Head of Nursing Women and Children's division, Hastings

We are proud to provide'Outstanding'care and be a great place to work.

East Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust provides safe, compassionate and high quality hospital and community care to the half a million people living in East Sussex and those who visit our local area.

We are one of the largest organisations in East Sussex with an annual income of£700 million and we are the only integrated provider of acute and community care in Sussex.

Our extensive health services are provided by over 8,000+ dedicated members of staff working from two acute hospitals in Hastings and Eastbourne, three community hospitals in Bexhill, Rye and Uckfield, over 100 community sites across East Sussex, and in people's own homes.

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) rated us as'Good'overall, and'Outstanding'for being Caring and Effective. The Conquest Hospital in Hastings and our Community Services were rated'Outstanding'and Eastbourne DGH was rated'Good'Our two acute hospitals have Emergency Departments and provide 24 hour a day care, offering a comprehensive range of surgical, medical, outpatient and maternity services, supported by a full range of diagnostic and therapy services.

Job overview

We are seeking an experienced, forward-thinking, and values-driven Head of Nursing for Paediatrics, Neonates and Gynaecology to provide visible, compassionate and strategic leadership across a diverse portfolio of women's and children's services. You will be a qualified Paediatric nurse with experience across a wide range of services. Leading on delivery of standards across acute and community services.

This senior role holds professional accountability for nursing and midwifery practice across paediatric, neonatal and gynaecology services, ensuring the delivery of safe, effective, responsive and well-led care in line with CQC fundamental standards, the NHS Patient Safety Strategy, and national clinical guidance.

Working as part of the senior leadership team, you will ensure strong clinical leadership, professional standards and governance are embedded across all services, supporting delivery of high-quality, equitable care for children, young people, women, and their families.

N.B the job descriptions attached are in draft form and awaiting to be approved through AFC internal panel. Please be aware there may be some changes at point of sending out contracts.

Main duties of the job

You will play a pivotal role in translating national priorities into local delivery, including:

Getting It Right First Time (GIRFT) recommendations for paediatrics, neonates and gynaecology.

National Patient Safety Alerts and Learning from Patient Safety Events (LFPSE).

NICE guidance and best practice standards.

Royal College standards (RCPCH, RCN, RCOG) and relevant safeguarding frameworks.

The postholder will:

Provide leadership for nursing workforce and professional practice, ensuring safe staffing, skill mix and workforce sustainability across paediatrics, neonates and gynaecology.

Lead on quality assurance, patient safety and experience, driving a culture of continuous learning, transparency, and improvement.

Ensure robust systems are in place to meet statutory safeguarding responsibilities for children and vulnerable groups.

Work in partnership with midwifery, medical, AHP and corporate teams to ensure integrated pathways across maternity, neonatal and paediatric care.

Support delivery of key performance indicators including waiting times, flow, harm reduction, and patient outcomes.

The role requires a highly visible leader who can operate with credibility across complex systems, balancing strategic priorities with operational delivery, and driving improvement across interfaces between children's, neonatal, and women's health services.

Working for our organisation

A wide range of staff benefits are available to our staff including staff development, enrolment in the NHS pension scheme, auto-enrolment to our Temporary Workforce Service, access to onsite nurseries. staff restaurants and accommodation.

In addition to an internal Occupational Health department, all staff also have access to free psychological support through our confidential Employee Assistance Programme. Onsite parking is available from only£50 a year.

There has never been a better time to join East Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust, submit your application today.

Statement on the Use of AI

We value the individuality that each candidate brings to the application process. While we understand that AI tools are widely available, we strongly discourage applicants from using AI-generated content when applying for jobs with us. We believe that your application should reflect your true skills, experiences, and motivations, which are best conveyed through your own words and unique perspective.

Using AI for your application may not accurately represent your knowledge, skills, and experience and may result in a disconnect between your qualifications and our assessment of your application.

We encourage applicants to take the time to thoughtfully complete their applications; by doing so, you allow us to better understand your true potential and ensure a fair and transparent evaluation of your application. Over reliance on AI-generated content may diminish your chance of success.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Please refer to the job description attached.

If you have any questions about this position please do not hesitate to contact us.

Person specification

Qualifications / Training

Essential criteria

• Registered Nurse/AHP/HCS and hold active registration with NMC/HCPC
• Masters level qualification/training relevant to role or equivalent knowledge acquired through extensive experience and training and working towards Masters level qualification
• Evidence of continuous professional development relevant to role to demonstrate expert clinical and leadership skills
• Senior Leadership qualification or training
• Mentoring/Coaching/Supervision qualification or training
• Project Management and Quality Improvement qualification or training

Experience

Essential criteria

• Experience working in a leadership position including contributing to operational management of services.
• Experience in management of health services
• Able to demonstrate experience of: Quality/Service improvement and leading change Operational management and performance People Management - performance, appraisal, sickness, development, retention
• Managing budgets and business planning
• Monitoring, analysing and assessing clinical performance across complex services
• Setting and monitoring standards of care and ensuring this is delivered to an exceptional standard

Setting and monitoring standards of care and ensuring this is delivered to an exceptional standard

Essential criteria

• Knowledge and skills and understanding of: Leadership skills that inspire, engage and motivate a workforce National nursing/professional agenda, NHS targets and regulatory standards and requirements
• Setting workforce standards, managing complex HR issues, multidisciplinary team working
• Quality improvement initiatives, setting and monitoring standards of care across a range of clinical services and able to agree clear performance goals and offer constructive feedback.
• Assessment and management of complex operational and clinical risks and knowledge of clinical and operational governance framework.
• Excellent communication skills, able to engage, negotiate and influence stakeholders, present information, write business cases and service plans.

Other

Essential criteria

• Frequent involvement (both direct and indirect) in emotionally distressing process such as managing significant change including redeployment and redundancy, performance management, complex disciplinary, grievance and appeal procedures as well as responding to complaints
• Able to travel to meet the requirements of the job
• Flexibility in working hours and patterns

Patients come first at East Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust.

Our vision is to be:

• The healthcare provider of first choice for the people of East Sussex.

Our mission is to:

• Deliver better health outcomes and an excellent experience for everyone we provide with healthcare services.

Our strategic objectives are to:

• Improve quality and clinical outcomes by ensuring that safe patient care is our highest priority.
• Play a leading role in local partnerships to meet the needs of our local population and improve and enhance patients'experiences.
• Use our resources efficiently and effectively for the benefit of our patients and their care to ensure our services are clinically, operationally and financially sustainable.

Our aims are that all services delivered by the Trust are:

• Safe
• Effective
• Caring
• Responsive and
• Well led

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