Chief Officer Commissioning & Governance

Job Title: Chief Officer - Commissioning and Governance

Salary: £112,369 - £123,394 (Pay award pending)

Contract: Permanent

Location: Merrion House

Closing Date: Midnight, 31st May 2026

Creating the conditions for excellent service delivery

Leeds is a city with bold ambition for children and families. We are proud of our strong values, our commitment to inclusion and our relentless focus on improving outcomes.

We are driven by our Leeds Ambitions , prioritising the actions that will have the most impact for people in our city over the next decade. Working together with partners, communities and families, our shared goal as Child Friendly Leeds is that every child and young person will have the best start in life and be supported to thrive.

To help lead this next phase of improvement, we are recruiting three exceptional Chief Officers to join our Children and Families Directorate. These are influential, system‑leading roles that will work collectively as part of a strong and values‑driven senior leadership team, shaping the future of services across the city.

Reporting to the Director of Children and Families, the Chief Officer for Commissioning & Governance will play a pivotal enabling role at the heart of the directorate. With responsibility for directorate‑wide assurance, financial sustainability, commissioning and governance, you will ensure Children and Families is equipped to deliver lasting improvement for the city.

Your impact

You will provide strategic leadership across commissioning, market management, learning infrastructure, workforce development, organisational change and safeguarding partnership governance. Working closely with fellow Chief Officers, you will ensure services are effectively resourced, supported and governed to deliver their priorities.

You will lead directorate‑wide transformation and programme governance, strengthening assurance, performance oversight and delivery capability. Partnering with corporate finance, HR, digital and strategy, you will ensure strong alignment and robust infrastructure that enables innovation and improvement.

You will oversee significant budgets, support financial sustainability (including Dedicated Schools Grant oversight), and ensure value for money, risk management and strong governance underpin everything we do. You will also play a central role in partnership governance, including oversight of the Leeds Safeguarding Children Partnership.

About you

You will be a senior leader with substantial experience in resources, governance, commissioning or organisational leadership within local government or a complex public sector environment. You will bring:

• A relevant degree qualification or substantial strategic leadership experience across cs, governance or infrastructure services
• A proven record of leading transformation and change at scale
• Excellent judgement and the ability to operate confidently in political environments
• Experience of working across organisational boundaries and with diverse partners
• Strong communication and influencing skills

You will be motivated by creating the conditions for excellent service delivery - and by helping Leeds deliver lasting value for children, families and communities.

To find out more and apply, visit Future Leeds or contact Zarvesha Rasool (07551 392696) or Anita Denton (07725 554802).

Closing date: Midnight, Sunday 31 ^st May 2026

Job Description

Directorate Children and Families

Service Area Commissioning & Governance

Job Title Chief Officer - Commissioning and Governance

Grade Dir 85%.

Conditions of service JNC Terms and Conditions

Reports to Director of Children and Families

Responsible for Heads of Service and senior managers across Commissioning, Market Management and Customer Services; Learning Infrastructure; Workforce Development and Change; and Safeguarding Partnership Business Management.

Job purpose Provide strategic leadership for the resources, governance and infrastructure of the Children and Families Directorate, acting as the enabling function that ensures services are well-resourced, effectively governed, and able to deliver sustainable improvement for children and families across the city. As a member of the Directorate Senior Leadership Team, the role holds equal accountability for the overall performance and sustainability of Children and Families services. At all times, the Chief Officer champions a positive safeguarding culture, ensuring compliance with relevant legislation and statutory guidance, including Working Together to Safeguard Children.

Corporate Leadership Responsibilities

• Drive system-wide improvement through commissioning, market management, workforce development, operational infrastructure, safeguarding partnership governance, and directorate-wide transformation.
• Ensure strong corporate alignment with finance, HR, digital and strategy, and provides strategic oversight of programme delivery and organisational improvement across the Directorate.
• Work collaboratively across the council, the Leeds Safeguarding Children Partnership, and wider stakeholders to ensure that the Directorate has the infrastructure, systems, and partnerships necessary to support high quality services and improved outcomes for children and young people.
• Provides expert strategic advice to elected Members, senior leaders and partners on matters relating to commissioning, governance, resource management, and organisational development and contributes to shaping the strategic direction of the Directorate.
• As a member of the Directorate's senior leadership team and are collectively responsible for supporting the Director of Children's Services in the strategic leadership, performance and delivery of the Directorate and the wider Council.
• Operate as corporate leaders, contributing to the development and delivery of whole-council priorities and working collaboratively across services and directorates to ensure the Council operates as a single, integrated organisation.

Chief Officers will:

• Act as corporate leaders across the Council, contributing to cross-directorate initiatives, transformation programmes, organisational priorities and achieving the Leeds Ambitions.
• Work collaboratively with Directors, Chief Officers and senior leaders to ensure coherent and integrated service delivery.
• Lead and manage complex political and partnership relationships.
• Develop effective working relationships with elected Members, providing high-quality strategic advice to inform decision-making.
• Represent the Directorate and the Council in local, regional, and national partnerships.
• Contribute to the collective leadership of the Directorate, supporting the Director of Children's Services in delivering strategic priorities and statutory responsibilities.
• Deputise for the Director of Children's Services when required, providing senior leadership on politically sensitive or high-profile issues.
• System Leadership of Comissioning and Governance.
• Provide system leadership for the Directorate's resources, governance, and operational infrastructure functions.
• Act as the enabling function for the Directorate, ensuring services are effectively resourced, governed and supported to deliver improvement.
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