Assistant Director, Engineering and Compliance

Essentia, part of Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust, is seeking an exceptional Assistant Director Engineering and Compliance to provide strategic leadership across engineering governance, infrastructure compliance and assurance. Reporting to the Executive Director, Infrastructure, this highly autonomous role will translate legal requirements and national policy into a deliverable strategy and effective operational practice across the Trust’s estate.

Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust is one of the country’s largest and busiest NHS trusts, comprising Guy’s, St Thomas’, Evelina London Children’s Hospital, Royal Brompton and Harefield, alongside community services in Lambeth and Southwark. Its clinical services are supported by a complex, operationally critical estate where safety, resilience and the patient experience are paramount.

Essentia is the Trust’s operational and infrastructure delivery group. Working across the Trust’s hospital, community and partner sites, it brings together engineering, estates, capital development, facilities management, digital technology and other essential services to maintain safe, resilient and high-performing healthcare environments.

The successful candidate will bring a proven record of developing and delivering organisation-wide engineering, infrastructure or building services strategies in large, complex and highly regulated environments. They will have led compliance, assurance and risk management functions, with responsibility for statutory compliance, governance frameworks, auditing and regulatory readiness, supported by strong knowledge of Health Technical Memoranda and wider healthcare engineering standards.

This appointment also requires the ability to lead major operational and cultural transformation, improving performance, compliance, value for money and service outcomes while remaining curious about innovation and emerging technologies. A collaborative, visible and authentic leader, the successful candidate will combine excellent interpersonal skills with commercial and financial acumen. They will hold relevant professional qualifications, such as an engineering degree and appropriate professional membership or Chartered Engineer status, and will have a demonstrable track record of leading and developing people.

To learn more about the role, view the Candidate Brochure at: Essentia - Assistant Director, Engineering Compliance

To arrange a confidential briefing discussion, please contact our retained search advisors Joe Glendon ([email protected]) or Connor Humpage ([email protected]) at MRG.

Applications should consist of a CV and supporting statement and can be sent to [email protected] and [email protected]

The closing date for applications is Sunday 25th October 2026.

Formal interviews will be held on Wednesday 18th November 2026.