Senior Nurse Safeguarding Children

An exciting opportunity has arisen to work as part of the Safeguarding Children Team at County Durham & Darlington NHS Foundation Trust. The team is well established, dynamic and innovative. This role is a Band 7 Senior Nurse within the organisation, who will work closely with staff, stakeholders and support teams to safeguard children and families.

The Senior Nurse Safeguarding will work closely with the Named Nurse & Named Midwife; the wider safeguarding teams & the senior leadership team, to support assurance that the organisation is meeting statutory safeguarding requirements. They will also ensure the achievement of key performance indicators for safeguarding across the organisation.

We are seeking to recruit a highly motivated practitioner, who is passionate about safeguarding, with a focus on providing leadership across the service pertaining to this specialised area. The successful candidate will demonstrate robust knowledge, skills and experience within safeguarding practice; they will be aware of the current safeguarding priorities across the service; including the importance of effective and collaborative working with internal stakeholders, multi-agency partners and Designated Safeguarding Professionals.

Main duties of the job include:

• Demonstrating robust evidence-based knowledge of national and local procedures, guidance and key safeguarding children legislation.
• Possessing a keen desire to improve outcomes for vulnerable children and their families.
• Having a wealth of experience in the field of safeguarding children, with a child-centred and family-focused approach.
• Providing support and ensuring the progression of local improvement plans.
• Delivering a high quality of safeguarding training, education and development to staff members within the Trust.
• Working collaboratively with the wider safeguarding teams within the Trust and locally.
• Providing highly specialised safeguarding advice, guidance and support on all aspects of safeguarding children to health staff within County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust.

It is essential that the post holder works in close collaboration with the Named Professionals for Safeguarding, the safeguarding children team and the wider teams within the Trust. The role also involves working closely with members of the multi-agency safeguarding partnership teams and key stakeholders across the locality, to meet local safeguarding priorities.

The Senior Nurse Safeguarding Children is a senior role within the organisation and therefore is responsible for supporting the embedding of safeguarding strategy, leading on the development of policies and contributing to wider clinical policies, where appropriate.

Key skills and knowledge required include:

• High level of communication skills.
• Ability to work in collaboration with teams and also to demonstrate autonomy.
• Robust knowledge and understanding of the safeguarding legislation and statutory frameworks.
• Skills in risk assessment, analysis and critical thinking.
• Evidence of time management and organisation skills.

Special Requirements include a full UK Driving Licence and the ability to travel across Trust sites to meet the demands of the role. The post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and will require a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service.