Sandwell and West Birmingham NHS Trust

Deputy Chief Operating Officer

The closing date is 28 September 2025

Job summary

The Deputy Chief Operating Officer will play a pivotal leadership role in sustaining and accelerating this transformation.

We are looking for a senior leader with substantial operational management experience, a track record of delivering against national standards, and the ability to inspire teams to achieve excellence. You will be a visible, values-led leader, confident in decision-making, collaborative in style, and committed to continuous improvement.

If you are passionate about turning innovation into measurable results, eliminating inefficiency, and delivering high-quality care at pace and scale, this is your opportunity to lead services that change lives.

Main duties of the job

Working closely with the Chief Operating Officer (COO), you will:

Ensure the safe and effective day-to-day running of services.
Lead delivery of operational performance across urgent, planned, and cancer care.
Manage a defined portfolio including patient access, site management, and cancer services.
Drive integration of acute and community services.
Shape strategic service redesign in line with our long-term workforce and activity plans.
Represent the Trust at senior system and community forums, building strong partnerships.

About us

Be part of the team transforming health and care for our communities.

Sandwell and West Birmingham NHS Trust is an ambitious, forward-thinking integrated care organisation with a clear purpose: to improve the life chances and health outcomes of our local population. The opening of Midland Metropolitan University Hospital (MMUH) has been a catalyst for transformation--far more than a building, it embodies our intentional #MoreThanAHospital programme, driving healthcare innovation and regeneration in our communities.

Our three strategic objectives guide everything we do:

Our People - to cultivate and sustain happy, productive, and engaged staff.
Our Patients - to be good or outstanding in everything we do.
Our Population - to work seamlessly with our partners to improve lives.

We have redefined how and where care is delivered, shifting from traditional hospital-based care to community-led pathways. These changes began 18 months before MMUH opened, enabling us to:

Provide wraparound support to care homes--eliminating avoidable admissions.
Deliver Frailty Same Day Emergency Care (SDEC) and Virtual Wards at scale. And the results speak for themselves:
45% more patients discharged earlier from our short stay ward.
Non-elective length of stay for over-65s reduced by 1.5 days.
4-hour Emergency Access Standards up 11% in the past year.

Date posted

03 September 2025

Pay scheme

Agenda for change

Band

Band 9

Salary

£109,179 to £125,637 a year per annum

Contract

Permanent

Working pattern

Full-time

Reference number

381-CO-7435707

Job locations

SWB NHS Trust

Grove Lane

West Bromwich

B71 4HJ

Job description

Job responsibilities

Please see attached Job Description and Person Specification for details on the main duties and responsibilities.

Job description

Job responsibilities

Please see attached Job Description and Person Specification for details on the main duties and responsibilities.

Person Specification

Written Skills

Essential

Able to understand and present complex data and information

Experience

Essential

Substantial recent experience of Divisional management or Clinical Group level at a senior level in the NHS with, responsibility for operational matters, including clinical quality, staff management, budgetary responsibility, performance targets, waiting list management, discharge arrangements.
Experience of building relationships across a large organisation

Qualifications

Essential

Educated to degree level or equivalent.
Management qualification, MBA or equivalent

Desirable

Senior NHS Leadership Course

Person Specification

Written Skills

Essential

Able to understand and present complex data and information

Experience

Essential

Substantial recent experience of Divisional management or Clinical Group level at a senior level in the NHS with, responsibility for operational matters, including clinical quality, staff management, budgetary responsibility, performance targets, waiting list management, discharge arrangements.
Experience of building relationships across a large organisation

Qualifications

Essential

Educated to degree level or equivalent.
Management qualification, MBA or equivalent

Desirable

Senior NHS Leadership Course

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.

Certificate of Sponsorship

Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).

From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).

Additional information

Disclosure and Barring Service Check

Certificate of Sponsorship

Employer details

Employer name

Sandwell and West Birmingham NHS Trust

Address

SWB NHS Trust

Grove Lane

West Bromwich

B71 4HJ

Employer's website

https://www.swbh.nhs.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)

Employer details

Employer name

Sandwell and West Birmingham NHS Trust

Address

SWB NHS Trust

Grove Lane

West Bromwich

B71 4HJ

Employer's website

https://www.swbh.nhs.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)