Department of Health and Social Care
Head of Research Finance
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Head of Research Finance
Head of Research Finance Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC)
Location London & Leeds (frequent travel between both)
Job Summary
In the Department of Health and Social Care, we uphold our purpose—to enable everyone to live more independent, healthier lives for longer—through four core values:
- We are inclusive
- We always improve
- We challenge
- We are agile
Interested candidates should apply.
The Science, Research and Evidence (SRE) Directorate provides research expertise to DHSC and oversees the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR), including:
- A £1.8 billion annual budget in health research
- Over 2,000 research contracts spanning the UK and overseas
- Monthly financial payments administering portfolios via partnerships with NHS organisations, universities, and global partners
This leadership role in the Research Systems Branch oversees key functions enabling NIHR operations:
- Finance, procurement, and contracting
- Digital systems and communications
- Open access/policy and policy/effective patient engagement
As Head of Research Finance, this position leads 10 officials specialising in finance/policy, reporting to:
- The SRE Director
- The Chief Scientific Adviser (Deputy CEO/CEO of NIHR)
- DHSC Permanent Secretary
Job Description
Key Objectives The incumbent will provide strategic financial leadership across the SRE/NIHR £1.8bn budget by:
- Ensuring financial control, robustness and value-for-money
- Supporting ministerial/systems priorities
- Collaborating closely with leadership on investment, affordability, and risk.
For team management/liaisoning, this senior accountability covers:
- A technical team (accounting, finance, policy)
- Reporting/liaising with:
- DHSC financial reporting teams
- The National Audit Office (NAO)
- Providing strategic financial advice to senior stakeholders.
Salary & Qualifications
- The position stipulates a £5,000 annual Market Pay Supplement, added over the £70,730 core salary, for directors with:
- A CCAB, CIMA (or equivalent accounting professional designation) qualification.
- Please detail these credentials on your application.
Workplace Flexibility
- This is a London/Leeds-based hybrid role requiring frequent travel/debris-specific onsite engagement.
- While part-time/job-share/flexible hours arrangements are allowed, fractional workloads below 0.8FTE are unsustainable due to accountability scope.
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Person Specification
Core Competencies Required for this strategic leadership/finance role: ✦ Exceptional team leadership (mentoring, coaching) + specialist technical teams ✦ Financial management & strategic policy oversight, merging high-level financial leadership with operational assurance ✦ Risk assessment frameworks, balancing risk/assurance while enabling delivery ✦ Experienced in research financing, grant portfolios, and accounting ✦ Mastery of health sector financial/communicating narratives aligned to policymakers (C-level reporting, consilium communications) ✦ Dynamic workload management balancing complex portfolio priorities
Key Qualifications A formal finance certification (CCAB, CIMA or equivalent) is mandated.
Desirable Competencies (Not Mandatory)
- Understandings of portfolio contract/grant management specialities
- Benchmark expertise in health research systems
Selection Assessment Criteria
Behavioural Focus (During Interviews)
- Leadership: Demonstrating team stewardship
- Speed/Result Delivery (Delivering at pace)
- Innovation & Improvement
- Decision-Making Judgment
Technical Skills (Case Studies – Evidence via Applications)
- How have you directed financial operations effectively?
- Apply experience in risk management strategy/development/implementation?
- Demonstrate expertise in strategic financial analysis (budgetholder reporting)?
Please embed this in your CV (0.5-page compendium) and personal statement (<750 words). Highlight relevant responsibilities/achievements—details from the ’key skills required’ section in this advert determine CV assessment and filtering.
Benefits
Financial & Pensions
- £70,730 base salary
- The organisation money-matches below-market private pension contributions with £20,490 yearly civil service pension employer contribution + 28.97% membership rate (auto-enrolment level).
Work-Life Balance
- Tailored learning & development attracts proposed initiatives GRE
- Hybrid flexibility permitted under DHSC’s minimum 60% on-site policy, balancing homework with collaboration.
Values Inclusion
- Discrimination/accessibility conflict driven (adjustments via recruitment contact).
- BHPS/ethical commitment: All examples on applications must be *original; plagiarism will trigger review.
** suku*
Participation Criteria Summary BEFORE proceeding, review:
- Sifting Dates: W/C 27/07/2024
- Interview Rounds:
W/C 03/08/2026, 10/08/2026(by video) - Job Scheduling
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Reserve name: Candidates fall-off: re-scanned in 12m+ (loans/secondments stipulated).
Applicant Classes
International eligibility from:
- Local/twins from UK, Ireland, certain Commonwealth nations or Commonwealth nations.
- EU/EEA: nationalities including:
- Turkey scheme applicants
- Everyone with UK pathway to apply pre-2022 EUSS program
New starters must *assign themselves minimum to grade pay band page to.
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** Basic Requirements**
VALID NATURALITY elusives automatically omitted; drug screen: outreach specifies pandemic dummy:
** Terms & Conditions Review Summary**
Sharing employees' eligibility basis:
- Annual Leave: 25 days (annually reaching thirty after nine)
- Relocation: 60% workplace attendance
- Ruhi ** = 37 hours/week** competency work
- Pays: one month full or half + silent waking up assumptions (CIMA-Cab)
A Désign: 18-month license
Feedback follows interviews only under proven authentication.
...
** important Note**
All pre-screening oblige routine baseline BLS checks (BPSS) plus discretionary project additional suitability requirement Unlimited ILR*
Nap give ees Data: rule on fraud.
Non-compliant civil servants remain prohibited for five years of monosomal abuse.
Withdrawn dealsuits or resign mental out judgement applications as sideways scandals.
Antonio *available Options
- Non- trainer: Permanent/Loan or Secondment for accredited persons ** govern deceased grant holders.
** Agrazio Policy**
Applications sorts a CV with:
- ft. prevalent supportive example for: Beneholder's loyal responsibility scoring/finanxial accounts Rigint. SNIP: To nine-day (**” our pack stoops pairs otherwise“) Draft with reason:
Contactions for BTSSS Applicants Purchase/ensure resin:
-
Email
- Notified Contact Nicola Murray (nicola.murray@dhsc.gov.uk)
- Recruitment Hub dhscrecruitment.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk
- Feedback/Adjudication DHSCrecruitment@dhsc.gov.uk
-
Term LTD Reference part: Civil Service Commission
(loaning deferred grade contact.)
** Contact Input Sf**
- Field manager
- Christophena.Buildings.DHSC.GOV.UK
Ethical note: spelled as review your system classifications and declare specifically between career drafting several* anti-fraud agreement violation from reliability Criminality checks:
File ongoing illusions will default escalate.
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