About the job

Summary

Obesity and poor diet accounts for around half of years of life lost and years lived with disability from all modifiable factors in England. The Deputy Director for New Strategy will play a critical role in setting the strategic direction for the Directorate’s programme of policy design, development and implementation within the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities (OHID).

The Diet, Obesity and Healthy Behaviours Directorate is responsible for the successful delivery of the Government’s strategy to tackle obesity and help adults and children to have better diets and be more physically active, helping them to live healthier lives and achieving our ambitions for obesity reduction by 2030. Leading a high performing team, the post holder will oversee the strategy, governance and strategic engagement functions for the Directorate.

The postholder will lead horizon scanning to develop new evidence and policies to support emerging government priorities on these issues. They will also connect those across government, leading our relationships with OGD’s as well as partners internationally and the sub-national level across the wider health system.

This team is also responsible for leading work to engage the Food Industry ahead of the publication of the Government’s Food Strategy and forthcoming Health Disparities White Paper. Leading, managing and influencing key stakeholders working in industry, particularly those working in healthy nutrition, increasing physical activity, food and drink production industries, will all be significant.

The postholder will have a key leadership role in supporting the development of the overarching vision and strategy for the Directorate and supporting the creation of a new, ambitious identity. There is a real opportunity as part of this new directorate to transform and embed new ways of working, rapidly adopt innovation as it evolves. You will work alongside two other Deputy Directors, one focused on policy delivery and the other the Chief Nutritionist, ensuring all of the Directorate’s work is underpinned by the best scientific evidence to improve health outcomes and reduce disparities. 

We are looking for a talented individual with a track record in strategic leadership, ideas generation, building high-performing teams, the ability to engage stakeholders at the most senior levels and with an understanding of the public health policy landscape

Job description

As Deputy Director, you will:

• Lead the Directorate strategy function, including horizon scanning to develop new evidence and policies to support emerging government priorities to improve diet, reduce obesity and promote health behaviours.

• Drive forward work to transform the food environment in order to allow the UK population to make healthier choices, ensuing that an effective level of engagement and partnership with industry is maintained

• Work alongside OGDs on cross cutting policies; in particular key partners in DfE, DCMS and DEFRA, especially on its Food Strategy White Paper.

• Ensure effective governance, reporting and accountability for relevant public health services and across Government.

• Build strong effective partnerships with industry, NGOs and other key stakeholders across the health and care system to support the Government’s policy objectives.

• Be a visible and inclusive leader and actively build an open and collaborative culture that empowers teams to deliver their best work in the Directorate and across OHID and wider DHSC.

• Finally, as one of the Department’s senior leaders, you will also be a visible role model for the Civil Service Leadership behaviours. These can be found in the Civil Service Leadership Statement. We expect all our senior leaders to be:

About the Role

o Inspiring – about our work and its future

o Confident – in our engagement with Others

o Empowering – to allow our teams to Deliver

Responsibilities

In order to be successful you must be able to demonstrate your skills and experience against the following criteria:

• Outstanding leadership skills, with a successful track record in setting a strategic vision and bringing together teams to deliver change.

• An ability to develop deliverable policy for the long term that takes account of the wider context and lessons from the past, fostering innovation and presenting options for ministers and senior stakeholders.

• Excellent communication, influencing and collaboration skills, with a proven ability to build highly effective relationships within a complex and highly scrutinised stakeholder environment.

• Astute political awareness, a clear understanding of Government priorities and the ability to understand the changing context, anticipate issues before they arise and set strategic direction.

• A strong focus on innovation, customer insight and service improvement.

• An ability to create an inclusive culture that supports teams to deliver their best work

Behaviours

We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:

• Changing and Improving
• Leadership
• Communicating and Influencing
• Working Together

Technical skills

We'll assess you against these technical skills during the selection process:

• Presentation

Benefits

• Learning and development tailored to your role

•An environment with flexible working options

• A culture encouraging inclusion and diversity

• A Civil Service pension