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Public Health Programme Lead

Surrey County Council

Woodhatch Place, 11 Cockshott Hill, Reigate RH2 8EF£55,486 - £60,898 per annumPermanent36 hours per weekCloses: 2026-10-09
Job Introduction This role has a starting salary of £55,486 per annum, for working 36 hours per week. We are looking for an experienced and motivated Public Health Programme Lead to join our Public Health team and help improve the health and wellbeing of our residents. The role will require hybrid working, the team is currently based in Woodhatch, Reigate. This role will transfer to the new East Surrey Authority from April 2027 as part of Local Government Reorganisation (LGR). Our Offer to You 26 days’ holiday, rising to 28 days after 2 years' service and 31 days after 5 years’ service (pro rated for part time opportunities) Option to buy up to 10 days of additional annual leave A generous local government salary related pension Up to 5 days of carer’s leave and 2 paid volunteering days per year Paternity, adoption and dependents leave An Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) to support health and wellbeing Learning and development hub where you can access a wealth of resources Wellbeing and lifestyle discounts including gym, travel, and shopping A chance to make a real difference to the lives of our residents About the Team The Surrey Public Health Team sits within the Adults, Wellbeing and Health Partnerships Directorate and works to improve health outcomes and reduce health inequalities. Surrey has a strong reputation for public health training and workforce development. As trainee and early-career programmes continue to grow, the team works closely with local, regional and national partners to support the development, retention and progression of the future public health workforce. About the Role This is an exciting opportunity to lead strategic public health programmes that address key health challenges, improve population health outcomes and reduce health inequalities. Working across health protection and/or health improvement, you will lead complex programmes, influence system-wide change and work collaboratively with a wide range of partners including local government, the NHS, Integrated Care Boards, UK Health Security Agency, voluntary and community organisations and local communities. You will play a key role in delivering evidence-based programmes that support prevention, early intervention and better outcomes for residents, ensuring that our public health priorities are translated into effective action. You will be responsible for the real time response to suicide in the East of the county and for collaborative development of the approach to Suicide Prevention. In this role you will be leading and delivering public health programmes and projects across health improvement and/or health protection. Using evidence, intelligence and population health data to identify need, inform priorities and evaluate impact. Providing specialist public health advice to colleagues, partners and senior decision-makers. Developing and maintaining effective partnerships across the health and care system and wider determinants of health. Managing programme budgets, commissioned services and performance frameworks. Contributing to health protection preparedness and supporting responses to public health incidents and emerging risks. Driving action to reduce health inequalities and improve outcomes for communities experiencing the greatest disadvantage. Your Application In order to be considered for shortlisting, your application will clearly evidence the following skills and align with our behaviours: Master’s in public health or relevant subject and/or registrations in public health or relevant subject. Experience of leading and delivering complex public health, prevention, or population health programmes across multiple organisations and sectors. Strong programme and project management skills, including the ability to plan, implement, monitor and evaluate strategic initiatives. Experience of using data, evidence and insight to identify need, inform decision-making, measure impact and drive service improvement. Proven ability to autonomously build effective partnerships and work collaboratively with health, local authority, community, voluntary and faith sector organisations to achieve shared outcomes. Strong leadership, communication and influencing skills, with the ability to engage stakeholders. To apply, we request that you submit a CV and a supporting statement which addresses the following 3 questions: Please describe a complex public health programme, project or service that you have led or managed. How did you identify priorities, plan and deliver the programme, manage performance and resources, and evaluate success? Please outline the outcomes achieved and any measurable impact on population health, service improvement or health inequalities. Please describe a situation where you used data, intelligence, research or community insight to identify a public health need and inform action. How did you use the evidence to shape an intervention, programme or service? What steps did you take to gather insights and respond to the insights generated? This role will involve responding to real-time surveillance information relating to suspected suicides, suicide clusters or other emerging public health concerns. Please describe an example where you have used surveillance, intelligence or emerging evidence to identify and respond to a potential public health risk. How did you work with partners, apply professional judgement, balance information governance and confidentiality requirements, and support an appropriate public health response? What was the outcome? Please use specific examples and outline your role, actions taken and the outcomes achieved. Before submitting your application, we recommend you read the job description and our Life at Surrey handbook to get an insight into working at Surrey. A basic DBS 'Disclosure and Barring Service' check for regulated activity (formerly known as CRB) will be required for this role. Contact us Please contact us for any questions relating to the role. This could be to discuss flexible working requests, transferable skills or any barriers to employment. For an informal discussion please contact Lucy Gate by e-mail at lucy.gate@surreycc.gov.uk . The job advert closes at 23:59 on 29/09/2026 with interviews planned for week commencing 5th October. We look forward to receiving your application, please click on the apply online button below to submit. Local Government Reorganisation Surrey County Council is undergoing Local Government Reorganisation and will move to new authorities in April 2027. This role is currently employed by Surrey County Council and will remain so until then. If you are employed by Surrey County Council on 1 April 2027, your employment will transfer under TUPE arrangements to one of the new councils, with your current terms and conditions protected. The provisional allocation for this post is East Surrey Council, subject to final confirmation through the wider transition process later this year. Please see more information here: Information for applicants on Local Government Reorganisation - Surrey County Council . Our Commitment We are a disability confident employer which means if you have shared a disability on your application form and have evidenced you meet the minimum shortlisting criteria, as displayed on the advert, we guarantee you an interview. Your skills and experience truly matter to us. From application to your first day, we’re committed to supporting you with any adjustments you need, we value inclusion and warmly welcome you to join and help build a workplace where everyone belongs.