Combat Stress

Head of Quality and Clinical Governance

The closing date is 28 November 2025

Job summary

This is an excellent opportunity for someone who wants to stand out and make a difference in a national role for a unique and high-profile mental health charity.

Main duties of the job

In this role, you will lead in creating a culture in which all aspects of clinical governance are embedded to ensure that our commitment to deliver effective high quality care is continuously maintained, providing a safe, effective and rewarding experience for veterans throughout the recovery journey. You will lead on our audits and complaints functions; by ensuring we remain compliant with statutory clinical regulations and ensuring that if veterans have cause to complain, their complaints are dealt with in a timely and professional way and the organisation learns from when things go wrong. The successful candidate will have excellent leadership skills enabling them to inspire, motivate and influence colleagues across the organisation. The ability to communicate effectively across all levels and disciplines is essential; as is the requirement to travel to our other sites.

We continually strive for excellence in all that we do and therefore this post requires a dynamic and inspirational leader who will take a pragmatic approach to the challenges that lie ahead. We are looking for a highly driven individual with credible and demonstrable experience in quality and clinical governance, who is passionate about the work Combat Stress undertakes. We would expect you have experience in working in mental health services whether in the NHS, voluntary or private sector.

About us

Combat Stress is the UKs leading mental health charity for veterans. For over a century weve been helping former service personnel deal with issues like post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), anxiety and depression. Today we provide specialist treatment and support for veterans from every service and conflict, focusing on those with complex mental health issues related to their military service. We provide a range of community, outpatient and residential mental health services to veterans with complex mental health problems. We provide servicesin-person, and viaphoneandonline.

Details

Date posted

31 October 2025

Pay scheme

Other

Salary

£65,241 to £75,441 a year would consider band 8c, (up to £78,450 pa)

Contract

Permanent

Working pattern

Full-time, Flexible working

Reference number

B0373-25-0009

Job locations

Tyrwhitt House

Oaklawn Road

Leatherhead

Surrey

KT22 0BX


Job description

Job responsibilities

Based at our Head Office in Leatherhead, Surrey, KT22 0BX

Status: Permanent

Salary: Band 8b, £65,241 - £75,441, per annum, wouldconsider band8c, (up to £78,450 per annum),dependent on experience, plus 5% London Fringe Allowance (capped at £2,118 per annum)

Hours: Full-time, 37.5 hoursper week, Monday - Friday, 09:00 - 16:30, hybrid, 2 days in office, 3 days at home

________________________________________________________________________________

About Us:

Combat Stress is the UKs leading mental health charity for veterans. For over a century weve been helping former service personnel deal with issues like post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), anxiety and depression. Today we provide specialist treatment and support for veterans from every service and conflict, focusing on those with complex mental health issues related to their military service. We provide a range of community, outpatient and residential mental health services to veterans with complex mental health problems. We provide servicesin-person, and viaphoneandonline.

About the role:

In this role, you will lead in creating a culture in which all aspects of clinical governance are embedded to ensure that our commitment to deliver effective high quality care is continuously maintained, providing a safe, effective and rewarding experience for veterans throughout the recovery journey. You will lead on our audits and complaints functions; by ensuring we remain compliant with statutory clinical regulations and ensuring that if veterans have cause to complain, their complaints are dealt with in a timely and professional way and the organisation learns from when things go wrong. The successful candidate will have excellent leadership skills enabling them to inspire, motivate and influence colleagues across the organisation. The ability to communicate effectively across all levels and disciplines is essential; as is the requirement to travel to our other sites.

We continually strive for excellence in all that we do and therefore this post requires a dynamic and inspirational leader who will take a pragmatic approach to the challenges that lie ahead. We are looking for a highly driven individual with credible and demonstrable experience in quality and clinical governance, who is passionate about the work Combat Stress undertakes. We would expect you have experience in working in mental health services whether in the NHS, voluntary or private sector.

This is an excellent opportunity for someone who wants to stand out and make a difference in a national role for a unique and high-profile mental health charity.

This role is subject to a DBS check.

As a healthcare environment, and for the health and wellbeing of our staff, veterans and visitors, we encourage everyone at Combat Stress especially professionals that are veteran facing to take up the offer to be fully vaccinated against Covid-19

What we offer:

You will work within a reputable charity that is constantly evolving to meet the needs of our veterans, that has a fantastic cause and a committed follower base.

Benefits:

30 days annual leave plus bank holidaysand an additional increase to 33 days annual leave upon 10 years continuous service, plus bank holidays.

Competitive stakeholder pension scheme - contributions matched up to 11% of salary

Discount shopping vouchers

Access to the Employee Assistance Programme

Flexible working

Access to Blue Light Card scheme

Death in Service Scheme

Job description

Job responsibilities

Based at our Head Office in Leatherhead, Surrey, KT22 0BX

Status: Permanent

Salary: Band 8b, £65,241 - £75,441, per annum, wouldconsider band8c, (up to £78,450 per annum),dependent on experience, plus 5% London Fringe Allowance (capped at £2,118 per annum)

Hours: Full-time, 37.5 hoursper week, Monday - Friday, 09:00 - 16:30, hybrid, 2 days in office, 3 days at home

________________________________________________________________________________

About Us:

Combat Stress is the UKs leading mental health charity for veterans. For over a century weve been helping former service personnel deal with issues like post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), anxiety and depression. Today we provide specialist treatment and support for veterans from every service and conflict, focusing on those with complex mental health issues related to their military service. We provide a range of community, outpatient and residential mental health services to veterans with complex mental health problems. We provide servicesin-person, and viaphoneandonline.

