Our Leadership Way – Competencies & Expectations

What this means in practice

Our Leadership Way sets out what great leadership looks like at Oxleas—day to day, in practice.

It brings our values and leadership principles to life through clear behaviours and expectations, guiding how leaders make decisions, support their teams and deliver high-quality care.

Rather than focusing on theory, it shows what effective leadership looks like in action—from how we lead ourselves, to how we lead others, manage resources and improve services.

How the framework works

The framework is built around three core areas:

• Leading Self – taking responsibility for your behaviour, values and development.
• Leading Teams and Resources – building inclusive, high-performing teams and using resources effectively.
• Leading with Quality and Partnership – improving outcomes through collaboration, learning and high-quality care.

Across these areas, Our Leadership Way sets out nine clear expectations that develop as your leadership responsibility grows.

Leadership at different stages

Standards and competencies are tailored to your role and level of responsibility, reflecting:

• the scale of your role
• the people and teams you lead or influence
• the complexity of your decisions

This ensures the framework is relevant whether you are:

• stepping into your first leadership role
• leading multiple teams or services
• operating at a senior or system level

Why this matters

Leadership behaviours directly shape staff experience, team effectiveness and the quality of care we provide.

For staff, it sets a clear expectation of consistent, fair, compassionate and inclusive leadership—creating environments where people feel safe, supported and able to do their best work.

For leaders, it provides a shared language and framework that brings together values, behaviour and accountability—supporting you to balance compassion with performance in complex environments.

By aligning leadership behaviours with Oxleas’ values, strategy and NHS standards, our Leadership Way helps to:

• Strengthen leadership consistency across the organisation
• Build a positive, inclusive culture
• Improve team working, engagement and wellbeing
• Support delivery of Great Care, Timely Care and a Best Place to Work

Ultimately, it defines how we lead, how we work together, and how we make a meaningful difference for our staff, service users and communities.

Supporting your development

Our Leadership Way is not just about expectations—it’s about growth.

Each stage is linked to development opportunities, tools and support to help you build your confidence, capability and impact over time.

Coming Soon – Click the below button to explore all the Leadership Standards and Competencies in more detail