Policy Manager

Institute of Health Visiting

Hours
22.5 hours per week

About the Organisation

The Institute of Health Visiting (iHV) is an independent charity, professional body and centre of excellence – established to strengthen the quality and consistency of health visiting for the benefit of all babies, children, families and communities, to improve health and reduce inequalities. In the context of deteriorating child and family health, and growing recognition of the importance of prevention and early intervention, we are impatient for change. We courageously challenge inequalities in outcomes and healthcare provision in the earliest years of life.

We believe in a better future, and that change is possible. Improving public health outcomes for babies, children, families and communities is at the heart of health visiting practice. We focus our efforts and work with partners to influence policies affecting health, and act as a voice for our profession. And we won’t stop! We believe that health visiting is an important part of the solution to improving public health outcomes for babies, children, families and communities. When appropriately resourced, health visiting provides a vital infrastructure of support that is central to improving health and reducing inequalities.

We are committed to ensuring the highest standards of education, learning and development, innovation and research, and professional leadership, to support evidence-driven practice and enable world-class health visiting. We know that health visiting leaders flourish in an environment of academic and professional excellence. We are committed to the active promotion of equality, diversity and inclusion in everything that we do. We want to enable an organisational culture that values diversity, and we are committed to eliminating unlawful discrimination.

Our work spans the breadth of health visiting policy and practice, learning and development, and innovation and research - giving us a unique understanding of the strategic context for health visiting now and in the future. We focus our resources where we think we can make the biggest impact. Our business plan is centred on four key priorities for our work (what we do):

• Influence policy to improve health, reduce inequalities and strengthen health visiting
• Support quality improvement, research and innovation in health visiting
• Build professional skills and knowledge to enhance health visiting workforce capability and leadership development
• Grow, sustain and support our membership and meet their needs

We have a further four priorities to ensure robust governance within our organisation (how we do it):

• Make the iHV a great place to work and develop
• Good governance, infrastructure, financial and quality management
• Equity, diversity and inclusion
• Environmental sustainability.

About the role

Thank you for your interest in joining the Institute of Health Visiting (iHV), the UK’s leading professional body for health visiting. This is a rare and exciting opportunity to join a growing, forward-looking organisation at a pivotal time. With a strong and expanding membership, iHV is working to strengthen the health visiting workforce and shape the future of child and family health across the UK.

As Policy Manager, you will play a key role in influencing national policy across priority areas including early years, prevention, public health, child protection and workforce. Your work will directly support iHV’s mission to improve outcomes and reduce inequalities for babies, children, families and communities and spread excellence in health visiting.

Working closely with our clinical team, members and partners, you will develop evidence-based policy positions and help ensure frontline expertise informs decision-making at the highest levels. You will be joining a collaborative, passionate team in a fast-paced environment where no two days are the same – and where your work will make a real and lasting difference.

Responsibilities

Policy Influencing:

• Lead the co-development of high-quality, evidence-based policy positions with iHV’s clinical members, ensuring professional expertise and frontline insight inform national decision-making, and align with iHV’s strategic priorities to promote the value of health visiting and improve outcomes for babies, children and families.
• Monitor and analyse emerging policy, legislative and practice developments to inform priorities and identify opportunities for iHV to influence change.
• Produce clear, high-quality policy outputs, including consultation responses, briefings, analysis and reports, ensuring complex issues are communicated effectively to different audiences.
• Support the development and delivery of policy activity, helping to ensure that evidence-based solutions are understood and considered by decision-makers.

Stakeholder Engagement & Partnerships:

• Build and maintain effective working relationships with stakeholders across government, academia, professional bodies, charities and the wider health and care system.
• Work collaboratively with partners and sector alliances to build shared understanding, strengthen relationships and support collective influencing on child health and family health, early years and health visiting priorities.
• Represent iHV at external meetings, events and policy forums, contributing to discussions and sharing relevant expertise.

Insight, Evidence & Professional Voice:

• Gather and synthesise frontline practitioner insight and intelligence to inform policy development and ensure iHV’s work reflects current practice, opportunities and emerging challenges.
• Contribute to building iHV’s reputation and external profile across key policy areas, supporting the organisation to be recognised as a trusted voice in child and family health, health visiting and early years policy.

Project Delivery & Organisational Support:

• Support the delivery of policy and influencing projects, applying strong organisational and project management skills to meet deadlines and coordinate inputs from colleagues and partners.
• Provide support to policy groups, advisory bodies and senior leaders through the preparation of briefings, coordination of meetings, and tracking of insights and actions.
• Contribute to funding applications and project development activity, helping to provide a policy lens to support the sustainability and growth of iHV’s policy and influencing work.

Engagement & Professional Community:

• Support engagement activities, including events, conferences, networks and special interest groups, to strengthen connections with the profession and promote shared learning and ideas.

