Chair Designate

The Chair provides leadership to the Board, enabling constructive challenge, high standards of governance and effective decision‑making, both in and beyond the boardroom. We are keen to hear from candidates with strong chairing capability and significant board experience in complex organisations.

All Non‑Executive Directors are expected to:

• Share Delt’s values, objectives and work collaboratively towards “helping people do amazing things”
• Provide independent judgement and constructive challenge
• Scrutinise performance, finance, risk and controls
• Support strong governance and ethical standards
• Contribute to the development of Delt’s strategy and long‑term sustainability
• Act as general ambassadors for Delt with partners and stakeholders
• Identify, assess, and inform the Board of Directors of internal and external issues that affect Delt

In addition, all candidates applying for this position should be able to demonstrate their ability to:

• Provide strong, independent leadership to the board and across public–private boundaries: lead effective collaborative decision‑making, and balance commercial opportunity with public‑sector purpose in a complex and changing environment.
• Maintain a clear separation between governance and executive leadership, focusing the Chair role on board effectiveness, securing robust assurance on performance, risk and controls, and holding the executive to account without straying into operational decision‑making.
• Act as a credible ambassador for Delt, championing customer and public‑sector outcomes and building strong, trusted relationships with shareholders, partners and wider stakeholders.

The Chair is also responsible for overseeing and appraising the performance of the Chief Executive and other Board and Committee members.

The Chair Designate role will operate in parallel with the current Chair for an anticipated transition period of approximately six months before assuming the full Chair role.

£22,000 per annum. The Chair appointment is for an initial three-year term, renewable subject to performance and governance requirements.

Please refer to our How to Apply page for guidance and recommendations on arranging conversations with our Executive Research Partner, Chair and Chief Executive Officer before submitting your application.

Following these conversations, please submit a CV (maximum two pages) and a supporting statement that clearly identifies the Chair Designate role and includes responses to the four questions below (maximum 300 words per question).

1. What motivates you to apply for this board role and what about Delt resonates with you personally and professionally?
2. How would you contribute to Delt’s continued success and public impact?
3. Describe how you have or would maintain a clear separation between governance and executive leadership, while holding executives to account for performance, risk and assurance.
4. Describe how you have or would provide strong, independent board leadership and balance commercial opportunity with public‑sector purpose.

Please also provide contact details for two professional references. Referees should be people who can comment authoritatively on you as a person and as an employee or board member and will not be contacted without your prior consent.

Equality, diversity and inclusion are all integral to our organisational ethos and values. It is critically important to us that every Delt employee works in an inclusive environment which has a culture of mutual regard and respect. We welcome and encourage applications from people of all backgrounds.