Clinical Adviser, to the alcohol and drug treatment division, leading on recovery – OHID. Part time 0.2 FTE

Contract Type

This role is being advertised on-a-2-year time-limited specialist fixed term appointment or secondment basis, part-time 0.2-FTE (one day per week) and a flexible approach to spreading this across the week has worked well for these roles in the past. Two years reflects the time-limited specialist secondment model used for these 0.2-FTE clinical adviser posts and maintains links with current clinical practice.

Candidates appointed on a secondment basis will retain their current terms and conditions

If preferable, Loan may also be available for existing Civil Servants and applicants from accredited NDPBs.

Prior agreement to be released on a loan basis one day a week must be obtained before commencing the application process.

The terms of the loan will be agreed between the home organisation, or the host department, and DHSC. This includes grade on return.

Job Summary

Clinical Adviser, to the alcohol and drug treatment division, leading on recovery is a senior role within the department and the post holder will have responsibility for providing specialist clinical and policy leadership in the area of alcohol and drug recovery. The job purpose is to lead, oversee, coordinate and deliver high quality, specialist clinical and policy leadership, advice and support to central government and to the alcohol and drug treatment and recovery system commissioned by local government as well as lived experience initiatives and recovery communities to drive improvements in recovery outcomes and reduction in health inequalities based on evidence and cost-effectiveness.

The job requires extensive specialist alcohol and drug recovery expertise, including up to date knowledge of research and evidence-based practice, to help bridge between policy, service delivery and academia. The role includes providing expert clinical advice on recovery, recovery support, peer support, recovery support services and lived experience initiatives including lived experience recovery organisations (LEROs) to the Alcohol and drug Policy, Evidence and Delivery Division, the wider department and other government departments as required, local authority public health teams and alcohol and drug treatment service providers.

The role will provide clinical leadership for their programmes and projects and advising on delivery of recovery projects, programmes, practice and emerging issues and opportunities throughout the alcohol and drug treatment and recovery system. The role will work with government officials to grow and promote the international and UK-specific evidence base for recovery-related interventions, drawing on their own research and clinical experience and existing networks across academia, lived experience initiatives and service provision.

SPECIALIST PRACTICE AND LEADERSHIP

• Play a lead role in developing national policy, strategy and programmes on alcohol and drug recovery, providing expert evidence-based clinical advice on recovery support, peer support, recovery support services and lived experience initiatives including LEROs to government officials and to the alcohol and drug treatment and recovery system.
• Provide national leadership for implementing improvements in quality and sustainability of the national alcohol and drug treatment and recovery system including recovery support, peer support, recovery support services and lived experience initiatives in line with national strategy.
• Contribute expert advice to ongoing, and guide commissioning of, relevant research, supporting the growth and promotion of international and UK-specific evidence for recovery support services, lived experience initiatives and recovery communities.
• Provide and interpret data, information and advice on evidence of best practice, effectiveness and the cost-effectiveness of recovery support services, lived experience initiatives and recovery communities.
• Meet regularly with service providers and commissioners of the alcohol and drug treatment and recovery system, providing expert advice on improving recovery support service and lived experience initiative sustainability, quality, implementing interventions, and addressing operational issues.
• Provide leadership on the development of national clinical and other guidelines for drug treatment and alcohol treatment and recovery.
• Review, lead, contribute to and advise on briefings and guidance developed by and with the alcohol and drug treatment and recovery team.
• Provide clinical leadership on programmes to support long-term recovery outcomes.
• Provide leadership on managing and communicating about how to support long-term recovery outcomes within government and to the wider health care system.
• Chair OHID and NHSE’s recovery-related roundtables, working and expert groups as required.
• Provide clinical advice to NHSE and other government departments on behalf of OHID on the recovery, recovery support services and lived experience initiatives.

