Job Overview
University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust is delighted to offer a senior midwifery leadership role as Deputy Director of Midwifery. The role deputises for the Director of Midwifery, providing professional and operational leadership across maternity services, supporting safe, high quality personalised care and contributing to national maternity priorities.
Responsibilities
* Deputise for the Director of Midwifery, providing senior leadership and assurance across quality, safety, governance and performance.
* Lead with a strong operational presence, ensuring safe, effective and evidence‑based maternity care across midwifery‑led and obstetric‑led pathways.
* Take a senior role within workforce planning, recruitment and retention, ensuring services meet national safe staffing expectations.
* Provide leadership and oversight of women and birthing people’s experience, complaints handling and learning, ensuring feedback drives improvement.
* Represent the Trust across the regional maternity footprint, supporting delivery of the national maternity transformation agenda in partnership with maternity care providers.
* Work collaboratively with senior clinical, operational and corporate colleagues to progress service developments aligned to professional, clinical and organisational priorities.
* Provide effective budgetary oversight, including control of temporary staffing and supporting value‑based use of resources.
Qualifications and Experience
* Registered Midwife on the relevant part of the NMC Register.
* Educated to master’s degree or post‑registration qualification or equivalent professional qualification/experience.
* Undertaken a senior leadership development programme.
* Substantial leadership experience within a complex maternity service, including working with senior clinical and managerial teams.
* Credible professional leadership with the ability to influence, motivate and support others through change.
* Excellent communication skills, ability to provide senior advice, judgement and assurance.
* Strong negotiation, facilitation, coaching and relationship‑building skills across organisational and system boundaries.
* Ability to balance operational delivery with strategic thinking in a dynamic, high‑profile clinical environment.
* Evidence of continuous personal and career development.
* Experience in developing service culture that promotes clinical engagement and continuous change, including use of new technologies.
* Experience of service innovation and development, managing difficult and complex change.
* Track record of achievement in performance management, implementing robust systems and processes, and facilitating groups.
* Understanding of health service issues, strategy and national policy agenda affecting provider services.
* Experience of financial/budgetary management.
Physical and Travel Requirements
* Ability to work at all UHS sites and external organisations.
* Ability to travel for national and regional commitments, including between PAH, UHS, NFBC and community settings.
* Ability to work flexible hours and fulfil commitments of on‑call/site management role.
Values and Behaviours
* Patients First
* Always Improving
* Working Together
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