Chief Operating Officer
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- Employer:
- Airedale NHS Foundation Trust
- Location:
- Keighley, West Yorkshire
- Salary:
- VSM - Attractive Salary
- Closing date:
- 9am Monday 18th May 2026
- Job Ref:
- GSe132192
Associated documents
Description
Airedale NHS Foundation Trust is a forward‑thinking, award‑winning organisation with a proud history of delivering outstanding hospital and community services. With a dedicated workforce of over 3,500 colleagues and 350 volunteers, we serve a diverse population of more than 200,000 people across West and North Yorkshire and East Lancashire. We are firmly rooted in our communities as an anchor institution, playing a vital role in local wellbeing, economic sustainability and social value.
We are ambitious about our future. We continue to strengthen our position as a leader in telehealth innovation, supporting almost 900 care homes nationally, and we are committed to becoming a carbon‑neutral hospital. Our strong partnerships across the West Yorkshire Health and Care Partnership, the West Yorkshire Association of Acute Trusts (WYAAT), and the Act as One programme in Bradford District and Craven are central to our strategy for integrated, sustainable, high‑quality care.
We are now seeking an exceptional Chief Operating Officer to help shape and deliver the next chapter of Airedale’s journey. As our new COO, you will be at the heart of delivering the Trust’s vision and strategic ambition. Building on strong foundations in quality, operational delivery and financial stewardship, you will provide visible, values‑driven leadership across all aspects of day‑to‑day operations, bringing pace, clarity and compassion to everything you do.
Working collaboratively with Executive colleagues and system partners, you will lead the operational performance of the Trust, ensuring consistently excellent care, outstanding patient experience, and delivery against national and local standards. You will play a central role in driving elective recovery, strengthening patient flow and identifying opportunities to transform pathways and models of care. You will support the shift from a traditional hospital‑centred model towards diversified, system‑wide services that deliver care in the right place, at the right time, and build strong, collaborative relationships across WYAAT, primary care, social care and the wider health and care system.
You will also inspire, develop and empower our operational leadership community, nurturing a culture of continuous improvement, innovation and accountability, and creating the conditions for teams to perform at their best.
You will be an accomplished operational leader with Director or Deputy Director level experience gained in a similarly complex health and care setting. A natural collaborator and strategic thinker, you will bring a strong track record of leading complex change and delivering sustained performance improvement, alongside the credibility and influencing skills needed to work effectively with clinically led teams. You will have a passion for innovation, transformation and new models of service delivery, a deep commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion, and the ability to role‑model our Right Care leadership behaviours, inspiring confidence, engagement and shared ownership at every level.
Most importantly, you will share our unwavering commitment to putting people first and delivering the right care, every time—keeping people happy, healthy and at home.
To learn more about us and this exceptional role, please visit our dedicated microsite via this link: https://anhsft.gs-attract.com/
For a confidential discussion, and details of how to apply, please contact our search partners at GatenbySanderson:
Eleanor Lawrence, Senior Researcher
E: eleanor.lawrence@gatenbysanderson.com
Emily Smith, Associate Consultant
E: emily.smith@gatenbysanderson.com
Emma Pickup, Partner
E: Emma.Pickup@gatenbysanderson.com
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How to Apply
- Please submit an up to date copy of your CV, along with a Supporting Statement that addresses the criteria set out in the person specification, using examples to demonstrate how you meet the essential requirements.
- A completed fit and proper person form – the template can be downloaded from the same place as the job description.
- Detail any employment or education gaps.
- You should provide the names, positions, organisations, and contact details for your referees, which must be your line managers and include your current and most recent employer. The referees should cover at least two roles as the minimum. Please note, should you be appointed, you will be required to provide references covering your last 6 years of employment as per the new NHS Fit and Proper Person regulations. Where there have been gaps in employment, this six year period will be extended accordingly. Referees will only be contacted for those proceeding to the final stage - we will always gain your permission before we contact referees.
- Let us know any difficulty you may have with the indicative timetable.
- Check that your contact details are correct before you submit.
Once you have submitted your application, you will receive an automated email to confirm that you have applied. If you do not receive this email, please make contact with GatenbySanderson.