Associate Director of Fire & Governance

Job summary

The Associate Director of Governance and Fire is a key member of the Directorate, with responsibility for devising, implementing and then auditing governance to ensure the department is compliant with all legislative requirements across all disciplines within Estates, Facilities and Project delivery. This role, as the Fire Safety Advisor, acts as a focus for all fire safety matters in the organisation with accountability for fire safety matters reporting up to the Director of Estates and Facilities Management (Director with fire safety responsibility). This role is the expert in this discipline.

This role will lead and manage, strategically and operationally on business support for the department, ensuring the department is compliant with both external and internal governance and legal obligations. This will include:

1. Statutory compliance assurance
2. Quality assurance
3. Audit
4. Internal governance
5. Risk management

Main duties of the job

The Associate Director of Governance and Fire will take specific delegated responsibility for the implementation, monitoring and delivery of key quality and performance standards for all functions within the department.

The role will be instrumental in devising and implementing both recording and monitoring systems to ensure that the Trust is compliant with all relevant statutory and mandatory standards, together with relevant NHS and Trust policies, procedures and guidance, particularly Department of Health guidance for those HTM/HBNs applicable to the department. This will involve engagement with specialists within the department and external bodies including other Trusts.

This role is the departmental expert for governance and fire safety and therefore provides advice to both the Director of Estates and the Executive team.

About us

We are committed to being an inclusive and diverse employer. We strive to employ people who reflect the communities we serve and aim to create an inclusive culture where everyone can reach their full potential. We welcome applications from people of diverse backgrounds, perspectives and experiences to build on the progress we’ve achieved to make our Trust diverse and the best place to work.

Job description

Job responsibilities

Specific Responsibilities

Directorate Governance

Guide and advise managers and Associate Directors within the department on the requirements for measuring and implementing tools to measure performance and compliance.

Responsible for ensuring each service area reviews, updates and implements policies, procedures and risk assessments relevant to the service and in line with departmental standards/legislative requirements.

Ensure that strategies, operating policies and procedures comply with legal requirements, NHS protocols/codes of practice and Trust corporate policies (HTM, HBN etc).

Work at a system level with the ICS/B and other Trusts to develop and devise system-wide governance and management tools, to deliver a standard level of transparency to NHSe/i on compliance.

Lead on the monitoring, development and delivery of policies as appropriate to ensure the Trust has full coverage and develop new policies as required.

Work with service leads to identify gaps in governance and manage plans to ensure continuous improvement is in place to conclude outstanding items.

Devise reporting mechanisms to ensure all areas of the department can accurately report on both compliances and non-compliances. These mechanisms should be digitalised where possible.

Lead in the Care Quality Commission assurance process for the outcomes that relate to the department and to provide evidence in relation to the outcome standards.

Maintain the departmental risk register, ensuring it is truly reflective of departmental risks.

Undertake investigations of adverse events, and carry out root cause analysis with relevant managers and make recommendations to prevent future incidents.

Responsible for driving change within the department to ensure the service is fully compliant with regulation, legislation and guidance by implementing systems and processes to monitor and measure compliance and performance.

Identify, with the service lead, what regulations and guidance each service should be compliant with, then agree the methodology for recording compliance and devise the reporting thereof.

Implement a timetable for reporting throughout the department, to ensure reports are issued in a timely fashion.

Oversee the timely delivery of data that has to be submitted to external bodies such as ERIC, PAM etc., coordinating personnel within the department to deliver accurately and on time.

Person Specification

Education and Training

Essential

1. Master’s degree or demonstrable equivalent experience
2. Specialist Fire Safety Courses e.g. Fire Service College or NEBOSH National Certificate in Fire Safety and Risk Management and/or relevant Fire Service experience

Desirable

1. Member of the Institute of Fire Engineers/or relevant professional body.

Knowledge and Skills

Essential

1. Ability to analyse legislative requirements, including interpretation of H&S specifications to deliver a range of governance processes.
2. Demonstrable knowledge of Healthcare guidance, HTM’s, HBN’s and other industry-specific guidance.
3. Thorough working knowledge of all current legislation, NHS guidance and advice notes.
4. Professional knowledge of working in a large healthcare institution.
5. Ability to make judgements and apply provisions of highly complex legislation, Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 associated health and safety legislation, NHS HTM 05:01 Firecode documents and other associated fire guidance for the benefit of the Trust.

Desirable

1. Understanding of Fire Modelling and Fire Engineering techniques.
2. Knowledge of audit processes/Firecode/HTM and safety legislation.

Experience

Essential

1. Significant experience of Fire safety management providing expert advice and knowledge to the Trust Board and operational staff across departmental boundaries on fire safety, fire risk management, fire legislation and codes of practice and fire safety training.
2. Experience of working with Capital Projects team/contractors for new build or refurbishment projects.
3. Experience of working with external bodies such as Fire and Rescue Services.

Desirable

1. Experience of working in a complex clinical environment in a similar role.

Disclosure and Barring Service Check

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.

Employer details

Employer name

Dartford and Gravesham NHS Trust
Address

Darent Valley Hospital

Darenth Wood Road

Dartford

DA2 8DA

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