Head of System Discharge and Flow
21 hours ago
Brighton
We are seeking an experienced and dynamic leader to join us as Head of System Discharge and Flow, a pivotal role working across the Sussex Integrated Care System (ICS). This role provides strategic and senior operational leadership to improve discharge, patient flow, and integrated community pathways. You will play a key part in ensuring patients receive the right care, in the right place, at the right time — supporting Home First principles, reducing length of stay, avoiding unnecessary admissions, and enabling care closer to home. Please note: Due to recent changes in UK immigration and visa rules, this role may not be eligible for Skilled Worker visa sponsorship. Applicants who do not currently have the right to work in the UK may not be considered. Candidates requiring sponsorship should review the eligibility criteria on the gov.uk website before applying to assess their eligibility for a Certificate of Sponsorship for this role. Skilled Worker visa: going rates for eligible occupation codes - GOV.UK Health and Care Worker visa: If you'll need to meet different salary requirements - GOV.UK Key Responsibilities • Lead the development, delivery and continuous improvement of safe, timely and person‑centred discharge pathways across Sussex, • Hold system-wide accountability for patient flow and discharge performance, driving measurable improvements, • Provide senior system leadership to resolve complex, cross‑organisational challenges impacting discharge and flow, • Lead large‑scale transformation programmes, embedding sustainable change into business‑as‑usual practice, • Work in partnership across health, social care, housing, VCSE and wider system partners to align priorities and deliver integrated solutions, • Ensure consistent standards, reduce unwarranted variation, and support financial sustainability across the system, • Use data and insight to inform decision‑making, improve outcomes, and support evidence‑based planning We are the main provider of NHS community services across East and West Sussex, with 6,000 staff serving 1.3 million people. We deliver essential care to adults and children, helping them manage their health, avoid hospital admissions, and reduce hospital stays. Our Trust vision is to provide excellent care at the heart of the community. We offer opportunities across medical, clinical, support and corporate services. • Positive 2024 NHS Staff Survey results, highlighting compassionate leadership and wellbeingo, • Varied environments: community hospitals, patients' homes, and bases across Sussex, • Flexible working options: part‑time, flexi‑time, annualised hours and flexi‑retirement, • Excellent training, development and research opportunities, • Accredited Living Wage Employer, we ensure fair pay for all our staff, • Cost‑effective workplace nurseries in Crawley, Hove and Brightono, • Active EMBRACE, Disability & Wellbeing, LGBTQIA+, and Religion & Belief networkso, • Level 3 Disability Confident Leader and Veteran Aware Trust Our values – Compassionate Care, Working Together, Achieving Ambitions, Delivering Excellence – guide everything we do. We embrace diversity and encourage applications from all backgrounds, particularly from ethnically diverse, disabled and LGBTQIA+ individuals. We aim to create an inclusive environment and support reasonable adjustments during recruitment. This post may close early if sufficient applications are received. The postholder is accountable for: Providing visible, strategic system leadership for discharge, patient flow and integrated community services across the IC Maintaining oversight of system performance and providing clear, timely assurance and challenge to system partners through forums such as the Discharge Oversight Board Leading the delivery of IC‑wide transformation and operational improvement programmes to drive sustainable change and system resilience Driving improvements in discharge performance, patient flow and overall system efficiency through evidence‑based, data‑informed approaches Ensuring the development and delivery of safe, timely and person‑centred discharge pathways that optimises outcomes and experience Providing senior leadership to resolve complex, high‑risk, system‑wide flow challenges, working across organisational boundaries to remove barriers and mitigate risk Strengthening and advancing neighbourhood and community‑based care models to support admission avoidance and timely discharge Driving robust performance management, quality improvement and governance frameworks to deliver assurance and continuous improvement Building and sustaining effective, strategic partnerships across NHS organisations, local authorities, VCSE, housing and independent sector providers Ensuring the voice of patients, carers and communities is embedded within service design, transformation and evaluation Providing inclusive, compassionate leadership to develop and empower high‑performing teams fostering a culture of collaboration, innovation and accountability • Educated to master’s level or equivalent level of experience of working at a senior level in a specialist area., • Evidence of continued professional development in leadership, transformation or programme management., • Significant senior leadership experience within the NHS, IC‑S or complex multi‑agency environments, • Proven track record of leading large‑scale, cross‑organisational transformation programmes, • Experience of delivering improvements in patient flow, discharge pathways or urgent/community care services, • Demonstrable experience of translating national policy into local/system‑wide implementation, • Experience of working at system level (IC‑S/IC‑B, provider collaboration) with evidence of influencing across organisational boundaries, • Leading change in complex and pressured environments, • Experience building and leading teams, • Experience of financial oversight, including managing budgets, identifying efficiencies and delivering value, • Significant experience of leading across organisational boundaries within a matrix or system leadership model, • Highly developed understanding of national policy, strategy and regulatory frameworks relating to urgent care, community services and discharge optimisation with the ability to translate these into system‑wide delivery, • Strong knowledge of national policy relating to urgent care, discharge, flow and community services, • Expert analytical skills with the ability to translate complex data into actionable intelligence to support system‑wide planning, prioritisation and performance improvement, • Exceptional stakeholder engagement and influencing skills with experience operating credibly at the system level to drive alignment and deliver change across organisational boundaries, • Ability to manage risk and resolve complex system issues, • Ability to navigate and lead within highly complex, ambiguous environments balancing strategic priorities with operational pressures, • Ability to work across organisational and professional boundaries, • In‑depth knowledge of improvement methodologies (e.g. Quality Improvement, Lean, system transformation approaches) and their application at scale, • Significant senior‑level experience of leading research, evaluation or innovation programmes within complex health and care systems, • Experience of working within complex financial frameworks across health and care systems with an understanding of funding flows related to discharge, community services and patient flow, • Ability to design, commission and oversee high‑quality training and development programmes that build capability and support service transformation across complex systems., • Resilient and adaptable in complex environments, • Collaborative and relationship‑focused, • Commitment to improving patient outcomes, • Demonstrates NHS values and behaviours This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions. Elm Grove, Brighton, Brighton and Hove, Brighton Divisional Director – Unplanned Care Division #J-18808-Ljbffr