Job summary
Salary: Consultation Pay Scale
Champion Clinical Excellence and Shape the Future of Patient Care Across Mersey and West Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust.
Join #TeamMWL
#TeamMWL has a rare opportunity for a dynamic, strategic and values-led Chief Medical Officer to join our high-performing executive team and lead one of the NHS's most outstanding organisations through its next chapter of its clinical and strategic journey.
Mersey and West Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust (MWL) is committed to delivering 5-star patient care that is safe, evidence-based and compassionate through fostering a culture where our teams feel valued, supported and empowered to thrive.
We are immensely proud of our people, our culture, and our achievements which is driven by a shared commitment to innovation, clinical excellence and putting patients at the heart of everything we do.
The Person
MWL is seeking a strong clinical leader who has experience of operating at a very senior level within a complex health environment. You will have experience of;
- Senior-level leadership within a complex health system
- Gaining strong clinical credibility
- Delivering measurable improvements in safety, quality, and workforce development
- Working in collaboration with clinicians, regulators, and partners
- Addressing health inequalities, innovation, and sustainability
Main duties of the job
As the principal medical advisor to the Board you will:
- Lead the professional development and strategic direction of the MWL's medical workforce
- Act as the Executive lead for quality, clinical effectiveness, research & innovation, and patient safety
- Oversee robust clinical governance frameworks that ensure the highest standards of care
- Partner across Integrated Care Systems (ICSs) in Cheshire & Merseyside and Lancashire & South Cumbria to support integrated, equitable care
- Drive continuous improvement in line with our Quality Account objectives and NHS Long Term Plan priorities
- Promote information governance and patient confidentiality across the organisation
Further details of the role requirements are outlined in the Candidate Briefing Pack.
Please note, this recruitment process will include an assessment centre featuring a focus group exercise, presentation, and interview.
Assessment Centre: 22nd July 2025
About us
On the 1st July 2023 St Helens & Knowsley Teaching Hospitals and Southport & Ormskirk Hospitals came together as a single organisation under the name Mersey and West Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust. Our vision to provide 5-star patient care remains the Trust's primary objective, so that patients and their carers receive services that are safe, person-centred and responsive, aiming for positive outcomes every time. The mission and vision have remained consistent and embedded in the everyday working practices of staff throughout the Trust, where delivering 5-star patient care is recognised as everyone's responsibility.
The Trust is immensely proud of its achievements and some of these are listed below:-
- Outstanding rating awarded by the CQC, the best possible rating.This has remained unchanged following the formation of the new Trust in July 2023 and following recent maternity inspections.
- Awarded the prestigious HSJ Trust of the Year (2019)
- Top 100 places to work in the NHS (NHS Employers & HSJ)
- Achieved the best scores in the NHS, in the Patient-led Assessments of the Care Environment
- Awarded Freedom of the Borough in recognition for the Trust's work during the COVID-19 pandemic by St Helens, Knowsley and Sefton Councils
- Received the Queens Award for the Trust's Voluntary Service - the highest award a voluntary group can receive in the UK
Job description
Job responsibilities
Further details of the role requirements are outlined in the Candidate Briefing Pack.
Please note, this recruitment process will include an assessment centre featuring a focus group exercise, presentation, and interview.
Job description
Job responsibilities
Further details of the role requirements are outlined in the Candidate Briefing Pack.
Please note, this recruitment process will include an assessment centre featuring a focus group exercise, presentation, and interview.
Person Specification
Qualifications
Essential
- GMC or Public Health Registered (specialist register)
- Evidence of continuous professional and personal development in strategic leadership and management
- Experience of working within a secondary care setting
Knowledge & Experience
Essential
- Significant exposure and knowledge of the Medical Director/ Chief Medical Officer at Board level in a similarly large, complex organisation or system
- Experienced and inclusive leader with a strong commitment to leadership and experience of building high performance, cohesive teams based on an open, kind and inclusive culture
- Broad ranging experience in different medical leadership roles
- Extensive experience of working with NHS England, CQC and other professional regulatory regimes
- Extensive experience of working in collaboration with partners, across the healthcare systems to develop services which improve patient pathways and outcomes
- Demonstrable track record of achievement in clinical governance and patient safety agenda
- Sound understanding of current health issues, national policy and standards, as well as best practice locally, nationally and internationally
- Experience of clinical management including job planning, fitness to practice and appraisal
Skills, Personal Effectiveness and Behaviours
Essential
- Excellent communication skills and ability to work effectively and co-operatively with colleagues and other partners
- Ability to demonstrate a strong desire to improve and enhance the patient experience and services across the organisation and system to make a difference.
Person Specification
Qualifications
Essential
- GMC or Public Health Registered (specialist register)
- Evidence of continuous professional and personal development in strategic leadership and management
- Experience of working within a secondary care setting
Knowledge & Experience
Essential
- Significant exposure and knowledge of the Medical Director/ Chief Medical Officer at Board level in a similarly large, complex organisation or system
- Experienced and inclusive leader with a strong commitment to leadership and experience of building high performance, cohesive teams based on an open, kind and inclusive culture
- Broad ranging experience in different medical leadership roles
- Extensive experience of working with NHS England, CQC and other professional regulatory regimes
- Extensive experience of working in collaboration with partners, across the healthcare systems to develop services which improve patient pathways and outcomes
- Demonstrable track record of achievement in clinical governance and patient safety agenda
- Sound understanding of current health issues, national policy and standards, as well as best practice locally, nationally and internationally
- Experience of clinical management including job planning, fitness to practice and appraisal
Skills, Personal Effectiveness and Behaviours
Essential
- Excellent communication skills and ability to work effectively and co-operatively with colleagues and other partners
- Ability to demonstrate a strong desire to improve and enhance the patient experience and services across the organisation and system to make a difference.
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.
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).
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.
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).
UK Registration
Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see
NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).
