As Director of Pre-Hospital UEC Access , you will provide strategic and operational leadership for national programmes spanning NHS 111, 999 and ambulance services , shaping the future of urgent and emergency care access across England.
Operating at the heart of the Integrated Urgent and Emergency Care (IUEC) Directorate, you will lead a large and complex portfolio that is central to the delivery of NHS England's urgent and emergency care ambitions. Working in a highly visible and politically sensitive environment, you will provide national leadership for pre-hospital access services, drive operational improvement, develop future strategy and lead delivery of key commitments within the UEC Recovery Plan.
You will work closely with senior leaders across NHS England, the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC), regional teams, integrated care systems, ambulance trusts, NHS 111 providers and wider partners to improve access, outcomes and experience for patients. The role requires a strategic and influential leader capable of operating across organisational boundaries to deliver large-scale transformation and sustainable improvement.
As a member of the senior leadership team, you will provide visible leadership across the wider IUEC Directorate, helping to shape culture, support organisational priorities and contribute to the delivery of national policy, strategy and operational objectives.
The postholder will be responsible for:
Providing strategic and operational leadership for NHS England's Pre-Hospital UEC Access portfolio, including NHS 111, 999 and ambulance services.
Leading delivery of national pre-hospital access programmes and UEC Recovery Plan commitments.
Setting the strategic direction for ambulance, NHS 111 and wider pre-hospital urgent and emergency care services.
Developing and delivering long-term strategic priorities to transform access to urgent and emergency care.
Leading and developing a multidisciplinary team, creating a high-performing and inclusive culture.
Managing significant programme resources and budgets and ensuring value for money.
Providing oversight of governance, assurance, performance and delivery arrangements across the portfolio.
Driving policy development and improvement programmes to enhance patient outcomes and operational performance.
Building influential relationships with senior stakeholders across NHS England, government and the wider health and care system.
Identifying and managing strategic risks, issues and dependencies affecting delivery.
Providing senior leadership across the wider Integrated Urgent and Emergency Care Directorate.
Representing NHS England in highly sensitive, complex and politically significant environments.
NHS England’s purpose is to create the conditions for an ambitious and high quality NHS. We empower our people and partners to solve problems, provide outstanding care for every patient and improve the nation's health.
Our 7 regional teams work directly with systems and NHS providers across the country. Each region acts as the interface between national strategy and local delivery, overseeing performance, supporting improvement and enabling transformation at scale.
In March 2025, the Government announced that NHS England and the Department of Health and Social Care will increasingly merge functions, ultimately leading to NHS England being fully integrated into the department.
If you are successful at interview, we will run an Inter Authority Transfer (IAT) in the Electronic Staff Record system (ESR). This transfer gathers valuable information from a previous or current NHS employer to support the onboarding process, including; statutory and mandatory competency status, Continuous Service Dates (CSD), and annual leave entitlement. You will have the opportunity throughout the recruitment process to inform us if you do not consent.
Colleagues with a contractual office base are expected to spend, on average, at least 40% of their time working in our offices.
Detailed Job Description and Main Responsibilities
You can find further details about the role, including key responsibilities and accountabilities, alongside the organisational structure and person specification in the attached Job Description and supporting documentation.
Strategic Leadership and Transformation
Lead the development and delivery of national strategy for pre-hospital urgent and emergency care access.
Shape future policy and transformation programmes relating to ambulance services, NHS 111 and wider urgent care access pathways.
Deliver key national priorities and UEC Recovery Plan commitments.
Provide leadership across NHS England and partner organisations to support delivery of strategic objectives.
Drive innovation, improvement and system-wide transformation to improve outcomes for patients.
Programme Delivery and Performance
Lead a complex portfolio of national programmes and ensure delivery against agreed objectives and outcomes.
Oversee programme governance, assurance and performance management arrangements.
Ensure appropriate measurement, evaluation and performance reporting mechanisms are in place.
Develop solutions to address emerging operational challenges and opportunities.
Support regions and systems to deliver national urgent and emergency care priorities.
Stakeholder Leadership and Partnership Working
Build and maintain strong relationships with senior leaders across NHS England, DHSC, providers, commissioners and system partners.
Influence decision-making at national level and drive alignment across complex stakeholder groups.
Represent NHS England in high-profile and politically sensitive settings.
Lead engagement with key stakeholders to support policy development and programme delivery.
Work collaboratively across organisational boundaries to maximise impact and improve delivery.
Leadership and People Management
Provide inspiring and visible leadership to the Pre-Hospital UEC Access team and wider IUEC Directorate.
Lead, motivate and develop a multidisciplinary team to deliver high-quality outcomes.
Foster an inclusive culture where diversity is valued and people can thrive.
Create a culture of continuous improvement, innovation and learning.
Champion NHS England values and behaviours in all aspects of leadership.
Programme, Financial and Resource Management
Lead and manage significant programme budgets and resources.
Ensure effective governance and financial stewardship across the portfolio.
Drive value for money and maximise the impact of investment.
Ensure risks are identified, monitored and managed effectively.
Maintain effective governance structures and robust assurance processes.
Secondments
Applicants from within the NHS will be offered on a secondment basis only, agreement should be obtained from their employer prior to submitting the application.
