Deputy Director, Public Private Partnership Team

Job summary

The Private Finance Team oversees the Operational Private Finance Initiative (PFI) portfolio and delivers the new Public Private Partnership (PPP) programme for Neighbourhood Health Centres (NHCs), a key priority of the 10 Year Health Plan. We are a multidisciplinary team with financial, legal, policy and commercial expertise providing oversight and delivery of privately financed infrastructure projects.

The team is currently 10 people and will grow significantly as the NHC PPP Programme progresses.

The team has a crucial role in enabling the NHS to operate out of high-quality facilities financed and delivered by the Private Sector, ensuring it gets good value for money from them, and managing risks that could take funding away from frontline services. It oversees c.140 projects across NHS Trusts and Local Authorities, which spend £2.5bn a year on these contracts.

The team supports effective contract management, ensures value for money, assesses portfolio risk, shares best practice, supports expiry processes and distressed projects, and leads policy interventions. We engage with the private sector to ensure DHSC’s position is understood and to identify collaborative solutions, working closely with the National Infrastructure and Service Transformation Authority (NISTA) to align government policy.

The team is also responsible for developing and delivering the programme to deliver new neighbourhood health centres through private finance across the country by 2035. It is working with colleagues across DHSC and NHSE to develop and work up a pipeline of schemes, and with NISTA to develop the model; and will be leading market engagement, procurement, project close and contract management.

This work is of vital significance for the Department and for government as a whole as it involves taking the lessons from previous use of Private Finance and developing a new model for using private finance in social infrastructure.

The team also supports Ministers on new private finance opportunities and manages PQs/FOIs, ensuring accurate data on PFI performance.

Job description

The team is co‑led by two Deputy Directors: one focusing primarily on the PPP model for NHCs and one on the existing PFI portfolio, but as part of a collective endeavour with joint resourcing and cross-working. We are recruiting for the role focussed on the existing PFI portfolio, which directly manages a dedicated team of 4 supported by wider commercial specialists and NISTA Associates.

As Deputy Director, Private Finance Team, your key responsibilities will include:

• Co-lead the Private Finance Team and provide oversight of the PFI portfolio, managing team workload and allocating resources.
• Work with specialists to provide expert advice on accounting and balance sheet treatment of PFI projects.
• Engage with NHSE regional teams and Trusts to oversee performance and identify risks in existing projects.
• Oversee delivery of PFI contract management support and expiry pathways support, including identifying lessons learned.
• Oversee work to support best practice delivery, including NHS Forums for Trusts with PFI projects.
• Provide specific support to Trusts with distressed PFI projects, including engagement with the private sector market to identify routes forward.
• Manage reporting of operational portfolio performance, including to the PFI Portfolio Group (PPG), working with senior stakeholders to ensure updates are relevant.
• Oversee the continued development of data workstreams, including the use of different platforms to share data between DHSC, NHSE and Trusts to ensure the team manages risk appropriately.
• Provide advice to senior officials and Ministers on specific projects as well as the overall approach to managing the PFI portfolio.
• Oversight of team responses to PQs, FOIs and other briefing.
• Oversight of the joint team’s financial reporting and budgeting.
• Line management of a number of team members, both in the operational team and in the wider NHC PPP team.

Person specification

It is important through your CV and Statement of Suitability that you give evidence and examples of proven experience of each of the following

Essential criteria:

• Lead criteria - ability to lead and develop a high-performing multi-disciplinary team, working on complex commercial arrangements and managing significant financial and reputational risk to government.
• Understanding of financial accounting, reporting and balance sheet treatment for PFI projects, or ability to quickly develop this.
• Excellent verbal and oral communications skills, including oversight of public communications (PQs etc) in a politically contested area.
• Excellent stakeholder management skills, with a proven track record of delivering positive outcomes for government through relationships with private sector and NHS organisations as well as wider government (including HMT).

Desirable criteria

• Excellent project management skills, with a track record of establishing and overseeing successful delivery of complex projects and programmes.
• Understanding of the key challenges faced in the health and social care operational PFI portfolio
• Qualified accountant

Behaviours

We'll assess you against these behaviours during the selection process:

• Leadership
• Communicating and Influencing
• Changing and Improving
• Making Effective Decisions
• Working Together

Benefits

Alongside your salary of £81,000, Department of Health and Social Care contributes £23,465 towards you being a member of the Civil Service Defined Benefit Pension scheme. Find out what benefits a Civil Service Pension provides.

Whatever your role, we take your career and development seriously, and want to enable you to build a really successful career with the Department and wider Civil Service. It is crucial that our employees have the right skills to develop their careers and meet the challenges ahead, and you’ll benefit from regular performance and development reviews to ensure this development is ongoing. As a Civil Service employee, you’ll be entitled to a large range of benefits.

