Job overview
Deputy Head of Therapies – St Bartholomew’s Hospital - Band 8B
We are excited to be advertising for the role of Deputy Head of Therapies at St. Bartholomew’s Hospital. We are looking for an experienced and innovative clinician, with a track record of quality improvement, leadership and staff management to join our forward-thinking department.
This role is a key leadership and management role supporting the head of therapies set the strategic direction for the department and deliver on its key objectives. These objectives have been co-created with our workforce and other stakeholders, including our service users.
You will benefit from a supportive and strategic multi-disciplinary team and be able to access a wide range of education and development opportunities to further develop your potential within the four pillars of clinical practice, leadership, education and research. This role provides a fantastic opportunity for anyone looking to further develop their leadership journey and make a difference to our colleagues, patients and community we serve.
**Interviews will be held on 23rd February 2026**
For further details regarding this role, kindly liaise with Vicky Newey, Head of Therapies, .
Main duties of the job
• Support the Head of Therapies in delivery of key performance targets by assessing the operational processes and ensuring the therapy service and wider team work efficiently and effectively to maintain performance.
• Support the Head of Therapies in developing and implementing service development strategies and service objectives focussing on excellence and innovation.
• Support the Head of Therapies to undertake workforce planning activities in line with service changes and development.
• Directly line manage senior staff, undertaking regular performance reviews, providing day to day operational support and overseeing personal development plans.
• Lead in promoting educational and CPD opportunities across Therapies and build a comprehensive and robust structure to support timely and equitable access.
• Undertake and be involved in investigations into issues raised by patients or their families and take action to resolve their concerns.
• Ensure incidents are investigated and actions taken to improve patient safety and care quality.
• Maintain a high clinical presence, with clinical practice within job plan and visibility within the service.
• Work alongside the Head of Therapies in identifying CIP’s and implementing financial recovery plans and contribute to the development of business cases.
Working for our organisation
Barts Health is one of the largest NHS trusts in the country, and one of Britain’s leading healthcare providers.
The Barts Health group of NHS hospitals is entering an exciting new era on our improvement journey to becoming an outstanding organisation with a world-class clinical reputation. Having lifted ourselves out of special measures, we now have the impetus and breathing space to chart a fresh course in which we are continually striving to improve all our services for patients.
Our vision is to be a high-performing group of NHS hospitals, renowned for excellence and innovation, and providing safe and compassionate care to our patients in east London and beyond. That means being a provider of excellent patient safety, known for delivering consistently high standards of harm-free care and always caring for patients in the right place at the right time. It also means being an outstanding place to work, in which our WeCare values and behaviours are visible to all and guide us in how we work together.
We strive to live by our WeCare values and are committed to promoting inclusion, where every staff member has a sense of belonging. We value our differences and fully advocate, cultivate and support an inclusive working environment.
We particularly welcome applications from Black, Asian and minority ethnic candidates as they are underrepresented within Barts Health at this band.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
St. Barts therapies department strives to contribute to the hospitals mission to be a centre of excellence in cardiac, respiratory and cancer care. We are passionate about innovation in service delivery and promoting a healthy workplace culture where staff feel valued and want to come to work. Our Therapies department comprises a diverse team of Occupational Therapists, Physiotherapists, Dietitians, Speech and Language Therapists, Exercise Physiologists and Support Workers.
The full job description provides an overview of the key tasks and responsibilities of the role, and the person specification outlines the qualifications, skills, experience, and knowledge required. For both documents, please view the attachment/s below.
Person specification
Qualifications
Essential criteria
1. BSc or Diploma in a relevant Therapy Profession
2. HCPC registered.
3. Evidence of on-going, relevant postgraduate education.
4. Masters level study in a related subject or equivalent experience.
5. Management or leadership training
Desirable criteria
6. Management or leadership qualification
Experience
Essential criteria
7. Clinical and Operational management experience in therapies setting
8. Evidence of working to a senior level in clinical specialty
9. Experience of identifying and delivering cost improvements whilst maintaining service quality.
10. Proven record of leading successful service development and/or quality improvement projects.
11. Experience of promoting education and clinical development of roles
12. Well-developed leadership and influencing skills with multidisciplinary teams and wider stakeholders
Desirable criteria
13. Experience of managing multidisciplinary professional groups.
14. Extensive specialist experience in a related therapy area.
15. Experience of representing therapies within a Trust setting
16. Experience of setting service/departmental vision and objectives
17. Experience in managing a budget
Skills
Essential criteria
18. Change management
19. Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
20. Confidence in presentation skills
21. Ability to influence MDT working.
22. Effective problem-solving skills
23. Development of policies and protocols.
24. Analysis of complex data to produce succinct information appropriate for its audience
25. Able to develop new ways of working
26. An effective completer/finisher
27. Confident in staff management
28. Able to take conscious steps to manage self under pressure- creating time for reflection and support for self and others
29. Able to absorb and deal constructively with criticism and seek support as necessary
Desirable criteria
30. Development of business cases.
31. Advanced Excel Spreadsheet skills
32. Demonstrates achievements in managing change
33. Experiences of participating in clinical governance initiatives
34. Knowledge of developing and using databases
35. Knowledge/skills in MS Office Professional
36. Used to producing analysis in numerical or graphical formats to a high standard
37. Budget and financial management skills
Knowledge
Essential criteria
38. Awareness of developments in the NHS and service delivery
39. Quality assurance and improvement.
40. Awareness of clinical governance processes and principles such as risk and incident management
41. Understanding of evidence-based practice and its implementation
42. Understanding professional issues impacting on therapies
43. Understands the implications of Equal opportunities in practice.
44. Understanding of the importance of data collection and analysis
Other
Essential criteria
45. High self-awareness, understanding own emotions, strengths and limitations
46. Models and able to encourage others in being innovative in finding ways of improving the quality of services
47. Able to utilise IT to full potential
48. Highly professional role model
49. Decisive, using sound judgement in decision making in a timely and confident manner
50. Commitment to developing a culture of openness and partnership
51. Ability to inspire and motivate others to support wider departmental objectives
**Visa Sponsorship Information**
Recent changes to UK immigration policy on the Health and Care Visa and Skilled Worker Visa could mean that this role is not eligible for sponsorship or that you may not meet the eligibility criteria.
Sponsorship can only be offered if this post and any individual offered employment meet all the Home Office’s requirements under the UK Skilled Worker visa scheme.
If you are applying from outside the UK or will require sponsorship, please mention this clearly in your application.
To be eligible for sponsorship, the following conditions must be met:
52. Eligible role: The position must be on the UK Skilled Worker visa list. You can check your eligibility here: -.
53. Salary threshold: The role must meet the minimum salary set by the Home Office. Please note that for roles employed under Agenda for Change Terms and Conditions, the High-Cost Area Supplement (HCAS) is not included when calculating the basic salary for the purposes of sponsorship.
54. Skill level: The role must meet the minimum skill requirement of RQF Level 6 or above (graduate level).
55. English language: Applicants must demonstrate English proficiency at CEFR level B1 or higher.
56. Other criteria: Applicants must meet all other criteria as set out by the UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI)