Our client, a leading not-for-profit health and social care provider, is seeking a Head of Quality, Safety & Service Improvement. This senior leadership role offers the chance to redefine and embed the organisation's quality culture following a recent restructuring.
With responsibility for quality, safety, risk management, governance, and compliance, the postholder will provide strategic direction, ensure adherence to regulatory standards (
HIQA, HSA),
and oversee the development of a comprehensive audit and reporting framework.
Key Responsibilities
* Lead the quality, safety, and governance agenda across the organisation, reporting into the CEO and Senior Leadership Team.
* Manage a specialist team (4–5 staff) while influencing and engaging 65 managers and over 800 staff organisation-wide.
* Oversee Health & Safety, Quality & Systems, and Risk/Compliance functions.
* Provide leadership on positive risk-taking – balancing safety with autonomy to support people in living fuller lives.
* Drive the rollout of major organisational projects, including:
* ERP System (OneTouch):
ensure successful integration of audit data into new organisation-wide data system.
* Viclarity Internal Audit System:
embed consistent use across services, supporting compliance with HIQA requirements.
* Development of a comprehensive audit programme across clinical and non-clinical services.
* Champion a culture of reflection, learning, and continuous quality improvement.
Candidate Profile
The ideal candidate will bring:
* Senior management experience in healthcare, social care, or disability services.
* Expertise in quality, safety, governance, and regulatory compliance (HIQA background highly valued).
* Proven project management skills, ideally with large system rollouts (
ERP, audit systems, etc.
).
* Strong leadership and emotional intelligence, with the ability to influence and embed cultural change across a large workforce.
* Exceptional communication and influencing skills to engage peers, regulators, and external stakeholders (
HSE, Board, regulators
).
* Relevant professional qualification (
Quality/Safety/Risk Management, Nursing, Social Care, or equivalent
).
Why This Role?
This is a highly visible, strategic role with direct impact on service quality for thousands of people. The successful candidate will:
* Shape and deliver a quality-first culture across a large, complex organisation.
* Gain exposure at CEO and Board level while leading a specialist function.
* Balance regulatory excellence with cultural transformation, embedding a progressive, person-centred approach.
* Lead high-profile projects that will modernise systems, improve transparency, and strengthen governance.