Equality, Diversity and Inclusion

The Civil Service values and supports all its employees.

We have strong and proactive staff networks, special leave policies for hospital appointments, reasonable adjustments put in place for those who need them, and diversity talent programmes to help everyone irrespective of background, to achieve their potential.

Pension

Your pension is a valuable part of your total reward package.

A competitive contributory pension scheme that you can enter as soon as you join where we will make a significant contribution to the cost of your pension; where your contributions come out of your salary before any tax is taken; and where your pension will continue to provide valuable benefits for you and your family if you are too ill to continue to work or die before you retire. Visit Civil Service Pension Scheme for more details.

Generous Annual Leave and Bank Holiday Allowance

25 days annual leave on entry, increasing on a sliding scale to 30 days after 5 years’ service. This is in addition to 8 public holidays.

This will be complemented by one further day paid privilege entitlement to mark the King’s Birthday.

Staff Wellbeing

Flexible working including part-time or time-term working and access to Flexible Working Schemes allowing you to vary your working day as long as you work your total hours.

Generous paid maternity and paternity leave which is notably more than the statutory minimum offered by many other employers.

Childcare benefits (policy for new employees as of 5 April 2018): The government has introduced the Tax-Free Childcare (TFC) scheme. Working parents can open an online childcare account and for every £8 they pay in, the government adds £2, up to a maximum of £2000 a year for each child or £4000 for a disabled child. Parents then use the funds to pay for registered childcare. Existing employees may be able to continue to claim childcare vouchers, so please check how the policy would work for you here.

Onsite facilities Opportunity to use onsite facilities including fitness centres and staff canteens (where applicable).

Things you need to know

Artificial intelligence

Artificial intelligence can be a useful tool to support your application, however, all examples and statements provided must be truthful, factually accurate and taken directly from your own experience. Where plagiarism has been identified (presenting the ideas and experiences of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own) applications may be withdrawn and internal candidates may be subject to disciplinary action. Please see our candidate guidance (opens in a new window) for more information on appropriate and inappropriate use.

Selection process details

This vacancy is using Success Profiles (opens in a new window), and will assess your Behaviours and Experience.

Application

To apply for this post, you will need to complete the online application process, outlined below. This should be completed no later than 23:55, Monday 15th June 2026.

1.A CV (Which is for information purposes only) setting out your career history, with key responsibilities and achievements. Please ensure you have provided reasons for any gaps within the last two years.

2.A Statement of Suitability (no longer than 1000 words) explaining how you consider your personal skills, qualities and experience provide evidence of your suitability for the role, with particular reference to the essential criteria in the person specification.

Applications will be sifted against personal statements. Please note that your CV is for information purposes only and will not be scored.

Failure to submit both documents will mean the panel only have limited information on which to assess your application against the criteria in the person specification.

As part of the online application process, you will be asked a number of diversity-related questions. If you do not wish to provide a declaration on any of the particular characteristics, you will have the option to select 'prefer not to say'. The information you provide when submitting your application will help us monitor our progress towards A Modern Civil Service.

Please note that we are unable to provide feedback to those candidates who are not shortlisted for an interview. Written feedback will be made available (on request) to those candidates who attend the interview.

If you are unable to apply online please contact

Selection Process

A panel chaired by Oliver Clarke – Director of Capital at NHS England will assess your application to select those demonstrating the best fit with the role by considering the evidence you have provided against the criteria set out in the ‘Person Specification’ section. Failure to address any or all of these may affect your application.

Oliver will be supported by a selection panel made up of other senior stakeholders for the role, full details of this panel will be shared with shortlisted candidates.

Alongside other departments, DHSC is committed to making the Civil Service more inclusive and recognises the value of diverse interview panels. Helping candidates, particularly those from diverse backgrounds, to feel comfortable and at ease during the interview process, to reduce bias and increase the objectiveness of decisions. In line with the Civil Service’s Inclusive Board initiative we aim to ensure that, as well as being gender diverse, DHSC’s interview panels for Senior Civil Service will include at least one panellist who is from an ethnic minority background and/or who has a physical or non-physical disability (which may not be visible).

Shortlist

You will receive an acknowledgment of your application through the online process.

The panel will select a shortlist of candidates whose applications best demonstrate suitability for the role, by considering the evidence provided against the essential criteria set out in the ‘Person Specification’.

Candidates applying under the Disability Confident Scheme and A Great Place to Work for Veterans Scheme who meet the minimum selection criteria in the job specification are guaranteed an interview.

The timeline further down this page indicates the date by which decisions are expected to be made, all candidates will be advised of the outcome as soon as possible thereafter, and we will advise on any delays.

Shortlisted candidates who attend an interview will also be offered verbal feedback from a member of the interview panel.

