Overview
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Calderdale and Huddersfield NHS Foundation Trust (CHFT) are committed to equal opportunities and welcome applications from all sections of the community, regardless of any protected characteristics. We are committed to recruiting to our values. Leading One Culture of Care underpins our values by creating an environment, tone and behaviours across all parts of the Trust that are fundamentally rooted in compassionate care.
We are open to flexible working arrangements, including part-time, job-share, flexible hours and the possibility to work from home where appropriate. Please talk to us during the interview process to discuss any flexibility you may require.
We have Silver Award from the Defence Employer Recognition Scheme and support Defence personnel. Find out more about CHFT.
Job overview
Join Us as Deputy Head of Legal Services
Are you a skilled legal professional ready to lead with purpose and make a difference in healthcare? We are looking for a dynamic Deputy Head of Legal Services to help shape patient safety, legal governance and quality care across our Trust.
Why Join Us?
This is more than a legal role — it’s a chance to be part of a compassionate, forward-thinking organisation where your expertise will shape how we care, respond and grow. You’ll work alongside dedicated professionals, influence real change and be supported to develop your career in a meaningful way. Ready to lead with impact? Apply now to help us build a safer, smarter future for patients and staff alike.
Main duties
Job responsibilities
Working with the Head of Legal Services, you will lead a dynamic legal team, manage complex and high-profile cases (including inquests, clinical negligence and liability claims) and ensure the Trust stays fully compliant with legal and regulatory standards. Your work will influence how the organisation responds to challenges, learns from incidents and improves services.
You will be the go-to expert for medico-legal advice, collaborating with NHS Resolution, HM Coroners, external law firms, senior clinicians and operational leaders. Strong relationship-building, clear communication and alignment with our One Culture of Care will be essential.
This role combines legal insight with healthcare strategy. You will help shape local policies, interpret national guidance and ensure legal advice is practical, timely and aligned with the Trust’s mission to deliver outstanding care. If you thrive in fast-paced, emotionally charged environments and want to drive real-world change, this is your opportunity to lead, influence and grow.
Working for our organisation
About us
Calderdale and Huddersfield NHS Foundation Trust is an integrated trust providing acute and community health services. Over 7,000 colleagues deliver compassionate care from our two main hospitals, Calderdale Royal Hospital and Huddersfield Royal Infirmary, as well as community sites, health centres and patients’ homes. We also have almost 170 volunteers. We serve two local populations: Greater Huddersfield (about 245,000) and Calderdale (about 220,000).
We provide urgent and emergency care; medical; surgical; maternity; gynaecology; critical care; children and young people’s services; end of life care and outpatient and diagnostic imaging services, plus community health services including sexual health services in Calderdale.
In 2024/25 we cared for more than 103,000 inpatients or day cases, more than 490,000 outpatient attendances, almost 185,000 accident and emergency attendances and more than 4,200 babies delivered. We also had more than 369,000 adult service contacts by our community teams and 230,000 contacts with our therapy services.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
Job responsibilities
For a detailed job description for this vacancy, please see attached Job Description.
Person specification
Qualifications / Training
Essential
* Educated to degree level in law/legal practice or equivalent with appropriate post-graduate courses (including CILEx).
* Recent experience/training managing inquests, clinical negligence/employer liability claims to Masters level equivalent.
* Evidence of commitment to continually update professional practice.
Knowledge, Experience & Expertise
Essential
* Previous Coronial/Inquest management experience
* Experience of staff management
* Able to demonstrate understanding of CPR, the claims process and coronial rules/regulations
* Good understanding of investigations management, root cause analysis and Clinical Governance
* Understanding data – extracts, collates, quantitatively analyses and validates data
* Strong technical knowledge in areas relevant to legal healthcare practice
Desirable
* Experience of healthcare law setting
* Previous experience of managing inquests
* Advocacy experience
* Implementing risk and case management systems
* Quality management and quality improvement experience
* Personal integrity and commitment to efficiency and effectiveness
* Flexible and adaptable to changing workloads and travel across CHFT sites
Additional Criteria
Essential
* Ability to assimilate complex information and provide advice
* Strong problem solving, workload management and team leadership
* Ability to interpret national policy and apply to local setting
* Critical appraisal of documents to assess risk and communicate/manage claims/inquests
* Ability to manage multiple projects within timescales
* Strategic thinking and ability to inspire teams
* Innovative approaches to working with minimal guidance
* Good computer literacy
* Clear recommendations with risks and benefits
* Ability to predict trends from information
* Strong interpersonal and communication skills
* High personal integrity and commitment to improving performance
* Flexible and adaptable to changing priorities
* Willingness to travel across CHFT sites
Desirable
* Data manipulation and development of data entry systems
Other information
Our vision is to provide One Culture of Care for one another to deliver compassionate care. We encourage applications from all. Reasonable adjustments will be made for disabled applicants.
Please ensure your application includes referees with verified employment/education history for the last three years. We may request electronic references before an unconditional offer.
UK visa sponsorship: check eligibility on GOV.UK. This role may involve transfer of NHS data via ESR; DBS checks may be required, with cost recoverable from salary. This is a condition of employment.
CHFT is part of the West Yorkshire Association of Acute Trusts (WYAAT), a collaboration across West Yorkshire and Harrogate to provide the best care. For questions please contact ask.recruitment@cht.nhs.uk.
Documents to download
* JD and Person Spec (PDF, 600.3KB)
* Job Description Appendix A (PDF, 259.2KB)
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