Principal Officers Care at Home & Care Homes
NHS Highland Band 8a | Permanent | Fulltime
NHS Highland is proud to deliver safe, compassionate, person centred care to the people and communities we serve. As we continue to strengthen and transform adult social care, we are delighted to invite applications for two Principal Officer roles within our Professional Leadership Team, one dedicated to Care at Home and one to Care Homes.
These are high impact leadership positions offering the chance to shape the future of adult social care across Highland. If you are passionate about improving outcomes, driving quality, and supporting a confident, skilled workforce, we would love to hear from you.
The Opportunity
As a Principal Officer, you will play a pivotal role in ensuring high quality, safe, and person centred care. You will provide strategic and professional leadership across your designated area, working closely with managers, multidisciplinary teams, and key partners to deliver excellence in care.
Key Responsibilities (Both Roles)
* Provide expert professional leadership to service managers and multidisciplinary teams.
* Champion high standards of care governance and regulatory compliance.
* Lead on quality assurance, improvement planning, and inspection readiness.
* Support the development of a skilled, confident, and resilient workforce.
* Build strong, collaborative relationships with internal and external stakeholders.
* Drive innovation, evidencebased practice, and continuous improvement.
* Offer professional advice on policy, standards, and service development.
* Contribute to training, professional development, and leadership capacity building.
RoleSpecific Focus
Principal Officer Care at Home
* Lead professional practice and quality across NHS Highland Care at Home services.
* Strengthen workforce capability in home based care.
* Support safe, person centred care that enables people to remain at home for longer.
* Enhance service quality, regulatory compliance, and outcomes for service users.
Principal Officer Care Homes
* Lead professional practice and quality across NHS Highland Care Homes.
* Support care home managers to deliver safe, compassionate, and dignified residential and nursing care.
* Enhance service quality, regulatory compliance, and outcomes for residents.
About You
We are looking for inspiring, forward thinking leaders who are committed to delivering exceptional care.
You will bring:
* A degree level qualification in a relevant health or social care profession, with current professional registration.
* Significant leadership experience within adult social care, nursing, or health and social care integration.
* Strong knowledge of national standards, regulatory frameworks, and sector specific operational requirements.
* Excellent influencing and relationship building skills, with the ability to lead through collaboration.
* A passion for developing others and fostering a culture of learning and improvement.
A postgraduate qualification in leadership, management, or quality improvement is desirable.
Why Join NHS Highland?
* Play a key role in shaping the future of adult social care across a diverse and dynamic region.
* Lead meaningful change that directly improves the lives of people who use our services.
* Work within a supportive leadership team committed to professional development and innovation.
* Enjoy the benefits of living and working in one of Scotland’s most beautiful and community focused areas.
These roles offer a rare opportunity to influence service quality at a strategic level while staying closely connected to frontline practice and the people we support.
NHS Scotland is committed to encouraging equality and diversity among our workforce and eliminating unlawful discrimination. The aim is for our workforce to be truly representative and for each employee to feel respected and able to give their best. To this end, NHS Scotland welcomes applications from all sections of society.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION FOR CANDIDATES
* Effective from 1st April 2026, the Agenda for Change full-time working week will be reduced from 37 to 36 hours. Part-time hours will be adjusted on a pro-rata basis. There will be an increase in the hourly rate to ensure that pay remains unaffected.
* You should apply for this post by completing the application process on Jobtrain.
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NHS Highland is geographically the largest of the 14 regional boards of NHS Scotland, covering an area of 12,500 square miles, across Highland and Argyll & Bute.
We employ over 10,700 people, making us one of the biggest employers in the area. As an organisation, we make a very significant contribution to the local economy.
Our staff are also important members of our communities. Our greatest asset is our workforce, and the way we go about our work comes from the values and behaviours we demonstrate on a daily basis. As a board we strive to ensure the environment is conducive to nurturing a positive culture, supported and delivered through our NHS and social care values .
Care and compassion
Dignity and respect
Openness, honesty and responsibility
Quality and teamwork