Assessment

If you are shortlisted, you will be asked to take part in a staff engagement exercise. This will not result in a pass or fail decision. Rather, it is designed to support the panel’s decision making and highlight areas for the panel to explore further at interview.

Full details of the assessment process will be made available to shortlisted candidates. All stages of the process may be held virtually.

Interview

You will be asked to attend a panel interview in order to have a more in-depth discussion of your previous experience and professional competence in relation to the criteria set out in the Person Specification.

Shortlisted candidates may be asked to prepare a 5-minute presentation at interview on a scenario issued to them ahead of their panel interview. This presentation will be designed to assess each candidate’s experience with briefing Ministers. Full details will be provided prior to the interview.

You will be asked a series of questions at interview around the following behaviours and the essential criteria earlier in this pack.

Behaviours:

1. Leadership
2. Communicating and influencing
3. Changing and Improving
4. Making Effective Decisions
5. Working Together

Interviews will take place online via Teams, full details of the interview format will be provided to shortlisted candidates prior to interview.

Expected Timeline

We will try and offer as much flexibility as we can, but it may not be possible to offer alternative dates for assessments or interviews. You are therefore asked to note the below timetable, exercising flexibility through the recruitment and selection process, in order to meet the dates given. Please note that these dates may be subject to change.

The anticipated timetable is as follows:

Advert Closing Date: 23:55 Monday 15th June 2026

Short List Meeting: Week commencing 29th June 2026

Assessments: Week commencing 13th July 2026

Final Interviews: Week commencing 20th July 2026

Feedback

Due to the anticipated volume of applications to this role, we are unable to offer feedback to those not selected for the shortlist.

Shortlisted candidates who attend an interview will be offered verbal feedback from a member of the interview panel.

Reserve List

Candidates who are deemed to be ‘appointable’ after interview but are not successfully appointed to the role will be held on a reserve list. This reserve list will be held for up to 12 months, and may be used to fill future suitable vacancies.

Reasonable Adjustment

We are committed to making reasonable adjustments in order to support disabled job applicants and ensure that you are not disadvantaged in the recruitment and assessment process.

If you feel that you may need a reasonable adjustment to be made, or you would like to discuss your requirements in more detail, please contact scscandidate.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk in the first instance.

Security Clearance

If successful you must hold, or be willing to obtain, security clearance to level. More information about the vetting process can be found here.

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.This role has a minimum assignment duration of 3 years. An assignment duration is the period of time a Senior Civil Servant is expected to remain in the same post to enable them to deliver on the agreed key business outcomes. The assignment duration also supports your career through building your depth of expertise.

As part of accepting this role you will be agreeing to the expected assignment duration set out above. This will not result in a contractual change to your terms and conditions. Please note this is an expectation only, it is not something which is written into your terms and conditions or indeed which the employing organisation or you are bound by. It will depend on your personal circumstances at a particular time and business needs, for example, would not preclude any absence like family friendly leave. It is nonetheless an important expectation, which is why we ask you to confirm you agree to the assignment duration set out above.

Security

Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record check.People working with government assets must complete baseline personnel security standard (opens in new window) checks.

Nationality requirements

This job is broadly open to the following groups:

• UK nationals
• nationals of the Republic of Ireland
• nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
• individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
• Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service

Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window)

Working for the Civil Service

The Civil Service Code (opens in a new window) sets out the standards of behaviour expected of civil servants.

We recruit by merit on the basis of fair and open competition, as outlined in the Civil Service Commission's recruitment principles (opens in a new window).The Civil Service embraces diversity and promotes equal opportunities. As such, we run a Disability Confident Scheme (DCS) for candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum selection criteria.The Civil Service also offers a Redeployment Interview Scheme to civil servants who are at risk of redundancy, and who meet the minimum requirements for the advertised vacancy.

Diversity and Inclusion

The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see theCivil Service People Plan (opens in a new window) and the Civil Service Diversity and Inclusion Strategy (opens in a new window).

Apply and further information

This vacancy is part of the Great Place to Work for Veterans (opens in a new window) initiative.Once this job has closed, the job advert will no longer be available. You may want to save a copy for your records.

Contact point for applicants

Job contact :

• Name : SCS Recruitment team
• Email : scscandidate.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk

Recruitment team

• Email : scscandidate.grs@cabinetoffice.gov.uk

Further information

If you feel your application has not been treated in accordance with the Recruitment Principles, and you wish to make a complaint, you should contact DHSCSCSrecruitment@dhsc.gov.uk in the first instance.

Attachments

461011 - DHSC Deputy Director, Public Private Partnership Team - Final Candidate Information Pack v.3 (1) (1) Opens in new window (pdf, 436kB)461011 - DD, Public Private Partnership Team - Accessibility Pack (1) Opens in new window (docx, 214kB)