Public Health Principal (Childrens)

Overview

In this role you will provide strategic leadership across the Children’s Public Health portfolio, shaping priorities to reduce health inequalities and improve outcomes for children from early years through adolescence. You will work with schools, NHS, social care, and voluntary partners to implement evidence-based interventions and enhance commissioning effectiveness. You’ll lead transformation across prevention, early intervention, and population health, ensuring child wellbeing informs local decision-making. This is an opportunity to drive systemic improvement in Reading with a strong emphasis on collaboration and impact.

Pay / Benefits

• Generous holiday entitlement
• Flexible working opportunities
• LGPS pension
• Life Assurance (3x salary)
• On-site nursery (Ofsted outstanding)
• Season Ticket Loan

Responsibilities

• Champion prevention and early intervention to improve outcomes and reduce demand on services
• Provide strategic public health leadership across children’s services and influence policy and programmes
• Strengthen partnership working with Families First, One Reading, and Children and Young People’s Partnership Board
• Lead and contribute to child health partnerships, including Berkshire Child Death Overview Panel
• Utilise public health intelligence to assess needs, identify inequalities, inform priorities and evaluate impact
• Drive service improvement and value-for-money in commissioning
• Build relationships across the local system and align stakeholders to shared ambitions for children and families
• Lead and develop people, fostering a skilled and collaborative public health workforce

Key requirements

• Relevant degree and postgraduate qualification in Public Health or equivalent experience
• Significant experience of public health practice related to children, young people and families
• Strong programme management, commissioning and partnership-working skills
• Experience using public health intelligence to drive improvements
• Excellent communication and leadership skills with the ability to influence diverse stakeholders
• Passion for tackling health inequalities and improving life chances for children and young people

• Strong communication
• Collaborative mindset
• Strategic thinking
• Public health intelligence and data-driven decision making
• Evidence-based programme design and evaluation
• Complex partnership development and governance

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