Head of People

Job overview

Are you an experienced Strategic People/HR professional looking for a role where you can make a tangible impact to staff and the patients we serve?

The Head of People is a senior strategic HR Business Partnering role, supported by a Deputy Head of People, with responsibility for leading and delivering the People agenda across one or more Care Groups within the Health Board. Working closely with Executive Directors, leadership teams and stakeholders, you will align workforce strategy with organisational priorities and service delivery objectives. You will represent the Health Board at local, regional and national forums, influencing workforce developments across NHS Wales. Care Groups range in size, up to 3,000 employees.

Within this setting, you will provide strategic leadership across a broad portfolio of workforce matters, including organisational change, workforce planning, employee relations and employment legislation, working in partnership with senior leaders and Trade Union colleagues.

Most importantly, you'll be joining a supportive and collaborative team that values innovation, continuous improvement and teamwork. We offer flexible and hybrid working arrangements, a strong focus on wellbeing and development, and a team culture where colleagues are empowered to make a difference.

Main duties of the job

The successful candidate will bring significant senior level HR Business Partnering experience, together with the ability to influence, challenge and support leaders through change and transformation. You will also deputise for the Senior Head of People and Projects as required.

You will:

• Act as the strategic People lead for designated Care Groups, partnering with Executive Directors and senior leaders to shape and deliver workforce strategy.
• Lead workforce and organisational development plans that support service transformation, performance improvement and organisational objectives.
• Provide expert advice on complex workforce matters including organisational change, employee relations, workforce planning, talent management and employment legislation.
• Lead significant workforce transformation programmes, ensuring effective engagement and sustainable workforce solutions.
• Drive strategic workforce planning, succession planning and talent management initiatives.
• Build effective partnerships with Trade Union representatives and key stakeholders.
• Use workforce data and insight to inform decision-making and identify opportunities for improvement.
• Lead and contribute to Health Board-wide People initiatives and strategic projects.
• Provide leadership, coaching and development to the wider People team.
• Represent the Health Board at local, regional and national meetings, networks and forums.
• Contribute to the leadership and continuous development of the People Directorate.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

This role offers flexible and hybrid working between home, our head office in Abercynon alongside travel across Health Board sites. You’ll be joining a people team of nearly 150 members, supporting the delivery of the CTMUHB 2025-2030 People Plan: https://ctmuhb.nhs.wales/about-us/jobs-accordion/people-plan-2025-2030-pdf/

We encourage applicants to reach out to us for an informal discussion about this opportunity, contact details can be found in the ‘further details/informal visits contact’ section.

You will be able to find a full Job description and Person Specification attached within the supporting documents or please click “Apply now” to view in Trac.

The first interview for this role will be via teams week commencing 2nd November. Successful candidates will continue with a face to face competency interview and assessment, which are currently planned for the 16th November 2026.

This post is advertised as Welsh Desirable. Whilst the candidate doesn't need to have skills in Welsh, we'll consider it an advantage when short-listing and selecting candidates. This isn’t ‘fluency’, just Speaking & Listening skills at Level 3 (equivalent to CEFR B2) or above. Level 3 means being able to use Welsh in routine workplace situations, such as greeting customers, answering calls, responding to routine enquiries, providing information, arranging appointments and taking messages. Have a look at our ‘Croeso Candidate’ booklet below for more information. If you have these Welsh language skills, please apply.

Applicant requirements

You must have appropriate UK professional registration.

Welsh language skills are desirable