Head of Communications Nottingham, England
Job description
The EMAS Communications team is growing, which presents an exciting opportunity to join the team and make #EMAZING things happen!
The Head of Communications will be highly skilled, experienced and enthusiastic, working with the Assistant Director of Communications to lead the delivery and evaluation of effective communications and engagement designed to achieve the EMAS vision and new strategic ambitions. Therefore, contributing to the provision of outstanding, safe and compassionate patient care with improved outcomes, ensuring EMAS is an attractive employer of choice, whilst working in partnership to reduce health inequalities, improve health and wellbeing of our population, and to ensure sustainability.
The role guarantees variety eg geographical areas covered, tasks undertaken, and promises exposure to a variety of topics, people, and organisations.
The successful candidate will be an excellent team player, have extensive communications and people management experience, demonstrating excellent interpersonal and leadership skills; will be compassionate, committed to equality and diversity, be assertive and able to work under pressure whilst thinking strategically.
This role is based at home with a requirement to travel to EMAS sites and other locations to undertake work, including the ability to work out of hours on occasion, and taking part in the communications oncall rota. Therefore, a full driving licence and the ability to travel is essential.
The Communications team provides corporate internal and external communications, engagement and involvement services alongside media and digital communications for East Midlands Ambulance Service NHS Trust (EMAS).
Communicating and engaging with staff, volunteers, and a wide range of stakeholders across the East Midlands means the team works in a busy and challenging environment, where no two days are the same.
Working directly with the Assistant Director of Communications, the Head of Communications will lead the delivery and evaluation of efficient and effective communications and engagement at EMAS, as described in the job description.
The successful candidate will demonstrate excellent interpersonal and leadership skills which inspire, motivate and influence colleagues at all levels. They will be required to deliver to tight deadlines, taking an agile approach to respond to an ever-changing environment.
The Communications team sits within the EMAS Strategy and Transformation Directorate, with the Assistant Director of Communications reporting to the Deputy Director of Strategy.
The Communications team structure is contained within the job description. In brief, the Head of Communications will report to the Assistant Director of Communications, and will line manage four members of the Communications team. The team work from home, with a requirement to travel to EMAS bases and other locations time to time to support delivery of communications and engagement activity.
1) In line with the Communications Strategy and working directly with the Assistant Director of Communications the post holder will manage and lead the development, delivery and evaluation of a robust and effective Communications annual plan taking an innovative, creative, and proactive approach to ensure objectives are achieved, well-executed, and that EMAS’ direction of travel is understood and supported. This includes ensuring the successful delivery of associated communications and engagement plans supporting numerous, wide-ranging projects, campaigns, new services, business tender opportunities, corporate meetings eg Annual General Meeting, public consultations, award ceremonies, including those involving partner agencies.
2) As necessary, deputise for the Assistant Director of Communications, including advising members of the Trust Board, the Senior Leadership team, and other colleagues on strategic communications and engagement matters, and collaborating with the wider healthcare system and blue-light services at national, regional, and local forums.
3) Manage and support the Communications team, including adequate cover arrangements to accommodate holiday, sickness, and other requirements; conduct and complete appraisals for members of the team, including the production of personal development plans and personal objectives. Ensure the team complete statutory and mandatory training within required timescales.
4) Work with the Assistant Director of Communications to manage and act quickly in response to major, business continuity or critical incidents and high-level reputational issues which may involve delivery of highly complex and sensitive information via multiple channels to colleagues, a range of external stakeholders (national, regional, and locally), the public and media. Ensure prompt alert of contentious issues to the Assistant Director of Communications, relevant senior managers, including advice on steps to take. Analyse and interpret the likely reaction to the issue, produce lines to take, and work to support a wider understanding and balanced view, to counteract any negative or false claims.
5) Be responsible for major incident and business continuity training for the Communications team, leading on the provision of media and social media training for EMAS managers and colleagues, when required.
6) Manage and participate in the out-of-hours communications oncall rota, providing expert and timely advice to EMAS colleagues dealing with major, business continuity or crisis incidents and/or other significant events. This may involve attending any EMAS base or other Local Resilience Forum organised base outside of normal working hours, and at short notice.
7) Act as the organisation’s spokesperson where appropriate.
8) Oversee the management and growth of the EMAS website and intranet, and staff engagement online platform (Workplace by Meta), including leading the procurement of new sites when appropriate.
9) Develop communications mechanisms to highlight the innovative and progressive work carried out by the organisation. Ensure all communications and engagement resources, materials and assets created and shared are sustainable, factual, reflect EMAS’ vision and values, produced to high standards, following NHS and EMAS brand and corporate style, with high quality, relevant and timely information, ensuring patient dignity and confidentiality is always protected.
10) Make judgements that require analysis and interpretation of extremely complicated situations, where experts may challenge decisions made; this includes supporting the creation of responses to Freedom of Information requests, and work with others to deal with parliamentary questions and other high-profile requests.
11) Lead the development of constructive, collaborative, and effective relationships with a wide range of internal and external stakeholders, proactively providing advice and briefings to aid understanding.
12) Ensure that EMAS executes its corporate communications duty in relation to relevant legislation, eg public and internal consultations, Duty of Candour, Freedom of Information Act, General Data Protection Regulation, and our duty to involve people in service developments, and be aware of changes or updates to legislation that impacts on this role and the function of the Communications team.
13) Review and refresh relevant policies, eg EMAS Social Media Policy, and create new policies and/or standard operating procedures, as required.
14) Manage the budget for Communications team led projects, and lead on advertising for EMAS across all platforms and seek income generation opportunities to further support communications and engagement work.
15) Produce a range of reports and develop a communications and engagement dashboard to demonstrate Communications team performance to managers and teams, including learning, reflection, and areas to celebrate.
16) Full driving licence essential as is the ability to travel across the East Midlands and on occasions further afield.
17) Homeworking as set out under the terms of their contract, with a requirement to travel to EMAS sites and other locations time to time to undertake work.
18) Undertake any other duties which might reasonably be required, as appropriate with the post.
19) Responsible for managing own routine administration processes, including devising, and maintaining databases, and appropriate record keeping with version controlled documents and a clear audit trail for decisions and actions taken.
20) Work independently, being managed rather than supervised.
The duties and responsibilities of the post will be undertaken in accordance with the policies, procedures and practices of the Trust, which may be amended from time to time.
Patient Safety is a key priority for the Trust. It is your responsibility to ensure that you are fully compliant with EMAS policies and procedures in respect of patient safety, for example Risk Management, Infection Prevention and Control, Safeguarding children and vulnerable adults.
This job description is not intended to be an exhaustive list of duties and responsibilities, but to give an indication of the main areas of activity and involvement.
