Data and Quality Manager

The Data and Quality Manager is responsible for leading, developing and embedding robust data, quality, performance and risk management systems across People First and The Well Communities CIC. The role provides strategic and operational leadership to ensure that accurate, timely and meaningful data is used to drive service improvement, inform decision making, support regulatory and contractual compliance, and manage organisational risk.

Who we are

People First is an independent customer-led charitable organisation that has worked in Cumbria for over 35 years.

The Well Communities is a not-for-profit Community Interest Company, led by people in recovery from substance misuse.

This role will work across both People First and The Well communities, who work in Partnership across the North of England.

We are passionate about our values of equality, respect, and inclusion. We provide a wide range of support and information services across Cumbria, Lancashire, and Teesside, all aimed at helping people to live informed, respected, healthy and fulfilled lives.

Purpose of job

An opportunity has arisen to work for our thriving charitable organisation during an exciting time of development.

The Data and Quality Manager is responsible for leading, developing and embedding robust data, quality, performance and risk management systems across People First and The Well Communities CIC. The role provides strategic and operational leadership to ensure that accurate, timely and meaningful data is used to drive service improvement, inform decision‑making, support regulatory and contractual compliance, and manage organisational risk.

Working across multiple services and geographic areas, the post holder will lead a small Data and Quality team, oversee the organisation’s in‑house CRM system, and act as a point of contact for managers, senior leaders and Trustees. The role ensures that data is collected, analysed and presented in a consistent and high‑quality way, supporting inclusive research, performance monitoring, quality assurance (including ISO 9001), and effective governance arrangements.

The Data and Quality Manager will play a central role in strengthening organisational assurance by maintaining and embedding risk management processes at service, senior leadership and Board level, supporting GDPR compliance, and continually improving data systems and methodologies.

Through high‑quality reporting, dashboards and insight drawn from peoples lived experience of health and care services, the role directly supports the organisations’ strategic objectives, continuous improvement agenda, and commitment to values‑led, inclusive practice.

The person

As a prerequisite, the successful candidate must believe in the core values of People First and be driven by our mission.

We are seeking a candidate who is highly organised with a focus on attention to detail; someone who is a quick learner, has a ‘can-do’ attitude, has experience with data analysis and report writing and has a flexible approach to working in order to support the changing needs of a growing and thriving organisation.

• Must be highly organised with a keen eye for detail.
• Be able to prioritise tasks to meet deadlines.
• Be an effective communicator and able to liaise with Trustees, Directors, Managers, staff, members, customers, and key stakeholders.
• Be a team player.
• Be proactive and able to work in a fast-paced environment.

Qualifications

Essential:

Strong working knowledge of:

• Data protection legislation (UK GDPR)
• Data quality and assurance principles
• Performance and KPI reporting
• Organisational risk management frameworks and tools

Confident use of Microsoft 365 tools, including:

• Excel (advanced)
• Teams, Outlook, PowerPoint

Ability to quickly learn or further develop skills in:

• Use of CRM systems

Desirable:

Ability to quickly learn or further develop skills in:

• Management of CRM systems
• Power BI and emerging data tools
• Ethical and inclusive research practices
• Responsible use of AI in data analysis (desirable awareness)

Skills, knowledge, and experience

Essential:

• Previous experience of working in a data management/analysis role
• Exceptional written English with strong attention to detail
• A proven ability to deliver presentations and facilitate group discussions in a clear and confident manner
• Strong IT skills, including Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Office and Outlook
• Excellent organisational and time-management skills with a proven ability to meet deadlines
• Ability to effectively organise, plan and manage workload, and work at pace on multiple priorities, staying organised at all times
• Ability to work well under pressure
• Strong attention to detail and ability to quality check all work in line with agreed deadlines
• High levels of professionalism, discretion, and confidentiality
• Commitment to the values and mission of the third sector
• Strong communication and relationship building skills and ability to communicate effectively with people and develop strong working relationships
• A high degree of personal motivation and willingness to learn new skills, taking on challenges with enthusiasm
• Capacity to work with a diverse range of people, organisations and partners
• Ability to work as part of a team by supporting colleagues and sharing knowledge and expertise as well as working unguided
• Experience of qualitative and quantitative research methods, including surveys, interviewing and focus groups
• Practical experience of all stages of the research process including research design, fieldwork, analysis, and report writing
• Good working knowledge of Data Protection legislation

Desirable:

• Knowledge and understanding of the local and national health and care services

Duties will likely include:

Please note these duties are required across People First and The Well Communities CIC