INTELLIGENCE AND DATE

• Attend OHID’s commissioner and provider networks
• Advice on monitoring appropriate recovery-related interventions including (but not limited to) those reported to the National Alcohol and drug Treatment Monitoring System.
• Provide and interpret data, information and advice on evidence of best practice, effectiveness and the cost-effectiveness of recovery support services and lived experience initiatives.

PARTNERSHIPS AND COLLABORATIVE WORKING

• Develop and nurture key relationships with a wide range of individuals and stakeholders and maintain professional networks relevant to role.

Employ highly effective communication, negotiation and influencing skills to enable stakeholder relationships to deliver objectives.

Work regularly with service providers and commissioners of the alcohol and drug treatment and recovery system, livedexperience initiatives and recovery communities to improve quality and sustainability and address operational issues

Provide high-level advice to Ministers and DHSC officials on evidence and intelligence relating to alcohol and drug recovery and related interventions

Work with professional and other bodies to communicate the work of OHID on alcohol and drug recovery and identify areas for collaborative working

Contribute to roundtables, expert groups and working groups led by OHID and partner organisations

Lead discussions, managing and actively promoting relationships with a range of stakeholders across central and local government, public representatives, the NHS voluntary and independent sectors, recovery communities and lived experience initiatives.

Establish and maintain effective communications to ensure that external stakeholders are appropriately informed of OHID’s business and services, and vice versa.

Draw on positive relations and discussions with stakeholder networks particularly academia, lived experience initiatives and recovery communities to inform policy and implementation .

• Actively participate in and disseminate professional experiences/lessons learned through reports, internal and external presentations, electronic media, publications and participation in working groups.

COMMUNICATION AND KEY WORKING RELATIONSHIPS

Will develop working relationships and communicate regularly with a wide range of individuals, clinical and non-clinical, internal and external to OHID. This will include:

• Officials in the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities
• Officials in other government departments
• Officials and clinical leads in NHSE
• Lived experience initiatives including LEROs
• Recovery communities
• NICE
• NHS and 3rd sector alcohol and drug treatment and recovery service providers and commissioners
• Sector-specific umbrella bodies including the College of Lived Experience Recovery Organisations
• Mutual aid groups
• Directors of Public Health
• Specialist alcohol and drug treatment clinicians
• Specialist clinicians from other health and care specialisms
• Professional organisations
• Academic and research-based partners
• Voluntary and community sector organisations

PERSONAL AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

• Participate in organisational and professional appraisal and revalidation as appropriate.
• Pursue a programme of relevant CPD, including statutory and mandatory training undertake revalidation, audit or other measures required to remain on the professional register
• Practice in accordance with registered professional requirements where relevant
• Agree individual clinical / professional supervision or mentorship arrangements with line manager.
• Participate in national research projects, working together with other Directorates and Academic centres.
• The above is only an outline of the tasks, responsibilities and outcomes required of the role. You will carry out any other duties as may reasonably be required by and at the request of Alcohol and Drug Treatment and Recovery lead.
• The job description and person specification may be reviewed in accordance with the changing needs of OHID.

This job is broadly open to the following groups:

• UK nationals
• nationals of the Republic of Ireland
• nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities with settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS) (opens in a new window)
• nationals of the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein and family members of those nationalities who have made a valid application for settled or pre-settled status under the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
• individuals with limited leave to remain or indefinite leave to remain who were eligible to apply for EUSS on or before 31 December 2020
• Turkish nationals, and certain family members of Turkish nationals, who have accrued the right to work in the Civil Service

Further information on nationality requirements (opens in a new window)

Application Process

To apply for this post, you will need to email the following documents to dhscscsrecruitment@dhsc.gov.uk no later than 23:55 Monday 21st September 2026.

• A CV setting out your career history, with key responsibilities and achievements. Please ensure you have provided reasons for any gaps within the last two years. You must also include on your CV a list of the professional qualifications you hold as set out in the job advert / person specification.
• A Statement of Suitability (no more than 1000 words) explaining how you consider your personal skills, qualities and experience provide evidence of your suitability for the role, with particular reference to the essential criteria in the person specification (above).

