National Centre for Child Health Technology
Commercial Director
Candidate pack
Summary of the role
Legacy Park Ltd (LPL), in partnership with Sheffield Children’s NHS Foundation Trust (Sheffield Children’s), is looking to recruit a Commercial Director for the new National Centre for Child Health Technology (NCCHT).
Sheffield Children’s is embarking on an innovative phase of development by investing in a world-leading National Centre for Child Health Technology, combining global clinical expertise with cutting-edge innovation, with the ambition to revolutionise children’s healthcare now and in the future.
The Commercial Director will be employed by LPL and seconded to Sheffield Children’s for 80% of their time. The role will focus on developing and delivering the commercial and finance strategies for the Centre, and (during the 20% of time working for LPL) on developing relationships across Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park.
As Commercial Director, you will play a key role in shaping the NCCHT’s financial and strategic direction. Your responsibilities will include forging partnerships, negotiating contracts with external organisations, and developing a robust commercial framework. You will ensure the NCCHT operates as a financially sustainable entity while effectively integrating within the NHS landscape.
Legacy Park Ltd and Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park
Legacy Park Ltd (LPL) is a partnership between:
• South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority
• Sheffield City Council
• Sheffield Hallam University
• Health Innovation Yorkshire and Humber
• NHS South Yorkshire Integrated Care Board
• Sheffield Children’s NHS Foundation Trust
• Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.
This collaboration was formed in 2015 to drive the development of Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park, an 80-acre site in the east of Sheffield, which now houses an innovation ecosystem focused around the Park’s four themes of sport, community, environment and economy.
South Yorkshire Integrated Care Board
The Park is home to:
World-class research and innovation assets in health, wellbeing and sport:
• National Centre for Sport & Exercise Medicine, Sheffield
• Advanced Wellbeing Research Centre (Sheffield Hallam University)
• Advanced Food Innovation Centre (Sheffield Hallam University)
• Medical Diagnostic Centre (Canon Medical Systems and LivingCare)
Elite and professional standard sports facilities:
• English Institute of Sport Sheffield (home to several Team GB Olympic and Paralympic teams)
• Ice Sheffield
• Canon Medical Arena (home to Sheffield Sharks and Sheffield Hatters basketball teams)
• Steel City Stadium (home to Sheffield Eagles rugby league and Barnsley Women’s football)
Education establishments:
• Oasis Academy – an all-through school for 1,200 children (aged 2–16) from the local community
• University Technical College (UTC) – a specialist academy and sixth form for 600 students (aged 14–18) focused on computing, health sciences and social care, and sports science.
The Park is a dynamic centre for learning and innovation, where students of all ages engage in sports, research, and collaboration. UTC students work alongside research and innovation organisations gaining valuable skills and handson training in healthcare. Beyond education, the Park plays a vital role in economic and social development, promoting better health outcomes for the local community while driving groundbreaking healthcare advancements on a global scale.
The National Centre for Child Health Technology will be a landmark project, introducing world-first facilities dedicated to pioneering innovation in healthcare for children and young people.
World-first facilities dedicated to pioneering innovation in healthcare
National Centre for Child Health Technology
Director
Sheffield Children’s NHS Foundation Trust
As one of only three stand-alone specialist children’s NHS trusts in the UK, Sheffield Children’s is proud to be part of the community and to have provided care to children, young people and their families across the country for the past 150 years.
Childhoods last a lifetime, and Sheffield Children’s purpose is to create healthier futures for children and young people. From supporting them with the best start in life, guiding early development and providing urgent or specialist treatment to investing in good mental health and wellbeing, Sheffield Children’s rightly expect children to get the best care available.
Throughout its history, Sheffield Children’s has embraced the latest health innovation and technologies and collaborated with partners in the National Institute of Health and Care Research, the wider field of health technologies, and Iocal universities and businesses to serve children and their families. Now is the time for them to look forward, build on these foundations and transform their services, making them fit for the future.
