Director of Mental Health
London

About Us

We’re the Care Quality Commission (CQC) and we work to improve health and adult social care in England.

We have a purpose to regulate health and adult social care, work together with the public, systems and providers of care to protect people, and to promote and improve quality of care. Our vision is to see everyone receiving safe, effective and compassionate care.

We’re committed to listening, acting, informing and protecting the public, helping providers and systems of care to improve and innovate, ensuring our people feel valued and do great work, and to work together with partners who share our purpose for better care.

One of our main commitments is to become a truly inclusive organisation and to role model a diverse and representative culture. To do so, we work with a variety of networks, including the Disability Equality Network, Race Equality Network and LGBT+ Equality Network.

We’re now looking for a Director of Mental Health to join us on a full-time, permanent basis.

The Benefits

• Salary of £95,000 - £113,625 per annum, depending on experience
• 27 days’ annual leave, rising with service to 32.5 days, plus 8 Bank Holidays
• NHS pension scheme, with around a 14% employer contribution
• Free employee assistance service 24 hours a day
• Discounts to supermarkets, high street stores, electronics and fleet cars
• Discounted gym vouchers
• Cycle to work scheme
• Internal reward scheme where you could win a voucher or two!
• Equipment for homeworking

Why this could be a great role for you…

This is a fantastic opportunity for a credible and inspirational leader from the health and social care system with change and improvement experience gained within regulated systems to join our senior leadership team.

We’ve built our organisation around our values of Excellence, Integrity, Caring, and Teamwork. We are insight-led, proportionate and innovative, transparent, accountable and impartial, just, compassionate and respectful, and collaborative, inclusive and fair.

If these values resonate with you and you feel you can embody and represent them, you will discover an outstanding working environment with opportunities for professional development and growth, where your contributions will be transformational and make a lasting impact.

What’s more, you’ll be taking on a role with real purpose at a time when mental health and social care are at the forefront of the nation’s mindset and having solutions, systems, and processes in place is even more important than ever.

What you will bring…

• Extensive experience in complex, senior stakeholder engagement across the health and social care system
• Previous experience of working in health, social care, the NHS, regulatory or related fields
• Experience leading large-scale change and driving improvement in complex environments
• Experience of risk management, operational policy development and shaping regulation
• Strong people management experience, including building and developing high-performing teams
• Excellent interpersonal, communication and stakeholder management skills, with the ability to influence at the highest levels
• Political awareness and strong business acumen, with the ability to identify opportunities for innovation
• Analytical capability, using data and insight to drive decision-making
• Knowledge of the Mental Health Act (1983), Mental Capacity Act (2005), and wider government and regulatory policy
• An understanding of corporate finance, managing budgets and measures of performance
• A future-thinking approach, skilled in horizon scanning and shaping strategy

What you’ll be doing…

As our Director of Mental Health, you will provide strategic leadership across our mental health work, driving improvement and shaping future policy.

Specifically, you will work with the Chief Inspector of Mental Health, co-ordinate our Mental Health Act responsibilities and shape policy and practice across the health and social care sector.

You will provide clear leadership to the Mental Health Act operations teams, as well as policy and strategy teams, whilst supporting Mental Health Independent Healthcare Providers with regulatory activity, assisting with the annual Mental Health Act Report, and leading our activity in the implementation of the Mental Health Bill.

Additionally, you will:

• Respond to emerging issues and thematic work in the mental health sector
• Build strong relationships with key stakeholders to enhance registration and assessment processes
• Manage risk across health and care, collaborating to develop a shared view of quality

Next steps…

If you require any support or assistance with the recruitment process, please get in touch with our team or include a note in your application.

We know diverse teams allow for a more creative and productive environment and therefore encourage applications from everyone regardless of age, gender/sex, gender identity or expression, religion or belief, disability, ethnicity or sexual orientation.

So, if you’d like to join us as a Director of Mental Health, please apply via the button shown.

Other organisations may call this role Healthcare Operations Director, Healthcare Policy Director, Director of Mental Health Policy and Operations, Director of Mental Health Regulation, or Head of Mental Health Policy and Strategy.