Role Summary
We are seeking an outstanding and values-driven Chief Operating Officer (COO) to join our Executive Team, where you will sit at the heart of how care is delivered today while shaping how it must evolve for the future.
Like many health and care organisations across the country, the Royal Devon is facing significant operational and financial pressures, but these do not define us. We are responding with ambition and pace for our patients and staff —strengthening how we work, making the changes we need to make, and embracing the NHS 10-year plan to deliver sustainable, high‑quality, patient‑focused care for our communities.
This is a compelling opportunity for an experienced COO or Deputy COO with the ambition, resilience and expertise to lead at scale, build strong partnerships across the system, inspire teams through change and make a lasting impact. In return, the Royal Devon offers a highly rewarding executive role alongside an exceptional quality of life in one of the UK’s most desirable locations.
About the Role
For more information on the Job Description and Responsibilities please click the link below.
More detail about the role
Working closely with a highly experienced and established Chief Executive, Chief Medical Officer and Chief Nursing Officer, you will form part of the Trust’s senior clinical and operational triumvirate and play a central role in shaping the Trust’s future.
You will bring strong strategic and operational leadership to deliver performance against NHS constitutional standards, regulatory requirements and local priorities. This includes leading improvements in access, patient flow and productivity, delivering elective recovery, driving urgent and emergency care performance, and ensuring operational resilience during periods of pressure and escalation.
A core priority will be the development and delivery of a consistent, high‑performing operating model across the Royal Devon. Working in close partnership with Care Group triumvirates, you will ensure strong governance, clear accountability and empowered clinical and managerial leadership. You will champion continuous improvement approaches, including GIRFT and the Trust’s 3Rs methodology, to enhance productivity, quality and patient experience.
As the Trust’s Accountable Officer for Emergency Preparedness, Resilience and Response (EPRR), you will lead the Trust’s response to major incidents and escalation, providing calm and decisive leadership in complex and high‑risk environments. You will also participate fully in the Executive Director on‑call rota.
This role offers a rare opportunity to shape a unified operating model across a large and complex Trust, influence system‑wide transformation, and lead with visibility, integrity and compassion in line with our values.
Why join the Royal Devon at a pivotal point in our journey?
We are focused firmly on our future, with major national funding secured, including:
- A new Surgical Hub at Heavitree, opening in early 2027
- Expansion of the Devon Nightingale Community Diagnostic Centre
- A new Community Diagnostic Centre at Bideford, opening in summer 2027
- New staff accommodation at North Devon District Hospital as part of the Future Hospital Programme, completing in autumn 2027
- An NHIR‑funded Clinical Research Centre at North Devon District Hospital, opening in 2027 to expand research capacity and improve patient outcomes
We are renowned for doing things differently. We have already achieved significant digitally innovative transformation:
- The first Trust nationally to deploy Epic in the community
- Supporting system partners to roll out Epic, making Devon the first county in the UK to have a single shared electronic patient record
- Piloting Ambient Voice Technology to improve efficiency and release clinical time
- Leading nationally in Acute Hospital at Home, with our Virtual Wards service collecting more remote data than any other Epic‑enabled hospital in Europe
We are a research‑active organisation, hosting, in partnership with the University of Exeter three NIHR research centres, alongside our own commercial research centre, to improve patient outcomes at the Royal Devon, in the UK and globally.
About you
To succeed in this role, you will be a substantive COO or Deputy COO from a large, multi‑site acute NHS trust, with experience of leading change in a turnaround or recovery context.
You are a visible, approachable and inclusive leader who models NHS values through integrity, fairness and compassion. You make clear, values‑led decisions that are positively experienced by staff, patients and partners.
Love where you live and work
Located in the South West of England, the Royal Devon sits between the landscapes of Exmoor and Dartmoor, with some of the UK’s most stunning coastlines on our doorstep. With excellent schools, low crime, vibrant communities and a Russell Group university in Exeter, Devon offers an outstanding quality of life.
https://rdehospital.pagetiger.com/new-recruitment-pack-coo/tbc
If you are ready to take on a high‑impact executive role where you can make a real difference, professionally and personally, we would love to hear from you.
Working Pattern: 37.5 hours, Monday - Friday
Interview Date: Wednesday 8th and Thursday 9th July 2026
For further information please contact: Emily Simpson, Executive and Specialist Recruitment Lead on 07958931414 emily.simpson21@nhs.net
As an inclusive employer, the Royal Devon values diversity and is committed to creating a culture of inclusivity where everyone can be themselves and reach their full potential. We believe in fostering a sense of belonging and actively encourage applications from individuals of all backgrounds, cultures, and abilities. We recognise the advantages of having a diverse workforce that reflects the communities we serve.
Preference will be given to staff with ‘Priority’ and 'At Risk' status including NHS At Risk staff throughout Devon.
The Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust reserves the right to close vacancy when sufficient applications have been received.
The Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust was established in April 2022, bringing together the expertise of both the Royal Devon and Exeter NHS Foundation Trust and Northern Devon Healthcare NHS Trust.
About Us
Stretching across Northern, Eastern and Mid Devon, we have a workforce of over 15,000 staff, making us the largest employer in Devon. Our core services, which we provide to more than 615,000 people, cover more than 2,000 square miles across Devon, while some of our specialist services cover the whole of the peninsula, extending our reach as far as Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly.
We deliver a wide range of emergency, specialist and general medical services through North Devon District Hospital and the Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital (Wonford). Alongside our two acute hospitals, we provide integrated health and social care services across a variety of settings, including community inpatient hospitals, outpatient clinics, and within people’s own homes. We also offer primary care services, a range of specialist community services, and Sexual Assault Referral Centres (SARC).
Our state-of-the-art equipment, leading technologies and strong links to local universities put us at the forefront of research and innovations, enabling us to provide world-class care to our local communities.
Our values are at the heart of everything we do, click here to find out more
It has never been a more exciting time to join the Royal Devon, as you will help to shape our services as we continue along our integration journey.
Benefits
Looking after you is important to us.
We strive to help our staff create a healthy work-life balance through flexible working schemes and our family friendly policies.
If you are starting out in the NHS, you’ll start with 27 days paid annual leave (plus bank holidays), rising to 33 days plus bank holidays.
You will benefit from access to our own comprehensive occupational health services, including counselling, onsite wellbeing activities and groups.
We will work together to maintain a culture that develops and supports you and your team.
This might include funding for a care certificate, a degree or leadership qualifications. Or it might include days off to study, engage in CPD or rotational placements to help you hone your skills. Wherever you are heading in the NHS, we will help you get there.
Salary is not the only financial benefit
You will have access to an extensive range of staff discounts on shopping, fitness and leisure options and you can spread the cost of technology and home appliance purchases from major retailers. You will also have access to other benefits including:
- National discount services such as the Blue Light Card and Health Service Discounts.
- Salary sacrifice options including our OFSTED rated outstanding nursery onsite at Exeter
- Car lease schemes.
- The NHS Pension scheme (one of the most generous and comprehensive in the UK).
- Cycle to work scheme
These are just a few of the benefits available – if the role is something you are interested in, we would love to hear from you.