The National Centre for Child Health Technology
Sheffield Children’s is creating a worldclass facility dedicated to delivering a healthier future for children and young people which will open at the Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park in 2026.
Harnessing £24.2m of investment from Sheffield Children’s, the South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority, Sheffield City Council and the Sheffield Children’s Hospital Charity, this purpose-built world-leading research and technology centre will radically transform and advance the future of healthcare delivery.
The development of the NCCHT brings together Sheffield City Council, the South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority, local MPs, members of the Sheffield Health and Care Partnership, the integrated care system and academic partners, focused on a transformative approach to delivering healthcare services for children and young people. The NCCHT will act as a beacon of excellence for the NHS in developing new healthcare technologies for children.
Building on 150 years of experience, with a focus on innovation, the NCCHT is being established to put new healthcare technologies at the heart of service and care delivery.
Fully integrated with Sheffield Children’s existing healthcare provision, our ambition is to tackle the biggest health challenges children and young people face – obesity, mental health, disease prevention, disabilities, cancer, and wider maternal and child health inequalities.
The NCCHT will be expertly positioned to lead on the government’s three strategic shifts to improve patient outcomes and create an NHS fit for the future: moving care from hospitals to communities, making better use of technology, and focusing on preventing sickness not just treating it.
Equipped with state-of-the-art technologies and modern facilities, the building will be designed to provide the highest-quality care for children and young people, locally and nationally.
Bringing together experts from across academia, healthcare and industry, Sheffield Children’s aims to be the cornerstone of world-leading research and care development for children and young people.
The ambition of Sheffield Children’s is to put the voice and needs of children and young people at the heart of the work that is carried out at the NCCHT. There are already several NCCHT programmes and initiatives actively involving children and young people in local schools, youth organisations and community groups.
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This transformative development will enhance the city of Sheffield and the South Yorkshire region by creating new jobs and attracting investment into the local community, securing economic benefits for the future.
Description of the role
The Commercial Director will be responsible for developing and shaping the NCCHT in preparation for opening in 2026, and in the months following this. The role is initially set for 18 months, with the potential to extend. A review of the position and its requirements will take place after this time.
If appointed to the role, you will be employed by LPL and seconded to Sheffield Children’s for 80% of the time to focus on setting up the NCCHT. For the remaining 20% of the time, you will work with other organisations in the Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park network to develop relationships and partnership opportunities.
Responsibilities
For Sheffield Children’s:
a) Develop and refine the Centre’s commercial strategy. This will include:
- Building and showcasing the unique offer of the NCCHT in the UK including clinical expertise, access to groundbreaking technologies and wider innovation support to deliver the income stream.
- Reviewing the pricing strategy around the costs of rental and subscriptions.
- Conducting market testing to identify the most effective strategies for enhancing the Centre’s appeal to potential partners.
- Crafting a strategic framework for the Centre’s return on investment and intellectual property management, ensuring innovations – developed in collaboration with Sheffield Children’s clinicians and the Centre’s advanced facilities – are effectively leveraged for long-term impact and sustainability.
b) Identify potential partners that will support the NCCHT to achieve its mission, drawing on the strategic priorities set by the Executive Team and the Trust Board, and the financial and funding strategies laid out in the business case. This will include:
- Innovators who are interested in renting the physical space, including start-ups
- Innovators and corporates who are interested in being members of the virtual network and the wider innovation ecosystem of the Centre
- Researchers and academics
- Investors who are interested in working with the Centre
- Public sector funding organisations including the South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority
- Other organisations on Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park.
c) Develop relationships with potential partners and create interest in the NCCHT, promoting the NCCHT nationally and internationally as a potential partner.
d) Develop robust commercial arrangements with the confirmed partner organisations, including overseeing the development and negotiation of contractual arrangements with partners.
e) Promote the work of the Centre:
• Working with the Communications team, represent the Centre locally, regionally, nationally and internationally, promoting the work it is doing and raising the profile of the organisation.
f) Maximise the financial and health outcomes impact of the innovations developed in the Centre:
• Drive adoption of sales of new technologies and solutions to the wider children’s health and general healthcare community
• Assume an advisory, mentoring and business development role to increase presence and deployment of new technologies.
