We recently hosted a series of webinars designed to help prospective candidates better understand NHS NED opportunities and what it takes to succeed. Bringing together experienced NHS Chairs, Non-Executive Directors and sector leaders, these sessions offer practical insight into life on an NHS board, the realities of governance and assurance, and the skills and qualities organisations are seeking. They are also an opportunity to demystify the application process, hear first-hand experiences from those already serving on NHS boards, and help senior leaders decide whether an NHS NED appointment could be the right next step in their board career.
In the second webinar in our series, Keith Nurcombe, Richard Potter and Harbhajan Brar, alongside Robin Staveley, (GatenbySanderson’s Health Sector), explored what NHS boards are looking for from their Non-Executive Directors, how candidates can translate their experience into a compelling application and what they should expect from the role.
The discussion also looked at the NHS England NED Talent Pipeline, providing practical insight for senior leaders considering their first NHS Non-Executive Director appointment.
What Does an NHS Non-Executive Director Do?
The role of an NHS Non-Executive Director is strategic rather than operational. NEDs are there to provide independent oversight, scrutinise performance and constructively challenge executive colleagues. They bring experience and perspectives from outside the organisation to help the board test assumptions, manage risk and make effective decisions.
Richard Potter emphasised an important distinction for senior executives considering their first NED role: a Non-Executive Director is not there to provide operational answers or manage the executive team. Instead, NEDs need to know when and how to ask the right questions.
That does not mean stepping away from accountability. Non-Executive Directors share collective responsibility for board decisions and need a strong understanding of governance, risk, finance and organisational performance. For candidates moving from executive leadership into a first NED appointment, demonstrating that shift in mindset is essential.
What Skills Do NHS Boards Look for in a Non-Executive Director?
There is no single background or career path that makes someone suitable for an NHS Non-Executive Director role. As the panel discussed, NHS organisations recruit according to the particular challenges, priorities and skills gaps around their board table. Depending on the organisation, this could include experience in:
- Strategic leadership
- Finance and audit
- Digital transformation
- People and organisational development
- Governance and risk
- Commercial leadership
- Customer and service experience
- Large-scale organisational change
- Transformation and delivery
Previous NHS board experience is therefore not always essential.
What matters is whether candidates can demonstrate how their expertise translates into the context of a large, complex NHS organisation and how it would complement the experience already represented on the board.
Keith Nurcombe described NED recruitment as identifying the“missing pieces” within the overall board skills mix.
This makes researching the individual organisation particularly important. Rather than approaching every NHS NED vacancy in the same way, candidates should understand the specific trust, its strategic priorities and challenges, its communities and the expertise it needs from its next Non-Executive Director.
How Should You Demonstrate Your Experience in an NHS NED Application?
For prospective candidates, one of the key messages from the webinar was to focus on evidence, not simply job titles or sector experience.
NHS organisations can be highly complex, with significant workforces, budgets and responsibilities. Candidates therefore need to show experience of contributing strategically within an organisation of sufficient complexity.
That evidence might include:
- Influencing organisational strategy
- Providing oversight of significant financial decisions
- Leading or governing major transformation
- Working with complex stakeholder groups
- Navigating organisational risk
- Overseeing workforce or cultural change
- Operating within established governance frameworks
- Challenging senior leaders constructively
Candidates coming from entrepreneurial or commercial backgrounds can also bring valuable perspectives. For example, experience of digital transformation may help a board think differently about the pace of change, innovation or proportionate risk. However, the panel stressed the importance of combining this experience with an appreciation of why NHS governance and assurance processes exist.
The strongest applications will not simply argue that the NHS should operate more like the private sector. Instead, candidates should demonstrate how they can bring a different perspective while respecting the governance, safety and accountability requirements of healthcare organisations.
Why Board Fit Matters as Much as Individual Experience
Being an effective NHS NED is not only about individual expertise. Boards work collectively, and their strength comes from bringing together Non-Executive Directors with complementary skills, perspectives and experiences.
Richard Potter highlighted that candidates should be able to demonstrate both what they personally bring to the board and how they work effectively with others.
That means showing curiosity about colleagues’ expertise, listening to different viewpoints and knowing when another board member is better placed to lead a particular line of questioning.
The best NED candidates therefore combine independent thinking with collaborative leadership.
