Head of Delivery

Data & Analytics is central to delivering the NHS 10-Year Health Plan, overseeing national programmes with investment exceeding £1.5 billion. This is an exciting opportunity for experienced Digital & Data Delivery Managers to join NHSE at a pivotal moment and help design & deliver of some of the most ambitious digital transformation programmes ever undertaken within the NHS. Working within NHSE’s National Data Architecture function, you will help drive the technical foundations of the Transforming and Connecting Care Programme. This landmark programme is transforming how health & care information is shared, enabling secure, seamless access to patient records across organisational boundaries through the development of a Single Patient Record. The programme will create a connected digital ecosystem that supports clinicians and patients with faster, safer and more integrated services, regardless of where care is delivered. Critical to this transformation are two critical architectural capabilities:

Event-Based Architecture (EBA) – enables near real-time sharing of information between clinical and social care systems, so that key patient events, from referrals to test results, are reflected quickly & accurately across the care pathway.

National Data Architecture (NDA) – provides the strategic framework for defining, structuring, governing, sharing and improving data across local, regional and national NHS services, supporting a modern, interoperable health and care system.

You will have the opportunity to lead the delivery of nationally significant products and services that directly improve patient outcomes and support frontline care. You will:

• Lead and inspire high-performing multidisciplinary teams to deliver complex national digital services safely, effectively and at pace.
• Shape and drive delivery across multiple workstreams, establishing robust governance, planning, risk management and performance reporting.
• Remove barriers to progress, facilitate informed decision-making and ensure strong alignment across technical, clinical, operational and policy stakeholders.
• Champion agile and continuous improvement approaches, helping teams deliver measurable outcomes, benefits and value for patients, clinicians and the wider health and care system.
• Build delivery capability and influence strategic decisions within one of the UK’s largest and most impactful digital transformation programmes.

These roles are ideal for experienced delivery professionals with a strong track record of leading complex digital, data or technology programmes within multidisciplinary environments. You will be someone who thrives on collaboration, can confidently navigate ambiguity and complexity, and excels at building relationships across a broad range of stakeholders.

Experience/ knowledge of event-based architecture or target data architecture would be highly advantageous, but it is not essential.

NHS England has a wide range of statutory functions, responsibilities and regulatory powers. These are focused on supporting the wider NHS to deliver high quality care, as well as doing those things that are best done once for the whole NHS.

Our staff bring expertise across clinical, operational, commissioning, technology, data science, cyber security, software engineering, education, and commercial specialisms — enabling us to design and deliver high-quality NHS services.

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 currently work within the NHS and if successful at interview, we will initiate an Inter Authority Transfer (IAT) via the Electronic Staff Record (ESR). This retrieves key data from your current or previous NHS employer to support onboarding, including competency status, Continuous Service Dates (CSD), and annual leave entitlement. You may opt out at any stage of the process.

Colleagues with a contractual office base are expected to spend, on average, at least 40% of their time working in our offices.

Staff recruited from outside the NHS will usually be appointed at the bottom of the pay band.

We cannot offer visa sponsorship for any vacancies.

You can find further details about the role, including key responsibilities and accountabilities, and person specification in the attached Job Description and Assignment Briefs. Please ensure your supporting statement includes demonstratable evidence and specific examples on how you meet the criteria for each of the key skills specified. This will be used in both the shortlisting and interview processes.