Arts Programme Manager: Sponsorship Available

Cambridge University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust

Job summary

CUH Arts is the Trust’s creative health programme, dedicated to shaping care through creativity. We strive to inspire creativity, promote wellbeing and humanise healthcare by providing excellent creative and cultural opportunities for patients, staff, visitors and wider community. Our diverse, person-centred, multi-disciplinary programme of live, participatory and visual arts is delivered by a specialist team of arts professionals and embedded within hospital life through close collaboration with staff.

This is a 12-month fixed term/secondment position, whilst the Head of Arts is on maternity leave. You will work with the interim Head of Arts to manage the programming, implementation and evaluation of a diverse range of creative health activity across the current hospital site.

Main duties of the job

This role will work closely with the Head of Arts (HoA) to realise CUH Arts’ ambitious strategic plan, which aims to improve the experience of patient care, support the workforce, and transform healthcare environments through two main strands of regular activity:

Arts engagement (live performance, participation, consultation)

Art and environment (commissions, collection, exhibitions)

This is a highly specialist role, bringing significant skills and expertise in creative health, arts programming, resource and finance management, co-production and socially-engaged arts practice.

Person Specification

Qualifications

Essential

  • Arts / Humanities Degree or equivalent
  • Evidence of continuous professional development

Desirable

  • Project management qualification

Experience

Essential

  • Substantial relevant experience of managing complex arts engagement programmes within community and/or healthcare settings
  • Ability to work strategically while maintaining attention to operational detail and programme delivery
  • Demonstrable experience of managing staff and leading project teams
  • Extensive experience at recruiting and managing freelance artists across multiple disciplines
  • Proven experience in setting, managing, and reporting on budgets

Desirable

  • Experience in managing arts projects within a hospital or healthcare setting
  • Experience in art curation and collection management
  • Experience in public art commissioning
  • Experienced at developing project evaluation frameworks and following methodologies to produce evidence-based activity

Knowledge

Essential

  • A strong passion for and knowledge of the arts
  • An understanding of the healthcare system, at a local, regional and national level
  • An understanding of Hospital Arts within the wider creative health field at a regional and national level
  • An excellent understanding of arts and cultural programming, including festivals and tours

Desirable

  • An understanding of art curation and collection management A strong understanding of public consultation and co-production within the context of arts and culture A working knowledge of artists and practitioners with a creative health practice based in the East of England Knowledge and application of equality, diversity and inclusion principles within arts programming and workforce development.
  • A strong understanding of public consultation and co-production within the context of arts and culture
  • A working knowledge of artists and practitioners with a creative health practice based in the East of England
  • Knowledge and application of equality, diversity and inclusion principles within arts programming and workforce development.

Skills

Essential

  • Highly creative and resourceful in equal measure, with a proactive approach to problem-solving
  • Ability to confidently persuade and influence others
  • Managing teams and projects across a wide variety of disciplines, with energy, initiative and flexibility
  • Ability to build and maintain partnerships with external organisations, both regionally and nationally
  • Exceptional communication and interpersonal skills, both written and verbal
  • Adept at managing and de-escalating stressful scenarios in challenging, sensitive environments

Desirable

  • Ability to develop and write successful funding applications, grant submissions and project proposals.
  • Proven ability to analyse and interpret qualitative and quantitative data to inform programme development and strategic decision-making.
  • Strong presentation and advocacy skills, including confidence presenting to senior leaders, funders and external audiences.
  • Digital communications skills, including overseeing website content, social media and digital storytelling.

Additional Requirements

Essential

  • The ability to understand and behave at all times, towards patients, visitors and colleagues according to the Trust values of safe, kind, excellent.
  • An enthusiasm to advocate for the role of arts within healthcare, represent at external events, and deputise for the Head of Arts when needed

Disclosure and Barring Service Check

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.

Certificate of Sponsorship

Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).

From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).

Closing Date: 6 September 2026

To apply for this job please visit apps.trac.jobs.