Applications will be sifted against personal statements and CVs.

Failure to submit both documents will mean the panel only has limited information on which to assess your application against the criteria in the person specification.

As part of the online application process, you will be asked a number of diversity-related questions. If you do not wish to provide a declaration on any of the particular characteristics, you will have the option to select 'prefer not to say'. The information you provide when submitting your application will help us monitor our progress towards A Modern Civil Service.

Please note, we are unable to provide feedback to those candidates who are not shortlisted for an interview. Written feedback will be made available (on request) to those candidates who attend the interview.

If you are unable to apply online please contact dhscscsrecruitment@dhsc.gov.uk

Selection Process

A panel chaired by Peter Burkinshaw - Alcohol and drug Treatment and Recovery Lead, DHSC, will assess your application to select those demonstrating the best fit with the role by considering the evidence you have provided against the criteria set out in the ‘Person Specification’ section. Failure to address any or all of these may affect your application.

Peter will be supported by a selection panel made up of other senior stakeholders for the role, full details of this panel will be shared with shortlisted candidates.

Alongside other departments, DHSC is committed to making the Civil Service more inclusive and recognises the value of diverse interview panels. Helping candidates, particularly those from diverse backgrounds, to feel comfortable and at ease during the interview process, to reduce bias and increase the objectiveness of decisions. In line with the Civil Service’s Inclusive Board initiative we aim to ensure that, as well as being gender diverse, DHSC’s interview panels for Senior Civil Service will include at least one panellist who is from an ethnic minority background and/or who has a physical or non-physical disability (which may not be visible).

Shortlist

You will receive an acknowledgment of your application, by email.

The panel will select a shortlist of candidates whose applications best demonstrate suitability for the role, by considering the evidence provided against the essential criteria set out in the ‘Person Specification’.

Candidates applying under the Disability Confident Scheme and A Great Place to Work for Veterans Scheme who meet the minimum selection criteria in the job specification are guaranteed an interview.

The timeline later in this pack indicates the date by which decisions are expected to be made, all candidates will be advised of the outcome as soon as possible thereafter, and we will advise on any delays.

Shortlisted candidates who attend an interview will also be offered verbal feedback from a member of the interview panel.

Interview

You will be asked to attend a panel interview in order to have a more in-depth discussion of your previous experience and professional competence in relation to the criteria set out in the Person Specification.

Shortlisted candidates may be asked to prepare a 5-minute presentation at interview on a scenario issued to them ahead of their panel interview. This presentation will be designed to test your ability to translate specialist evidence into practical national policy and delivery advice and full details will be provided prior to the interview.

You will be asked a series of questions at interview around the following behaviours and the essential criteria earlier in this pack.

Behaviours:

• Leadership
• Communicating and influencing
• Working Together
• Seeing the Big Picture

Interviews will take place online via Teams, full details of the interview format will be provided to shortlisted candidates prior to interview.

Feedback

Due to the anticipated volume of applications to this role, we are unable to offer feedback to those not selected for the shortlist.

Shortlisted candidates who attend an interview will be offered verbal feedback from a member of the interview panel.

Expected Timeline

We will try and offer as much flexibility as we can, but it may not be possible to offer alternative dates for assessments or interviews. You are therefore asked to note the below timetable, exercising flexibility through the recruitment and selection process, in order to meet the dates given. Please note that these dates may be subject to change.

The anticipated timetable is as follows:

Advert Closing Date 23:55 Monday 21st September 2026

Short List Meeting Week commencing Monday 28th September 2026

Final Interviews Week commencing Monday 12th October 2026

Reasonable Adjustments

We are committed to making reasonable adjustments in order to support disabled job applicants and ensure that you are not disadvantaged in the recruitment and assessment process.

If you feel that you may need a reasonable adjustment to be made, or you would like to discuss your requirements in more detail, please contact dhscscsrecruitment@dhsc.gov.uk in the first instance.

Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment.