in Portsmouth, offering expert, compassionate support.

Everything we do is underpinned by our CARE values of compassion, accountability, respect and excellence

Job descriptionFurther information about the Trust and this role can be found on the Job Description and Person Specification document attached. It is important to us that we ensure our recruitment processes are accessible and inclusive to everyone - if as a potential candidate you are concerned a person specification may prevent or restrict your application for employment as a result of unintentional barriers on the grounds of your sex, race, age, sexual orientation, religion/belief or disability please initially contact the Trust's Recruitment team - detailed in the advert. The Trust will seek to resolve this issue wherever possible.

We are happy to talk Flexible Working - all requests for flexible working options can be discussed as part of the interview process.

Person specification Qualifications Essential

• NMC Registered Nurse - Adult, or HCPC Registered Allied Health Professional or Registered Social Worker, with extensive Physical Health experience relevant to the portfolio of services.
• Live registration without restriction
• A master's degree or demonstrable equivalent qualification in a Health and Social Care related subject
• Postgraduate management qualification or equivalent experience.
• Evidence of ongoing and relevant personal and professional development in the last 2 years

Disclosure and Barring Service Check

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.UK Professional Registration

Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website.For help with your application, contact:

Helen Morgan

Pay scheme

Agenda for ChangeBand

Band 8bSalary £66582.00 to £77368.00 Yearly Contract

Fixed TermDuration

12 Month(s)Working pattern

Full-TimeReference number

348-SSW-11156Job locations

Western Community Hospital

Walnut Grove

Southampton

Hampshire

SO16 4XE