Chief Information Security Officer (CISO)
Job summary
The Chief Information Security Officer is a senior Group leadership role within Group Digital Services, accountable for leading a coherent, resilient and risk-based cyber security function across the UHL Group.
The postholder will provide strategic leadership for cyber security, digital assurance and security governance, ensuring that the Group's digital estate, information assets and critical services are protected in a way that supports safe, effective and sustainable care delivery. The role will operate within the group-wide Digital TOM, where cyber security, information governance and digital risk management are brought together through a unified assurance framework to reduce variability, strengthen resilience and ensure compliance with national standards.
Working across the UHL Group's multi-site environment, the postholder will translate national policy, strategic ambition and technical assurance requirements into practical controls, operating models and leadership behaviours that enable digitally enabled transformation. The role will support the UHL Group's five-year ambition to make best use of digital and data, contribute to the analogue-to-digital shift described in the national 10-year plan, and ensure that innovation, interoperability, patient trust and clinical safety are underpinned by robust cyber resilience, secure digital design and proportionate assurance.
Main duties of the job
The CISO will establish a Group-wide cyber and information governance framework for the UHL Group. You will shape cyber strategy, define risk appetite, influence investments, and interface directly with boards to embed security, resilience, and compliance into all digital service delivery. This includes delivering comprehensive cyber assurance, information governance, and digital risk management while ensuring strict compliance with DSPT, GDPR, and Cyber Essentials Plus.
To succeed, you must translate these expectations into a robust operational capability. This involves leading incident response, forensic activity, privacy assessments, access controls, and breach investigations, ensuring clear accountability across all sites. Crucially, you will need to align with the UHL Group Target Operating Model by balancing Group-wide security standardisation with practical, locally responsive solutions tailored to individual hospitals and services.
Ultimately, success depends on building trusted relationships with clinical and operational leaders so that security is viewed as a core enabler of safe care rather than a barrier. By protecting patient confidentiality and fostering trust, the role directly supports the UHL Group's five-year analogue-to-digital transformation, enabling the secure rollout of the single patient record, seamless data sharing, interoperability, and future AI adoption.
About us
NHS University Hospitals of Liverpool Group (UHL Group) was formed on 1 November 2024, born from a shared aim to improve the care we provide our communities.
We are one of the largest employers in region, with over 18,900 colleagues who are dedicated to caring for our communities - from birth and beyond.
For the 630,000 people across Merseyside, we are their local NHS. We provide general and emergency hospital care, alongside highly specialised regional services that extend to more than two million people in the North West.
We operate from five hospital sites:Aintree University Hospitalis the single receiving site for adult major trauma patients in Cheshire and Merseyside, and hosts a number of regional services including an award-winning stroke facility.Broadgreen Hospitalis home to several elective surgical, diagnostic and treatment services, together with specialist patient rehabilitation.Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospitalprovide specialist services incardiothoracic surgery,cardiology and respiratory medicine, both in the hospital and out in the community.Liverpool Women's Hospitalspecialises in the health of women and babies, delivering over 7,200 babies in the UK's largest single site maternity hospital each year. TheRoyal Liverpool University Hospital is the largest hospital in the country to provide inpatients with 100% single en-suite bedrooms and mainly focuses on complex planned care and specialist services.
Job description
Job responsibilities
Lead the development and delivery of the UHL Group cyber security and information governance strategy
Establish and maintain a Group-wide digital assurance and risk management framework
Ensure compliance with national and regulatory standards for data protection and cyber security
Provide strategic leadership on cyber risk, resilience and incident response
Oversee the management of cyber threats, vulnerabilities and security incidents
Embed security and assurance into all digital programmes and services
Lead the development of policies, standards and procedures for cyber security and information governance
Provide expert advice and assurance to senior leaders and governance forums
Develop organisational capability and culture in cyber security and data protection
Manage relationships with external regulators, partners and assurance bodies
Person Specification
Skills
- Ability to communicate highly complex, sensitive or contentious information to senior leaders and large stakeholder groups where barriers to acceptance may exist
- Advanced negotiation, influencing and relationship management skills in highly regulated and politically sensitive environments
- Ability to formulate long-term organisational strategies covering cyber security, information governance, assurance and resilience
- Highly developed analytical and judgement skills involving interpretation of complex technical, legal, financial and organisational information
- Board-level presentation and stakeholder engagement experience
- Strategic supplier management, assurance review and regulatory inspection experience
Qualifications
- Master's degree in Cyber Security, Information Security, Information Governance, Digital Leadership, Computer Science or related discipline, or demonstrable knowledge and operational experience to an equivalent level
- Advanced theoretical and practical specialist knowledge acquired through degree-level study, supplemented by postgraduate specialist training, management qualifications and substantial strategic leadership experience, or demonstrable knowledge and operational experience to an equivalent level
- CISSP, CISM, CRISC, ISO 27001 Lead Implementer, Data Protection Practitioner or equivalent professional accreditation
- Postgraduate qualification in Leadership, Governance, Risk Management, Organisational Development or related discipline
Experience
- Significant senior leadership experience managing multiple services relating to Cyber Security, Information Governance, Information Assurance or Digital Risk within a large and complex organisation
- Experience developing and implementing organisation-wide cyber security, information governance and assurance strategies
- Experience managing substantial budgets, specialist teams and complex supplier relationships across multiple service functions
- Experience analysing highly complex organisational, regulatory, technical and risk issues requiring evaluation of multiple options and strategic decision-making
- Experience operating within a large NHS organisation or integrated healthcare environment
- Experience leading enterprise=scale cyber resilience, assurance or regulatory compliance programmes
Knowledge
- Advanced knowledge of cyber security, information governance, digital assurance and organisational risk management
- Extensive knowledge of data protection, records management, confidentiality, cyber resilience, information assurance and regulatory compliance
- Knowledge of Microsoft 365, Azure, identity management, cloud security, security operations and enterprise technology governance
- Knowledge of digital transformation, assurance frameworks and security-by-design principles
- Knowledge of NHS information governance requirements and national digital policy
- Knowledge of enterprise architecture, operational resilience and technology assurance methodologies
Disclosure and Barring Service Check
This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.
Certificate of Sponsorship
Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website.
From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants.
Employer details
Employer name
Liverpool University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
Address
Liverpool Innovation Park
Edge Lane
Liverpool
L7 9NJ
United Kingdom
Employer's website
https://www.liverpoolft.nhs.uk/