About the role:

In this role, you will lead in creating a culture in which all aspects of clinical governance are embedded to ensure that our commitment to deliver effective high quality care is continuously maintained, providing a safe, effective and rewarding experience for veterans throughout the recovery journey. You will lead on our audits and complaints functions; by ensuring we remain compliant with statutory clinical regulations and ensuring that if veterans have cause to complain, their complaints are dealt with in a timely and professional way and the organisation learns from when things go wrong. The successful candidate will have excellent leadership skills enabling them to inspire, motivate and influence colleagues across the organisation. The ability to communicate effectively across all levels and disciplines is essential; as is the requirement to travel to our other sites.

We continually strive for excellence in all that we do and therefore this post requires a dynamic and inspirational leader who will take a pragmatic approach to the challenges that lie ahead. We are looking for a highly driven individual with credible and demonstrable experience in quality and clinical governance, who is passionate about the work Combat Stress undertakes. We would expect you have experience in working in mental health services whether in the NHS, voluntary or private sector.

This is an excellent opportunity for someone who wants to stand out and make a difference in a national role for a unique and high-profile mental health charity.

This role is subject to a DBS check.

As a healthcare environment, and for the health and wellbeing of our staff, veterans and visitors, we encourage everyone at Combat Stress especially professionals that are veteran facing to take up the offer to be fully vaccinated against Covid-19

What we offer:

You will work within a reputable charity that is constantly evolving to meet the needs of our veterans, that has a fantastic cause and a committed follower base.

Benefits:

30 days annual leave plus bank holidaysand an additional increase to 33 days annual leave upon 10 years continuous service, plus bank holidays.

Competitive stakeholder pension scheme - contributions matched up to 11% of salary

Discount shopping vouchers

Access to the Employee Assistance Programme

Flexible working

Access to Blue Light Card scheme

Death in Service Scheme

Person Specification

Experience

Essential

  • Extensive experience of developing the quality and governance
  • to ensure high quality clinical services within a mental health
  • setting private, NHS or third sector
  • Strong understanding of complexities involved in leading a
  • dispersed team across a diverse workforce
  • Development of audit framework for clinical services delivery
  • Leadership of audits for clinical service delivery
  • Proven ability to produce innovative solutions to complex
  • problems in a healthcare/mental health/ military environment
  • Significant experience of effective oral and written
  • communication with internal and external audiences
  • In-depth experience of analysing data and audit findings to
  • understand key areas for improvement
  • Considerable experience of working under pressure from a
  • wide range of clinical and non-clinical sources to ensure that
  • quality of services is maintained

Desirable

  • Experience of clinical
  • governance across a
  • dispersed organisation
  • Experience of clinical
  • audit/effectiveness
  • Experience of mental health
  • services delivery

Qualifications

Essential

  • Educated to a Degree level or equivalent with senior
  • management experience within the healthcare sector
  • Registration with a relevant Professional Body e.g. HCPC.
  • Significant leadership and management experience in quality,
  • clinical governance, or patient safety
  • Audit experience
  • Strong understanding of regulatory frameworks (e.g. CQC)
  • Experience of digital health care records including their
  • analysis to understand trends

Desirable

  • Experience of working with
  • veterans or in trauma informed care settings
  • Experience in the charity or
  • voluntary sector
Person Specification

Experience

Essential

  • Extensive experience of developing the quality and governance
  • to ensure high quality clinical services within a mental health
  • setting private, NHS or third sector
  • Strong understanding of complexities involved in leading a
  • dispersed team across a diverse workforce
  • Development of audit framework for clinical services delivery
  • Leadership of audits for clinical service delivery
  • Proven ability to produce innovative solutions to complex
  • problems in a healthcare/mental health/ military environment
  • Significant experience of effective oral and written
  • communication with internal and external audiences
  • In-depth experience of analysing data and audit findings to
  • understand key areas for improvement
  • Considerable experience of working under pressure from a
  • wide range of clinical and non-clinical sources to ensure that
  • quality of services is maintained

Desirable

  • Experience of clinical
  • governance across a
  • dispersed organisation
  • Experience of clinical
  • audit/effectiveness
  • Experience of mental health
  • services delivery

Qualifications

Essential

  • Educated to a Degree level or equivalent with senior
  • management experience within the healthcare sector
  • Registration with a relevant Professional Body e.g. HCPC.
  • Significant leadership and management experience in quality,
  • clinical governance, or patient safety
  • Audit experience
  • Strong understanding of regulatory frameworks (e.g. CQC)
  • Experience of digital health care records including their
  • analysis to understand trends

Desirable

  • Experience of working with
  • veterans or in trauma informed care settings
  • Experience in the charity or
  • voluntary sector

Disclosure and Barring Service Check

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.

UK Registration

Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).

Additional information

Disclosure and Barring Service Check

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.

UK Registration

Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).

Employer details

Employer name

Combat Stress

Address

Tyrwhitt House

Oaklawn Road

Leatherhead

Surrey

KT22 0BX


Employer's website

https://www.combatstress.org.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)


Employer details

Employer name

Combat Stress

Address

Tyrwhitt House

Oaklawn Road

Leatherhead

Surrey

KT22 0BX


Employer's website

https://www.combatstress.org.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)


Employer contact details

For questions about the job, contact:

Details

Date posted

31 October 2025

Pay scheme

Other

Salary

£65,241 to £75,441 a year would consider band 8c, (up to £78,450 pa)

Contract

Permanent

Working pattern

Full-time, Flexible working

Reference number

B0373-25-0009

Job locations

Tyrwhitt House

Oaklawn Road

Leatherhead

Surrey

KT22 0BX


Supporting documents

Privacy notice

Combat Stress's privacy notice (opens in a new tab)