Director of Public Health

Job description

Job responsibilities

Public Health Newham is hosted in the Adults and Health Directorate alongside the Public Health Commissioning team. The Health and Wellbeing board strategy, 50 steps to a healthier borough, has offered the Public Health team multiple strategic opportunities to develop partnerships and relationships with council teams, NHS services and VCFS partners to understand need and deliver appropriately tailored services.

1. Job Context

Professional Accountability: To the Newham Health and Wellbeing Board, the Chief Executive (especially when acting as Statutory Chief Officer), and the Secretary of State for Health via the Chief Medical Officer.

Managerial Accountability: To the Corporate Director for Adults and Health, London Borough of Newham.

Role Details: Full-time, based in Newham. The postholder is the boroughs most senior public health leader, providing leadership and expert advice across the system and leading the public health team.

Statutory Responsibilities:

Responsible for the local authoritys public health functions.

Any of the Secretary of States public health protection or health improvement functions that s/he delegates to local authorities, either by arrangement or under regulations.

Protect the health of the local population, including ensuring appropriate plans are in place and collaborating with the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), the NHs and other partners.

Improve the health of the local population, including driving, leading and overseeing public health services and programmes, working with the NHS, Health and Wellbeing Board and other system partners.

Provide expert, statutory advice to the local authority and NHS

Designated as the Caldicott Guardian as mandated by the Department of Health Local Authority circular LAC (2002)2

Emergency preparedness, ensuring health considerations are integrated into emergency planning

Independent annual DPH report.

Any additional functions specified by regulation.

Additional Responsibilities:

Oversight of service agreements with LBN departments and NHS partners.

Leisure services

Welcome Newham service (refugee resettlement)

Public health intelligence and policy guidance.

Supporting organisational transformation, improvement of outcomes and delivery of prevention opportunities and integration in health and care.

Participation in the councils on-call rota.

Financial Leadership: Jointly responsible (with Corporate Director and Corporate Leadership Board) for public health grant allocation, ensuring value for money and alignment with the grant conditions.

Strategic Intelligence: Leads production analysis and communication of public health data, including JSNA and pharmaceutical needs assessment

Drive use of intelligence and insight for improvement of service outcomes and commissioning

To influence and act on the broad determinants, behaviours and environmental factors influencing health at a system, community and individual level to improve and promote the health of current and future generations. To be proactive in addressing health inequalities and prioritising the most vulnerable or disadvantaged groups in the population.

Flexible Leadership: Provides specialist input and leadership to council priorities requiring public health expertise.

2. Job Summary

The Director of Public Health (DPH) is Newhams senior public health leader, driving population health improvement and improved health equity through strategic leadership, partnership working, and evidence-based delivery in health improvement, health protection, and healthcare services.

They will:

Be a visible system leader across council and health structures.

Work closely with elected members, especially the Lead Member for Adults and Health.

Influence and lead service planning and the commissioning across LBN and the NHS.

Champion innovation

Lead the specialist public health team and ensure statutory duties are met.

Promote collaboration across sectors to improve health outcomes, health equity and planetary health.

Key Responsibilities

Key responsibilities below are intended to be a guide to the range and level of work expected of the post holder. This is not an exhaustive list of all tasks that may fall to the post holder and employees will be expected to carry out such other reasonable duties which may be required from time to time.

The postholder is expected to demonstrate high-level expertise in line with the Faculty of Public Health Competencies (Appendix 1) and the Person Specification (Appendix 2).

Overarching responsibilities

1

Support the Chief Executive and councillors in shaping and delivering the Councils strategic agenda.

2

Act as the Councils statutory chief officer and principal adviser on public health.

3

Provide strategic leadership across the Council and local public services, driving innovation, continuous improvement, and evidence-based change.

4

Commission and deliver high-quality, cost-effective public health services

5

Use public health resources creatively to improve population health and reduce inequalities.

6

Align local health and wellbeing priorities with national frameworks and report annually on population health to inform Council and partner actions.

7

Lead system-wide collaboration with NHS and other partners to prioritise prevention, health equity, and population health, including leading the development and delivery of Newhams health and wellbeing strategy.

8

Be a core member of the Newham Health and Wellbeing Board and Health and Care Partnership Board, contributing to plans for healthy, sustainable communities.

9

Collaborate with other Council leaders to develop integrated strategies that explicitly address public health and health equity.

10

Drive action on wider determinants of health.

11

Provide assurance of health protection plans.

12

Foster partnerships with communities, businesses, education, social care, and NHS to improve health outcomes and health equity.

13

Lead public health surveillance and maintain an accessible Joint Strategic Needs Assessment (JSNA).

14

Apply scientific principles to assess needs, evaluate interventions, and measure progress.

15

Engage in public health leadership and initiatives across North East London (NEL) and London

16

Act as Caldicott Guardian to the Council, maintaining competence and assuring information governance in line with Caldicott principles. The Caldicott Guardian acts as the conscience of the organisation and ensures the impartiality and independence of their advice.

Directorate-Specific Accountabilities

17

Advise the Council on its public health responsibilities.

18

Fulfil statutory public health duties, including the commissioning and delivery of all mandated services and other functions.

19

Work with UKHSA, NHS, and DHSC to protect communities from infectious diseases and environmental hazards

20

Support implementation of the Councils Emergency Preparedness, Resilience and Response (EPRR) responsibilities, ensuring public health are integrated and implemented.

21

Provide public health advice to the Integrated Care Board (the core offer) to support strategic health service commissioning.

22

Support the Health and Wellbeing Board in promoting service integration.

Resource Management

23

Manage the public health budget, including the ring-fenced Public Health Grant

Person Specification

Qualifications

Essential

• Qualifications
• The National Health Service (Appointment of Consultants) Regulations 1996 (legislation.gov.uk)
• In line with legislation, inclusion in the GMC Full and Specialist Register with a license to practice/GDC Specialist List or inclusion in the UK Public Health Register (UKPHR) for Public Health Specialists at the point of application.
• If included in the GMC Specialist Register/GDC Specialist List in a specialty other than public health medicine/dental public health, candidates must have equivalent training and/or appropriate experience of public health practice
• Public health specialty registrar applicants who are currently on the UK public health training program and not yet on the GMC Specialist Register, GDC Specialist List in dental public health or UKPHR must provide verifiable signed documentary evidence that they are within 6 months of gaining entry to a register at the date of interview. Applicants going through the portfolio registration routes (GMC or UKPHR) are not eligible to be shortlisted for interview until they are included on the register. The six-month rule does not apply to these portfolio route applicants.
• If an applicant is UK trained in Public Health, they must ALSO be a holder of a Certificate of Completion of Training (CCT), or be within six months of award of CCT by date of interview
• If an applicant is non-UK trained, they will be required to show evidence of equivalence to the UK CCT
• MFPH by examination, by exemption or by assessment, or equivalent

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

London Borough of Newham

Address

Building 1000, Newham Dockside

1000 Dockside Road

London

E16 2QU

Employer's website

https://www.newham.gov.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)