Programme Director, Wellbeing and Public Health

A Career‑Defining Leadership Opportunity

Essex is entering a pivotal period of transformation and seeking an outstanding senior leader to shape and deliver a complex, high‑impact programme of change across Essex County Council and three North East Essex councils. As Programme Director, Public Health and Wellbeing, you will play a central role in redefining the future of wellbeing, public health and community services across Greater Essex.

This is a unique opportunity for an experienced executive who excels in navigating complexity, driving multi‑agency collaboration, and delivering large‑scale, strategic transformation which improves outcomes for communities.

About the Role

Operating at the highest strategic levels, you will:

· Lead a portfolio of major transformation programmes with multi‑million pound benefit profiles, ensuring delivery to time, cost and quality.

· Deliver significant financial benefits across the portfolio, while shaping future spending decisions across multiple organisations.

· Provide visible system leadership across Greater Essex, cultivating influential partnerships with senior leaders in local government, the NHS, the ICB, universities, voluntary sector partners and national bodies.

· Translate national policy direction into strategic opportunity - anticipating shifts, shaping organisational response and securing alignment across multiple stakeholders.

· Use evidence, citizen insight and data‑driven intelligence to guide priorities, inform commissioning and support improved public health and wellbeing outcomes.

· Manage risk and interdependencies across high‑value, politically sensitive programmes, ensuring strong governance and accountability.

· Offer expert leadership and constructive challenge to elected members, senior officers and partner organisations to support the delivery of shared strategic ambitions.

· Lead and inspire multi‑disciplinary teams within a complex matrix environment, enabling high performance and cross‑organisational collaboration.

Your leadership will have significant influence on Essex’s future service model, strategic priorities and system‑wide investment decisions.

About You

As an experienced Executive Leader, you will bring:

· A Masters level qualification in Public Health or equivalent professional experience, alongside strong ongoing professional development.

· Substantial senior leadership experience within large, complex organisations, ideally spanning local government, the NHS or multi‑agency public systems.

· Deep understanding of statutory public health responsibilities and the wider national, regional and local policy landscape.

· A proven track record of delivering complex, cross‑organisational programmes requiring sophisticated stakeholder engagement and political fluency.

· Exceptional influencing skills, with the ability to challenge constructively and build credibility quickly with senior decision‑makers.

· Strong strategic judgement, resilience and the ability to lead confidently through ambiguity and change.

· Leadership behaviours which inspire, build high‑performing teams and foster a culture of collaboration and continuous improvement.

This is a role for a strategic thinker with the credibility and authority to operate across systems and shape long‑term transformation.

What We Offer

By joining Essex County Council, you will benefit from:

· A high‑impact leadership role with influence across multiple organisations and systems.

· The opportunity to shape the future of public health and wellbeing at scale.

· A culture that values innovation, collaboration and evidence‑led decision making.

· Flexible working and a generous benefits package, including local government pension.

Apply Now

If you are motivated by leading transformational change across complex systems, and by the opportunity to improve the health and wellbeing of communities across Greater Essex, we would be delighted to hear from you.

Click Apply to take the next step in your leadership journey.

For more information contact Sarah.Robison@essex.gov.uk

In February 2025, Greater Essex was accepted onto the Government’s devolution priority programme, which will see local authorities in Essex work towards establishing a Mayoral Combined County Authority by May 2026. You can read more about devolution and local government reorganisation (LGR) ) on our careers site

Essex County Council is proud to be a Disability Confident Leader. We’re committed to interview all disabled applicants who choose to apply under our Job Interview Scheme if they meet the minimum requirements of the job. Please speak to our Recruiters if you require any reasonable adjustments during the process. We’re also committed to interview all veterans and care leavers, who meet the minimum requirements of the role for which they are applying.

Once you’ve secured your role within Essex County Council you will receive many great employee benefits, including support for unpaid carers and flexible working arrangements to accommodate their needs.

At Essex County Council, we value integrity and ethical behaviour. We kindly ask that you embrace our code of conduct and the Nolan principles , including throughout the recruitment process. Your commitment to these standards helps us maintain a positive and respectful workplace for everyone.

As part of employment with Essex County Council (ECC) should your role require a DBS check you will be required to register with the DBS update service. The DBS update service ensures all registered DBS certificates are kept up to date and allows authorised parties to view the status of your certificate. This is an annual subscription, and you will be responsible for ensuring this is maintained. For further information on the DBS update service please go to https://www.gov.uk/dbs-update-service .

Essex County Council is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and vulnerable adults, and expects all employees and volunteers to share this commitment.

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