Chief Executive Officer, Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust

United Kingdom

Our Trust provides an extensive range of acute healthcare services from the three main hospital sites at Broomfield, Basildon and Southend.

We also carry out services at other smaller sites, such as Orsett Hospital, the St Andrew's Centre in Billericay which provides x-rays and blood tests, and Braintree Community Hospital where planned hip and knee surgery is carried out.

Dear Candidate
Thank you for your interest in the role of Chief Executive at Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust. This is a significant leadership role at a pivotal moment in the Trust’s development, and I appreciate the time and thought you will be giving to whether this opportunity aligns with your experience, values and appetite for challenge.
Mid and South Essex is one of the largest acute trusts in the NHS, serving around 1.5 million people and employing more than 17,000 colleagues across three main hospital sites and a range of community and specialist services. Our scale brings opportunity, but it also brings complexity. Like many large providers, we operate in a demanding environment shaped by workforce pressures, financial constraint, rising demand and persistent health inequalities. Our staff work hard every day to deliver care in these conditions, and their commitment to patients, learners and one another is one of the Trust’s greatest strengths.
The Trust has been through a difficult period and has had to focus on stabilisation: restoring grip, strengthening governance, and rebuilding confidence in how we lead and operate. Progress has been made, but we are clear-eyed about the work still ahead. This next phase is about moving from recovery to renewal: building sustainable improvement in quality, safety and performance, and strengthening our role as a learning organisation that develops, supports and retains the workforce of the future.
The Board is aligned on the Trust’s strategic direction and the need to maintain momentum in delivery. We are not seeking a wholesale reset. At the same time, we recognise that effective leadership requires judgement, and we would expect the incoming Chief Executive to bring their own perspective on how best to strengthen, sequence and embed the work already underway. The task is to build on progress, not to stall it: combining continuity of purpose with clarity of execution.
We have a clear strategic direction, developed with our staff and partners, which puts patients first, prioritises equity of access, strengthens local and integrated services, and invests in our people. Delivering this strategy will not be achieved through short-term fixes or heroic leadership. It will require disciplined execution, thoughtful sequencing of change, and a commitment to learning and continuous improvement, grounded in evidence and honest use of data.
Education and training are central to this ambition. As a major provider of undergraduate and postgraduate education, we have a responsibility to offer consistently high-quality learning environments for students, trainees and apprentices across all professions. We recognise that we need to do better in this area: improving the experience of learners, strengthening clinical supervision, and ensuring that education, service delivery and improvement reinforce rather than compete with one another. The Chief Executive will play a critical role in setting expectations, providing leadership and ensuring that education is treated as a core function of the Trust, not an adjunct.
As Chair, my responsibility is to ensure that the Board and Council of Governors provide effective stewardship of the organisation: setting clear expectations, maintaining strong governance, and fostering a culture of openness, respect and constructive challenge. I see the relationship between Chair and Chief Executive as a genuine partnership, built on trust, candour and mutual accountability. We will not always agree, but we must always be aligned on purpose, values and the long-term interests of patients, staff and the communities we serve.
We are seeking a Chief Executive who is experienced, grounded and calm under pressure, and who understands the realities of leading a large NHS provider in today’s context. You will need to balance operational grip with strategic foresight, to be visible and engaged with our workforce and learners, and to work collaboratively with system partners, regulators and education partners. Above all, you will need sound judgement: the ability to distinguish signal from noise, to make difficult decisions with integrity, and to stay focused on what will deliver lasting improvement rather than transient reassurance.
This role offers the opportunity to make a real and enduring difference: improving the quality and consistency of care, strengthening leadership, culture and education, and helping Mid and South Essex fulfil its potential as a high-performing, values-led Trust. If you are motivated by public service, committed to inclusive and compassionate leadership, and ready to take on a role of significant responsibility at scale, I would warmly encourage you to apply.
I look forward to meeting you during the process and to learning more about the perspective, experience and leadership you could bring to Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust.
Yours sincerely
Andy Wood
Chair
Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust
Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust is at a pivotal point in its journey. Serving a population of around 1.2 million people and employing more than 17,000 colleagues across three main acute hospital sites and a range of community and specialist services, the Trust plays a central role in improving health outcomes and reducing inequalities across mid and south Essex.