• Leadership of the Data and Quality team including direct line management and support of 3 staff across various geographic locations.
• Oversight and project management of our inhouse CRM system.
• Managing the annual Staff Survey process including quarterly staff surveys, reviewing the relevance of the questions based on Organisational developments, analysing responses, and providing conclusions on key themes and areas for improvement.
• Daily maintenance of the organisation’s Risk Register – including monthly meetings with department Heads of Service to discuss risk mitigations and risk scoring to ensure parity across the organisation.
• Supporting the management team to embed solid risk management processes within their department, including department specific Risk Registers, Senior leadership team risk register and Board risk register.
• Support the management team to identify potential risks and apply appropriate mitigations, ensuring actions are followed up.
• Overseeing Quality Assurance processes including ISO 9001.
• Support Inclusive research.
• Attend and lead on agenda items in the Quality, Performance and Organisational Risk Committee.
• Continually review our data systems, highlighting areas for improvement or innovation.
• Developing data management processes to support the organisation– including identifying the most suitable way to manage our data to ensure contractual KPI’s are met.
• Support the organisation’s GDPR compliance, working closely with our Data Protection Officer.
• Support the management team to collate and analyse data that supports our quarterly performance review process. This includes management of team dashboards.
• To lead on the collation and analysis of a wide range of data and intelligence drawn from people’s experience of health and care services in Cumbria, Lancashire, and the Northeast.
• To co-design and manage the implementation of data collection methodologies – desire to use Power BI and integration of AI into data analysis functions.
• To plan, design and write high quality reports using case studies and data analysis to inform recommendations.
• To work in conjunction with other data officers/researchers within the organisation to ensure best practice and innovation.
• To embed and drive forward all data, quality and risk processes to support the organisations strategy.
• Embed the organisation’s risk management framework.

Other duties

• Evening and weekend work may be required.
• The duties outlined above are not intended to be exhaustive and may change as the needs of the organisation alter in line with current agendas. Due to the developing nature of our organisation, we require staff to remain highly flexible in their approach, and work to meet the changing needs of the projects.
• Please note that the successful candidate will be required to subscribe to the DBS update service which requires all People First staff to pay an annual subscription fee.

Salary Band Justification

This role sits within the management salary band pro rata due to the level of responsibility, autonomy, and specialist skills required.

The post holder will provide high-level Data and risk analysis to the Board of Trustees, CEO and senior leaders, requiring the ability to manage competing priorities, handle sensitive and confidential information, and operate with minimal supervision.

This role requires cross-organisational accountability for data integrity, quality assurance (including ISO 9001), risk register oversight, GDPR support, performance reporting and research/report writing. The role requires a blend of technical competence (data analysis, methods, reporting, governance) and high-trust organisational responsibilities (risk escalation to Trustees, confidentiality, compliance).

The salary level reflects:

• The breadth and complexity of responsibilities across two partner organisations and multiple services/geographies.
• The impact and risk profile (organisational risk oversight, ISO/quality compliance, GDPR support).
• The requirement to influence and embed systems across departments.
• The need for independent judgement, high attention to detail, and ability to present data and recommendations to senior stakeholders and committees.

Competency Framework

• Technical Data Analysis & Insight
• Quality Assurance & Continuous Improvement
• Risk Management & Governance
• Research & Reporting
• Values & Inclusive Practice

Driving

A current driving license and access to own transport is required for this role. This post requires you to have the appropriate ‘business use’ insurance in place as occasional business use of your car is required to carry out tasks, such as (but not limited to) the following:

• Travel to customer or business meetings

• Running business errands during the day

• Travel between different People First/TWC business sites

• Transporting colleagues/volunteers/members/customers or business contacts, for example, to business meetings or self-advocacy groups

• Making deliveries or collections

• Carrying extra equipment

For more information

If you’d like any further information about the role or if you have any questions, please contact our Head of Business : [email protected]

To Apply

If you’re interested in the role and think you’d be a good fit, we’d like to hear from you.

To apply for this position, please email a copy of your CV including details of two references, to [email protected] or alternatively, you can post for the attention of Barry to People First Conference Centre, Milbourne Street, Carlisle, CA2 5XB

All applications should be clearly marked: Confidential – Data and Quality Manager.

To arrive no later than 5.00 p.m. on 1^st June 2026 (this date may change depending on the volume of applications).

Please be aware that we may hold initial fact finding / information sessions with candidates who pass our shortlisting process prior to the closing date. These will be held via Microsoft Teams. Successful candidates will then be invited to formal interviews.

Interviews to take place 6^th June 2026 – Please note candidates may be asked to prepare a document to present at the interview