Contract: Permanent
Location: London Sedley Place or Nottingham Support Office
Closing date: 19th Feb 2026
Recruitment Partner:
What you'll be doing
Boots, the UK's leading health, wellness and beauty retailer, is seeking a dynamic and experienced Head of Corporate Communications & Media Relations to lead and shape the strategic direction of corporate communications. This pivotal role sits at the heart of the organisation, requiring a visionary leader capable of navigating complex challenges, anticipating future opportunities, driving stakeholder engagement and protecting and enhancing Boots reputation across all channels.
Comfortable with operating in an exceptionally fast-paced and ever-evolving retail landscape, the successful candidate will be a highly experienced corporate communications strategist. In addition to excellent corporate and financial communication skills, they will be well-versed in planning and evaluation, able to own the end-to-end planning process and lead on measurement and evaluation, creating a series of metrics designed to demonstrate the exceptional value of the work the team delivers.
Key responsibilities
* Strategic Leadership: Develop, drive, and execute the corporate communications strategy to support Boots strategic priorities and brand reputation. You will need to anticipate market trends, seize opportunities and respond decisively to the news agenda
* Crisis Communications: Lead the development and execution of crisis communication strategies, acting as a trusted advisor across the business and ensuring timely, clear and effective messaging that safeguards Boots reputation
* Reputation Management: Proactively identify emerging risks and opportunities within the communications landscape, developing robust plans and initiatives to ensure Boots is well-prepared to respond effectively and maximise positive outcomes
* Financial Communications: Lead the development and delivery of financial communications, including results announcements and market updates, to demonstrate performance and strategic momentum to media, investors and key stakeholders
* Relationship Management: Develop and nurture strong relationships with key external stakeholders, including media, influencers, industry bodies and opinion leaders
* Thought Leadership: Drive proactive thought leadership and storytelling initiatives to position Boots as the trusted health, wellness and beauty retailer
* Planning: Oversee the planning of the external communications plan, ensuring its seamless end-to-end delivery and tight collaboration with key teams across the business
* Measurement and Evaluation: Lead the development and implementation of robust communications measurement and evaluation frameworks, ensuring clear and challenging KPIs and performance metrics. Provide regular analysis and actionable insights to demonstrate impact and guide strategic decision-making
* Continuous Improvement: Challenge the status quo, drive step-change improvements, and ensure Boots is ahead of the curve with how it shares its stories
* Team Leadership & Development: Lead, inspire, and challenge a high-performing communications team. Set ambitious targets, foster a culture of excellence and ensure exceptional delivery against stretching KPIs
What you'll need to have
* Proven track record in a senior corporate communications role within a large, high-profile and fast-paced organisation, preferably in retail, healthcare or consumer sectors
* Demonstrable experience in financial communications
* Deep expertise of managing high-profile issues, with proven experience in effectively responding to and resolving challenging situations
* Excellent knowledge of the news agenda, combined with strong news judgment
* Strategic thinker with strong analytical skills and the ability to translate business objectives into actionable communications strategies
* Brilliant media operator with established network of corporate, retail, consumer affairs, news and trade journalists and key opinion leaders
* Outstanding written and verbal communication abilities, with a flair for crafting compelling narratives and clear messaging
* Strong planning and organisation skills, with experience in overseeing annual PR plans, ensuring effective collaboration across teams, alignment of messaging and prioritisation of campaigns.
* Excellent commercial acumen and analytical skills, with the ability to measure communications effectiveness, share learnings and assess ROI
* Exceptional leadership skills, with a demonstrable ability to motivate, coach and develop teams
* High standards of professionalism, discretion, agility and resilience under pressure
* Relevant degree or professional qualification in PR, communications or journalism preferred
Rewards designed for you
* Boots Retirement Savings Plan
* Discretionary annual bonus
* Generous employee discounts
* Enhanced maternity/paternity/adoption leave pay and gift card for anyone expecting or adopting a child
* Flexible benefits scheme including option to buy additional holiday, discounted gym membership, life assurance, activity passes and much more.
* Access to free, 24/7 counselling and support through TELUS Health, our Employee Assistance Programme.
There's lots more in our benefits and discounts, MyBoosts - there to give you that little lift in your everyday. Find out more at Exclusions may apply; eligible roles only. Please note that any salary estimates provided on third-party sites are not endorsed by Boots and may not be accurate.
About The Boots Group
The Boots Group is a trusted leader in healthcare, pharmacy and retail, operating across 11 countries - including the UK, Ireland, Thailand and Mexico. The Boots Group brands - including Boots, Boots Opticians, No7 Beauty Company, Farmacias Benavides and Alliance Healthcare - are trusted and well recognised healthcare and beauty businesses, serving millions of customers and patients every day in communities around the world. We are proud to be an equal opportunity employer, passionate about embracing the diversity of our colleagues and providing a positive and inclusive working environment for all.
What's next
If you apply, our team will be in touch to let you know the outcome of your application or to arrange next steps. Where a role is advertised as full-time, we are open to discussing part-time and job share options during the application process. If you require additional support as part of the application and interview process, we are happy to provide reasonable adjustments to help you to be at your best.
Boots is a Ban the Box employer and will consider the suitability of applicants with criminal convictions on a case-by-case basis.
We hope to hear from you soon.
Be Brilliant with Boots
Keywords
Head of Corporate Communications and Media Relations, PR, Media, Corporate Comms, External Comms