Senior Lead Nurse | University Hospitals Bristol and Weston NHS Foundation Trust

An exciting opportunity has arisen for an experienced and values-driven neonatal nurse leader to join the South West Neonatal Operational Delivery Network (ODN) as the Senior Lead Nurse. We are looking for someone who brings energy, insight and ambition and who will feel confident evolving the role to reflect their personal strengths and leadership style. This is an influential role within a well‑established and highly respected regional network, offering the successful applicant the chance to shape meaningful change.

As Senior Lead Nurse, you will be a core member of the ODN triumvirate leadership team, working closely with the Network Clinical Director and Network Manager to set strategic direction and deliver a meaningful, region‑wide work programme. You will provide professional nursing leadership across the network and lead a diverse portfolio including quality, safety, workforce, education and personalised care. This is a role with breadth, influence and autonomy. While there are nationally and regionally mandated responsibilities, there is genuine scope for the post holder to collaboratively develop priorities, build relationships and shape ways of working, ensuring the role feels both purposeful and personally rewarding.

What we’re looking for

• You will be an experienced neonatal nurse leader with a strong track record of senior clinical and professional leadership.
• A collaborative and dynamic leadership style, with confidence working across systems.
• Experience of workforce planning, service improvement and quality governance.
• The ability to influence, inspire and bring people together around shared goals.

You will be motivated by improvement, partnership working and the opportunity to make a difference at scale, while remaining grounded in the values of compassionate, personalised neonatal care.

Why join the South West Neonatal ODN?

• A supportive and collaborative team.
• A mature, well‑established network with strong relationships across the region.
• The opportunity to work at a strategic level while staying connected to service realities.
• Flexibility in how and where you work, recognising the regional nature of the role.
• The chance to make tangible change for neonatal services and workforce.

The network is hosted by UHBW. University Hospitals Bristol and Weston NHS Foundation Trust (UHBW) is one of the largest acute Trusts in the country, bringing together a combined workforce of over 13,000 staff and over 100 different clinical services across 10 different sites, serving a core population of more than 500,000 people across South West England. UHBW has been rated by the CQC as ‘Good’ overall and our staff are proud to deliver excellent care to the people of Bristol, Weston and beyond.

As a forward‑thinking multi‑award winning Trust and a digital exemplar committed to improving patient care, our world‑leading research and innovations are having a positive local and global impact. Our hospitals are spread across Bristol and Weston, join us and you can enjoy the very best of both worlds; city living within a stone’s throw of the countryside or beside the seaside, both with easy access to all that the South West has to offer.

UHBW is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults. As an equal opportunities employer actively working towards a diverse workforce we aim to recruit and retain a workforce which represents the rich diversity of the local population at all levels and are committed to designing our services around the needs of individual patients and those around them.