Understanding Patients, Staff and Local Communities
An NHS board cannot understand organisational performance from board papers alone.
Harbhajan Brar highlighted the importance of spending time with patients and staff and seeing how services operate on the frontline. This helps Non-Executive Directors connect strategic discussions and performance information with the reality experienced by the people using and delivering services.
Understanding the local community is equally important. NHS organisations operate within different geographies, populations and contexts. Candidates should therefore research not only the organisation’s strategy and financial position, but also the population it serves and the challenges affecting local healthcare.
This local knowledge can be particularly important when applying for NHS trust and foundation trust NED appointments.
How Much Time Does an NHS Non-Executive Director Role Require?
Becoming an NHS NED involves significantly more than attending board meetings. The panel discussed how the role can include:
- Reading and preparing for board and committee meetings
- Attending full board meetings
- Chairing or contributing to committees
- Meeting executive colleagues
- Visiting services
- Speaking with patients and staff
- Supporting senior appointments
- Participating in wider board development
Richard Potter described a nominal commitment of around four days per month in his experience, although the practical commitment can vary according to the organisation and responsibilities involved.
Prospective NEDs should therefore think carefully about whether they have the capacity and flexibility to contribute fully, particularly where meetings and other board activities take place during normal working hours. For executives currently working within the NHS, Harbhajan recommended discussing a potential NED appointment with their Chief Executive and management line, including the time required and the benefits that external board experience could bring back into their executive role.
What Is the NHS England NED Talent Pipeline?
A key focus of the webinar was the NHS England NED Talent Pipeline. Robin Staveley explained that the initiative is intended to build a pool of around 300 potential Non-Executive Director and Chair candidates across England, broadening the range of people who can be considered for future NHS board opportunities. It is aimed at people who are not currently NHS NEDs but who have the strategic, professional and community experience to consider these positions.
Candidates accepted into the pipeline may receive information about opportunities within their geographical area, support in preparing applications and opportunities to connect with NHS Chairs and Non-Executive Directors. Importantly, joining the talent pipeline does not mean being appointed to an NHS board. Individual NHS organisations will continue to run appointment processes when vacancies arise.
What Is the Talent Pipeline Application Process?
The webinar also helped clarify an important distinction between applying for the talent pipeline and applying for a live NHS NED vacancy.
Entry to the talent pipeline is a paper-based application process, rather than an appointment to a specific board position. For the current intake discussed during the webinar, candidates were required to submit a written application addressing three questions. There was no interview or role-play stage for entry into the pipeline, and applications were due to close on 30 September 2026.
Following the closing date, NHS England will review applications and determine the regional composition of the pool. Once someone is in the pipeline, they may subsequently be considered for relevant opportunities, but the NHS organisation recruiting a NED will still undertake its own selection and appointment process.
That subsequent process may involve interviews, behavioural assessment or practical exercises designed to understand how a candidate would operate around the board table.
Research the NHS Organisation Before You Apply
One of the simplest but most important pieces of advice from the session was: do your research.
The NHS should not be viewed as one uniform organisation. Different trusts and healthcare organisations have different cultures, service models, communities, board structures and strategic challenges. NHS group arrangements can also differ considerably.
Before applying for an NHS NED vacancy, candidates should understand:
- The organisation’s strategy and priorities
- Its financial and operational position
- The patients and communities it serves
- Its board and committee structure
- Its current Non-Executive Directors and their expertise
- Significant transformation programmes
- Key organisational risks and challenges
- What additional skills the board is seeking
This preparation will help candidates move beyond describing their career history and instead demonstrate why their particular experience is relevant to that particular NHS board.
Is an NHS Non-Executive Director Role Right for You?
An NHS NED appointment offers experienced leaders an opportunity to apply their skills in a different context and contribute to the governance of organisations that have a significant impact on patients, staff and communities.
But the panel’s discussion also highlighted the realities of the role. Effective NEDs need to be comfortable challenging constructively without becoming operational, working collectively while retaining independence, interpreting complex information and making time to understand what is happening beyond the boardroom.
For those considering their first appointment, the question is therefore not simply “Do I have NHS experience?” A better question is:
“What experience and perspective can I bring that this NHS board needs?”
Interested in Becoming an Non-Executive Director?
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