‍Like many large NHS providers, the Trust operates in a demanding national and local context, with sustained operational pressure and rising expectations. At the same time, there is a clear ambition to move beyond recovery and towards renewal: delivering consistently high-quality, equitable and compassionate care; strengthening leadership and accountability at every level; and creating an environment in which staff feel supported, valued and able to do their best work.
‍We are now seeking an exceptional Chief Executive to lead the Trust through this next phase. This is a complex and highly visible leadership role, operating at scale. It requires calm judgement, resilience and the ability to maintain grip on day-to-day performance, alongside the capacity to set a clear direction and build confidence in the future. For the right leader, it offers a rare opportunity to make a meaningful and lasting difference to services, culture and outcomes for a large and diverse population.
‍The Trust has a ten-year strategy, developed with staff and partners, which places patients first, prioritises equity of access, strengthens local and integrated services, and invests in people, learning and improvement. This is supported by a developing operating framework, including the Organising for Success Operating Model (OFSOM) and the One Team Improvement Plan (OTIP), which together describe how the organisation is strengthening leadership, governance, quality improvement and operational grip across its sites and services.
‍As Chief Executive, you will be responsible for leading this next stage of development: embedding the intent of this approach while bringing your own judgement, experience and leadership to how it is refined, sustained and owned over time. You will ensure that strategy, operating model and culture are aligned, and that improvement is driven consistently and transparently across the organisation.
‍Working in close partnership with the Chair and Board, you will act as Accounting Officer and hold executive accountability for performance, quality, finance and workforce. You will lead a large and experienced Executive team, setting clear expectations, fostering collective accountability, and creating the conditions for learning, improvement and innovation. You will support devolved clinical and operational leadership, strengthen ownership of performance and quality at every level, and ensure the Trust continues to build a robust quality learning system informed by evidence and data.
‍We are looking for a leader with substantial senior executive experience in a complex healthcare organisation. You will bring credibility with regulators and system partners, strong operational and financial acumen, and a track record of leading transformation while maintaining grip on delivery. You will be collaborative by instinct, inclusive in your leadership, and deeply committed to equality, diversity and inclusion.
Above all, we are seeking a Chief Executive who understands that sustainable improvement is achieved with and through people. You will be visible, approachable and values-led, creating the conditions in which staff feel supported, challenged and empowered to deliver excellent, compassionate and respectful care.
‍This is a significant leadership opportunity, working alongside a newly appointed Chair, an engaged Board and Council of Governors, and committed system partners, to shape the future of healthcare across mid and south Essex.
‍We are committed to increasing the diversity of our Board to better reflect the communities we serve and therefore particularly welcome applications from candidates from groups currently under-represented at Board level.
‍‍For a confidential discussion about this role, please contact Alumni Global, who are supporting the Trust with this appointment. Please get in touch with Thomas Patterson or Simon Green on 07970 339 151 or via thomas.patterson@alumniglobal.com.
Please click here to view and download this document
All applications must include:
• A full curriculum vitae/resume
• Quoting the relevant role reference number: A041562
• A covering letter highlighting the aspects of the job description and Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust that particularly attract you to the post (Microsoft Word document)
• Contact details for three referees, these will not be contacted without your permission. (References should validate a minimum period of six years employment)
• A completed Equal Opportunities Monitoring Form (which you will be redirected to once you have submitted your application) *
Right to work checks
If you are successfully shortlisted, our partner, Yoti, will contact you to complete an online right to work check. This is a quick and secure process, ensuring that all necessary legal requirements are met before proceeding further in the recruitment process.
*Monitoring
One of Alumni Global’s and Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust’s objectives is to ensure that its workforce is reflective of the local community and therefore we actively encourage applications from under-represented groups. So that we can successfully achieve these aims, while it is not mandatory we would encourage every applicant to complete the “Equal Opportunities Monitoring form” so that we can measure the effectiveness of our efforts. The Recruiting Manager does not have access to the Monitoring Information Sections of the application form at any stage of the process and the information provided will be kept entirely confidential.
For a confidential discussion on this role please contact:
Thomas Patterson, Managing Director on +44 797 033 91 51
Candidate adjustment
If you require any reasonable adjustments to be made as part of the recruitment process please can you advise us so that we can ensure this is accommodated.
Closing date: 20th February 2026
Stakeholder session: TBC
Final Interviews: 16th or 17th March 2026 - TBC
Please ensure you have made a note of the final interview date(s). We recommend that you bookmark this microsite, as any potential updates regarding the role will be posted online.