For Legacy Park Ltd:
g) Develop partnerships between the NCCHT and other organisations within the Sheffield Olympic Legacy Park network, and explore strategic opportunities to work together for mutual benefit.
Person specification
We are looking for a highly experienced senior professional with extensive expertise in the commercial sector and innovation. Ideally, the candidate will also have a strong background in healthcare and experience working within the NHS.
Experience
• Demonstrable experience of leading commercial and business functions for companies going through periods of innovation and change
• Knowledge of the child health environment globally
• 5+ years of healthcare industry experience including at a senior level
• 15+ years of technology and innovation experience including at a senior level
• Digital health experience
• Experience in developing and executing successful strategic change and commercialisation strategies
• Track record of working with large enterprise and start-up organisations
• MBA preferred.
Skills
• Evidence of demonstrable and rounded commercial leadership skills, e.g.:
- Strategic thinking
- Sales and marketing with a history of growing sales and revenue with sustained commercial partnerships
- Taking products to market and developing pricing strategies
- Successfully executing and managing projects
- Senior stakeholder engagement and influence
- International commercial experience
- Effective negotiator and deal closer with contracting experience
- Ability to think creatively and develop non-traditional solutions to complex business challenges
- High level of personal resilience
- Establishment of novel revenue streams.
• Patient engagement and public involvement expertise:
- Deep understanding of the significance of empowering both patients and parents in healthcare decision-making
- Proven experience in implementing user-centred design principles to enhance experiences and accessibility.
• Exceptional communication skills:
- Highly articulate and compelling verbal communicator, capable of engaging effectively at board level
- Skilled in persuasive storytelling, with confidence in public speaking, media interactions, and stage presentations
- Strong written communication abilities, with experience in drafting diverse documents, including board papers and strategic reports.
Personal attributes
• Proactive and results-oriented: not just an adviser but an active contributor, committed to developing and executing commercial strategies, with collaborative support from colleagues within the Trust
• Inspirational leadership: demonstrates empathetic, inclusive, and motivational leadership, fostering a positive and high-performance workplace culture
• Team development expertise: proven ability to build and lead high-performing teams, driving innovation and efficiency
• Adaptable and creative thinker: comfortable navigating complex and ambiguous environments, applying creativity and strategic insight to overcome challenges.
Summary Salary and pension
Salary – to be negotiated.
You will be automatically enrolled into the LPL pension scheme following satisfactory completion of your probationary period.
Employment arrangements
Flexible working arrangements will be considered, including part-time arrangements. The successful candidate will be expected to spend time in Sheffield on a regular basis, for face-to-face meetings and networking.
The post will be recruited and hosted by LPL, and seconded to Sheffield Children’s.
For HR and payment purposes the post will sit within LPL.
Your main contact within LPL, and the lead in addressing any issues relating to the Park, will be Dr Christopher Low, Chief Executive.
Your line manager will establish initial objectives when you begin in the role. A six-month probationary period will be in place: upon successful completion, ongoing progress against objectives will be regularly reviewed with your line manager.
Contacts
For further information, please contact:
John Williams
Chief Finance Officer and Deputy Chief Executive
Sheffield Children’s john.williams40@nhs.net
Professor Paul Dimitri
Clinical Director for Innovation and Child Health, Sheffield Children’s paul.dimitri@nhs.net
Alexandra Norrish
Development Director, Sheffield Children’s and Managing Director, Children’s Hospital Alliance alexandra.norrish1@nhs.net
Dr Christopher Low
Chief Executive, Legacy Park Ltd chris.low@olympiclegacypark.co.uk
How to apply
Please send a CV and covering letter to Claire Fretwell: claire.fretwell@olympiclegacypark.co.uk
The closing date for applications is Monday 30 June.
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