Leadership and improvement

Specialist programmes and consultancy services to advance leadership capability and embed improvement approaches across health and care.

Healthcare leadership focused on delivering sustainable change, that improves patient outcomes and financial performance, has never been more important. Our leadership and improvement suite has been designed to support leaders to meet the challenges that are facing today’s and tomorrow’s health and care system, to grow, drive change and successfully deliver essential reform.

Healthcare leaders are at the forefront of change and improvement is the framework for how change can happen. We believe that to transform and deliver sustainable improvement, the healthcare sector needs to move to a model that embeds cross sector innovation, peer-to-peer learning, and builds the agency of leaders to deliver.

How we can help you

Our range of bespoke leadership programmes, alongside our innovative improvement and peer learning solutions, places us in a unique position to support and empower leaders across all parts of the system, by providing a safe space to think, practical tools and the opportunity to connect on key challenges. We can help with:

Creating space and inspiration – giving leaders valuable thinking time and space

Connection – creating opportunities to work together on solutions and connect with others

Influencing the political and policy landscape – to support system work

Supporting scale – help with working through system-wide approaches to change

Upskilling leaders – supporting leaders to develop their improvement and leadership approaches

Shared learning – bringing together leaders from different geographies and sectors

Practical support and tools – how to approach and deliver improvement with our frameworks and resources

Balanced leadership - managing the short term while delivering long term vision

Scale and spread – best practice and case study sharing to help support influencing

Creating a culture – of continuous learning and improvement

We are uniquely placed to support and empower healthcare leaders with the skills, tools and space to develop their leadership and confidence in taking forward the improvement agenda within their own systems. We have:
- Extensive breadth, depth and understanding of the healthcare sector.
- Connections through our membership in all areas of health and care.
- Positive relationships at both local, regional and national level.
- Our reputation and long-term relationships with our members.
- Our influencing work can help to elevate profile and share best practice across systems.
- Independence, and providing a safe space for discussion and challenge.
- Experience, knowledge, tools and frameworks.
- Strong partnerships across the sector to bring in outside expertise in this space.
- Unique cross-system improvement framework to help you design and implement strategies to deliver large-scale change.
- Lasting relationships that enable us to connect and share collective insights and learning, and advocate for scaling impact.

Our leadership and improvement associates are vital to the success of our suite of leadership and improvement programmes. By matching them to the subject matter they are expert in, we are able to deliver this broad range of programmes, which include peer-to-peer learning, workshops and sharing interventions to support the development of:
- acute, community, integrated care system, mental health, neighbourhood, primary care and place leaders
- board development (whole boards and individuals)
- healthcare leaders in transition and change
- leaders of improvement and transformation
Interested in joining our growing numbers of associates?
Please contact louise.wheeler@nhsconfed.org
Meet the team
Find out more about our associates

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Our programmes and support

Leadership

In today’s complex healthcare environment, leaders across health and social care must think beyond traditional solutions. Our Systems Thinking and Leadership Development Programmes are designed to support leaders to develop their agency in navigating complexity, to connect, think differently, personally grow, drive innovation and create sustainable change.

We offer a mix of open programmes and direct commissions, as well as options for bespoke leadership solutions.

Connected Leadership 2025

Navigating your role in a time and context of rapid change

Health Inequalities NEDs Leadership Development Programme

Helping ICB chairs and non-executive directors to create the right culture, leadership and governance to tackle inequalities.

A typical Londoner neighbourhood with 2 storey houses on a long street with cars lining each side of the road in early morning.

Neighbourhood Health Community of Practice

Action learning sets for health and care leaders across the country, who play a role in the development of neighbourhood health in community care.

Tackling Inequalities Leadership Programme 2024/25

Practical support for EDI directors and senior responsible officers delivering strategic workforce and health equity programmes and interventions.

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Primary care leadership development

Supporting primary care leaders and leadership.

Diversity in Health and Care Partners Programme

Supporting health and care organisations to create more inclusive workplace cultures, where difference is welcomed and celebrated.

Stairs going upwards with bright arrow at the top

Aspiring Mental Health Nurse Directors Programme

A vital platform for leaders looking to step up into a mental health nurse director role.

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First-Time Chief Executives Programme

Supporting new provider trust chief executives with a peer support and learning programme.

Support for NHS communicators

Communications and engagement are crucial to high performing systems and organisations. We are supporting communicators across the NHS.

Digital ICS Programme

Supporting integrated care system leaders seize the digital opportunity and deliver their system ambitions.

Improvement

Improvement is a framework for how change happens. Our innovative improvement programmes connect leaders from across health and care, with peer learning, tools and resources and the chance to work together on system challenges. We can also support with bespoke improvement consultancy and work alongside you to deliver your aims.

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The Evolve Collaborative

A nationwide collaborative of healthcare leaders dedicated to improving patient outcomes, enabling you to take control of your organisation’s data and be equipped to find solutions.