Other:

• Work with colleagues to improve the quality of the work of the iHV, identifying and managing risks, and constructively challenging ways of working, influencing, and supporting other iHV team members where necessary.
• Have an excellent professional working relationship with colleagues to deliver corporate goals and objectives.
• To participate in all mandatory training as required. 

Skills, Competencies, Experience & Attributes

Knowledge & Experience:

• Experience of working in a policy role within a relevant sector (government department, health, public sector body or charity - early years, children and families).
• Understanding of UK policy-making processes and the health and care landscape, including key institutions and decision-making structures.
• Knowledge of child health/ early years policy.
• Experience of developing evidence-based policy positions, including drafting briefings, consultation responses or reports.
• Experience of gathering and applying evidence from a range of sources, including research, data and stakeholder insight.
• Experience of working collaboratively with a range of stakeholders, including professional bodies, charities, government or academic partners.
• Experience of supporting or delivering projects, with an ability to coordinate activities and manage competing priorities.

Skills:

• Ability to analyse and interpret complex information and evidence from multiple sources - and translate it into clear, practical policy recommendations.
• Exceptional writing skills, with a proven ability to produce authoritative, high-impact briefings, reports and policy documents that are clear, persuasive and tailored to diverse audiences.
• Strong interpersonal and relationship-building skills, with the ability to work effectively with diverse stakeholders and partners.
• Ability to collate and synthesise insight, including frontline practitioner perspectives, quantitative and qualitative data, to inform policy development.
• Good organisational and project management skills, with the ability to prioritise work and meet deadlines.
• Confident verbal communication skills, including contributing to meetings, events and external discussions.
• Strong digital and data literacy, with the ability to leverage digital tools and emerging technologies (including AI) to enhance evidence-gathering, policy insight and operational effectiveness.

Values and Behaviours:

• Commitment to improving outcomes for infants, children and families and supporting the health visiting workforce.
• Collaborative and team-oriented approach, with a willingness to work across organisational and sector boundaries.
• Proactive and adaptable, with the ability to respond constructively to emerging issues and changing priorities.
• Solution-focused mindset, with the ability to approach complex challenges positively and pragmatically.
• Integrity and professionalism, with a commitment to evidence-informed practice and credible influencing.
• Appreciation of the importance of elevating lived experience and professional voice in policy development.

Equality, Diversity and Inclusion:

• Proven ability to champion equality, diversity and inclusion, recognising how personal behaviour and professional actions contribute to creating fair, inclusive and equitable environments; ensuring that policies, decisions and working practices reflect and promote these principles.

Other:

• Experienced in using all Microsoft Office applications, knowledge of Adobe programmes, and some knowledge/experience of SurveyMonkey.
• Ability to work flexibly to meet the needs of the role.
• Ability to travel as necessary – access to a vehicle/good road and rail links.

Required Qualifications

• Educated to degree level in a relevant subject ( public policy, public health, social sciences, healthcare or similar) or equivalent professional experience. 

Compensation & Benefits

• The chance to work in a leading charity and professional body for health visiting and make a significant impact on the health visiting profession and its work to improve health outcomes for babies, children, families, and communities.
• A dynamic and supportive work environment - working with a team of people who are genuinely committed to our charity’s core mission and values and making the iHV a ‘great place to work’.
• Opportunities for professional development.
• Probationary period 6-month
• Hybrid and flexible working options. This post will require some UK travel.
• 25 days annual leave, plus bank holidays (increasing to 30 days leave after 2 years employment at the iHV – pro rata for part-time staff).
• Workplace pensions: the iHV has a generous organisation pension scheme, with 10% employer contribution and a personalised employee contribution to suit your needs.

Conditions of employment

•  You must have the right to work in the UK

Working locations

• Home-based
• There will be some UK travel required for the role. Applicants should be able to travel to London.

How to apply

• We welcome applications from candidates who can demonstrate the skills and experience to undertake this role. We offer opportunities for personal development and career progression within the role.
• Please complete the application form and submit this with your CV to [email protected].
• Closing date for applications is midnight on Thursday 23rd July 2026.
• Contact Information: For further information or for an informal chat about the role, please contact Alison Morton, CEO, via [email protected]

Interviews

• Hold the date for the interview on Wednesday 5th August 2026.
• Please advise us if you are unable to make this date. We may, if appropriate, arrange a second round of interviews

Policies

Postholders must at all times fulfil their responsibilities about the Institute’s Equal Opportunities and Equality Policies. The Institute of Health Visiting is fully committed to the active promotion of equality and diversity in everything that we do. We want to create an organisational culture that values diversity and demonstrates due regard to the characteristics of the Equality Act (2010) through our employment practices, the work that we do and the products and resources that we produce.

We are committed to encouraging equality and diversity among our staff and eliminating unlawful discrimination. All postholders have a responsibility, under the Health and Safety at Work Act (1974) and subsequently published regulations, to ensure that the organisation’s health and safety policies and procedures are complied with to maintain a safe working environment.

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