Head of Governance

Head of Governance

Care Santé Ltd  |  Permanent, Full Time 

Care Santé is a growing, values-led provider of domiciliary and extra care services, operating across 20+ services in multiple regions throughout England. We have grown significantly in recent years — and we are not stopping. With an ambitious acquisition programme underway and a clear strategic goal of achieving Outstanding CQC ratings across our services, we are now building the governance infrastructure to match our scale.

This is a newly created role at the heart of that ambition. As Head of Governance, you will bring together quality, compliance, training and health & safety under single, accountable leadership — providing Care Santé with the regulatory expertise and operational grip it needs to protect its people, its services and its reputation as it grows.

You will report directly to the Chief Operating Officer and lead a dedicated team of Quality Support Officers, a Quality Support & Training Manager and an Extra Care Wellbeing Lead. This is a role for someone who wants genuine scope, genuine influence and the chance to build something that lasts. Please note, you must have existing experience of both leading governance and managing a governance team. 

This is a broad, senior role. No two days will look the same, but at its core you will be:

•       Leading CQC readiness across all services — working through your regional QSMs to ensure every service is inspection-ready, not just when CQC knocks but as a matter of course

•       Acting as the organisation’s primary regulatory liaison — managing registration changes, supporting the Nominated Individual, and providing expert guidance on complex compliance matters

•       Setting the strategic direction for quality improvement — identifying trends, driving action and owning the frameworks that keep our services safe and continuously improving

•       Owning the governance policy and procedure suite — keeping it current, legally compliant and practically embedded at service level

•       Leading on safeguarding — acting as the organisational Safeguarding Lead and representing Care Santé at the most serious safeguarding forums

•       Holding strategic oversight of the training function — in partnership with the Quality Support & Training Manager, ensuring workforce competency and the implementation of our new Training Management System

•       Overseeing health & safety compliance — owning the policy framework, ensuring RIDDOR obligations are met and embedding a culture of learning from incidents

•       Reporting to the COO — gathering and preparing governance data and KPIs for Board papers, and leading monthly governance reviews with the COO

•       Shaping the organisation as we grow — providing quality input into new service mobilisations and acquired services as they come into the core business

We are looking for an experienced, credible governance professional who combines strong regulatory knowledge with the emotional intelligence to lead a team and influence across an organisation. Specifically, you will bring:

•       Significant experience in a senior quality, compliance or governance role within adult social care or a closely comparable regulated sector

•       A strong working knowledge of CQC legislation, regulation and inspection methodology — including Regulation 5, Fundamental Standards, and safeguarding frameworks

•       Demonstrable experience managing CQC and Local Authority inspections, including preparation, evidence-gathering and post-inspection action planning

•       Experience leading or managing multi-site teams, with the ability to set clear direction while empowering local ownership and accountability

•       Sound understanding of health & safety legislation in a care setting, including RIDDOR reporting obligations

•       Strong analytical skills — you are comfortable translating operational data into clear KPI reporting and Board-level insight

•       Excellent communication skills and the gravitas to represent Care Santé at regulatory and safeguarding meetings with confidence

•       A driver with own transport and the ability to travel regularly across our service network, with overnight stays where needed

•       A relevant professional qualification (e.g. NVQ Level 5, Registered Manager qualification or equivalent) is desirable but not essential where experience is strong

We are proud of what we have built and honest about where we are going. Care Santé is not a finished product — we are a growing organisation with real momentum, real ambition and a genuine commitment to doing things properly. This role matters to us. We are not hiring a compliance function to tick boxes; we are hiring a leader to help us become the kind of provider we want to be.

You will have direct access to the COO and genuine influence over how the organisation develops. Your work will be visible, valued and consequential. And you will be joining at exactly the right moment — early enough to shape the culture, late enough to have real infrastructure and resource behind you.

•       Remote working with flexibility — we want the right person, not the nearest one

•       Regular visits to our Head Office in Alfreton, Derbyshire (typically 1–2 days per fortnight) and travel to services

•       A senior role with genuine scope and a direct line to the COO

•       The chance to build a governance function from the ground up in a growing, values-led organisation