Director of Nursing & Midwifery

Job overview

Lead one of the largest and most high-profile maternity and neonatal services in England, within a nationally significant specialist hospital group.

Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust (MFT) is one of the largest and most complex NHS organisations in the country, with over 30,000 staff and a turnover exceeding £3bn. We are seeking an exceptional nurse and midwife leader to join our Specialist Hospitals Clinical Group as Director of Nursing & Midwifery, providing professional leadership across Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital, Saint Mary’s Hospital and Manchester Royal Eye Hospital.

At the heart of this role is Saint Mary’s Hospital, one of the UK’s largest and most renowned maternity providers, supporting around 16,000 births each year and delivering regional and national specialist services, including one of the country’s largest neonatal intensive care units.

This is a rare opportunity to lead at scale and at pace — shaping services that have local impact and national reach. You will champion outstanding, women and family centred care, influence practice from ward to Board, and play a key role indriving quality, safety and innovation across one of the most complex and dynamic clinical portfolios in the NHS.

Main duties of the job

As Director of Nursing & Midwifery, you will be a core member of the Clinical Group Senior Leadership Team, working in close partnership within the clinical-operational triumvirate to lead a large and complex portfolio of services. You will hold professional accountability for nursing and midwifery practice across maternity, neonatal, gynaecology and specialist services, ensuring the highest standards of clinical quality, safety and patient experience.

You will be the most senior midwife in MFT, providing visible, credible and values-led leadership to a workforce delivering care at significant scale. From overseeing one of the UK’s largest maternity units to leading specialist regional and national services, you will ensure robust governance, regulatory compliance and a relentless focus on improvement and equity of outcomes.

Beyond organisational boundaries, you will act as a key system leader, shaping strategy and influencing across Greater Manchester and nationally. You will work with NHS England, the Integrated Care Board and the Local Maternity and Neonatal System to drive transformation, embed innovation and ensure services meet the needs of diverse communities now and in the future.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

On this page you will find a Role Profile which provides information about MFT and full details of the role. We recommend that you review this and refer to it as you complete your application. In order to apply, please submit a comprehensive CV along with a covering letter which sets out your interest in the role and encapsulates the aspects of your experience relevant to the required criteria. For more information, including details of how to apply, please visit www.odgers.com/96203