B7 Specialist Practice Community Children\'s Nurse Clinical Lead

This post is an exciting opportunity for a qualified Community Children's Nurse to join the established CCN Service of Epsom and St. Helier. The B7 post has a focus of Clinical Leadership alongside a B7 CCN with Educational Leadership responsibility. Based at the Epsom team the post holder will:

• Provide leadership and accountability for the Children's Community Nursing Service focusing on clinical excellence and evidence-based best practice.
• Promote the highest standards of clinical care by providing strong professional leadership, advice and expertise to create a culture of care, compassion, creativity and candour, ensuring the Trust value of Respect is promoted.
• Have management responsibility for designated staff, including the undertaking of appraisals and 1:1s resulting in support and guidance to form specific objectives and effective personal development plans.
• Assist in ensuring the delivery of equitable support mechanisms and services for babies, children and young people (BCYP) and their carers that are person centred, risk managed and driven by national, organisational, divisional and Trust strategies in partnership with other agencies.
• Work with the Service Lead Nurse, Senior Nursing Leadership Team and B7 colleagues to drive forward governance, quality, safety, education and assurance of financially effective services.
• Provide expert, evidence-based nursing care to children and young people in community settings, delivering holistic assessment, planning, implementation, and evaluation of individualised care with families.
• Maintain clinical responsibility for care programmes, adapting to changing needs while promoting independence and positive outcomes.
• Act as a role model in line with CCNS standards, Trust policies, and the NMC Code, ensuring high standards of governance, accountability, and accurate record keeping with appropriate information sharing.
• Work collaboratively with MDTs and agencies to deliver seamless care and effective transition to adult services.
• Lead complex discharge planning, enabling safe, timely discharges and reducing avoidable admissions.
• Promote safeguarding in line with policy, protecting vulnerable children and adults.
• Advocate for families, supporting informed choice and inclusive, equitable care.
• Support service development, governance and assurance alongside the Lead Nurse.
• Support staff via clinical leadership.
• Empower parents and carers through education and training.
• Ensure safe delivery through risk assessment and lone working policies, and contribute to continuous improvement via supervision, reflection, and safeguarding processes.

Management and Leadership Responsibilities

• Provide day-to-day management of the Children's Community Nursing Service, escalating concerns to the Lead Nurse.
• Act as a role model promoting the work of the CCNS and ensure that clinical practice and services are evidence-based, policy driven, and delivered to the highest possible standards of person‑centred care.
• Undertake management responsibilities of the service alongside the Lead Nurse, including ordering and approval of items within agreed budgets, roster planning, absence management and performance management.
• Support the Lead Nurse in ensuring that resources are used to achieve high quality, effective services that provide value for money, recognising opportunities for cost‑saving and efficiency measures.
• Facilitate and ensure completion of staff appraisals, 1:1 meetings, and monitor compliance with statutory and mandatory and other educational and training provision.
• Ensure all service members engage in regular team reflection, clinical and safeguarding supervision.
• Teach, support and empower colleagues and junior staff in their clinical decision-making.
• Delegate and monitor the individual caseloads of junior staff to achieve effective and timely management, alerting the Lead Nurse to areas of clinical risk.
• Establish and maintain collaborative relationships with Integrated Care Boards, Primary, Secondary and Tertiary care providers, social care, education, statutory and voluntary organisations and other agencies, in order to provide a comprehensive service to the BCYP and parent(s) / caregivers.
• Identifying measures to improve working practices.
• Monitor and develop the work of the CCNS within the context of Trust, local and national strategies.
• Actively participate in the recruitment, orientation, education and development and retention of staff new to and within the CCNS, collaborating with the B7 Educational Lead CCN.
• Participate in CCNS, Specialist Nursing, Divisional, external and other relevant meetings, deputising for the Lead Nurse where required.
• Demonstrate practice within the Trust and local policies and procedures, facilitating others' understanding and compliance.
• Ensure all DATIX reports are completed, reviewed, investigated and learning and action plan shared with the CCNS and clinical teams in a timely way.
• Liaise with the Lead Nurse and Paediatric Quality & Risk Manager regarding any incidents that may require a rapid review or concise investigation, contributing to these processes when required.
• Participate in the processes of clinical risk management and clinical governance.
• Share responsibility for the health, safety and welfare of self and others in the working environment, following safe working practices complying with the Trust's and local Health and Safety Policies, Procedures and guidelines at all times.
• Participate in the evaluation and organisation of measures that invest in staff health and wellbeing.

Clinical Leadership

• Provide strong clinical leadership within the CCNS, working collaboratively with the CCNS B7 Educational Leads, Queen Mary's Band 7 Clinical Lead, the Lead Nurse and Divisional leadership team to ensure safe, effective, and high-quality patient care.
• Maintain and continually develop own clinical expertise in line with lifelong learning, professional body requirements, and evolving service needs.
• Collaborate on the development, implementation and review of clinical competencies, pathways, and standards of care specific to the CCNS, ensuring alignment with best practice and national guidance.
• Champion a culture of clinical excellence, supporting staff to deliver patient-focused, flexible, and innovative care within a supportive learning environment.
• Provide expert clinical advice, guidance, and support to CCNS staff, acting as a role model for high standards of care and professional practice.
• Support the Lead Nurse in maintaining and improving clinical governance within the service, including risk management, incident review, audit, and quality improvement initiatives.
• Contribute to the CCNS annual report by providing a summary of clinical activity, service developments, quality outcomes, and improvements in patient care.
• Represent the CCNS at relevant clinical, governance, and multidisciplinary meetings, including Senior Nurse meetings, to ensure the service contributes to and is informed by wider clinical developments.
• Demonstrate a strong commitment to research, audit and evidence-based practice, embedding these into clinical care and service development.

Service Improvement and Policy Development

• Support the Lead Nurse and CCNS B7 colleagues to conduct audit activity by undertaking auditing, continually monitoring standards of care, identifying risks, advancing knowledge within own specialist field, benchmarking and raising concerns as identified.
• Alongside the Lead Nurse, participate in developing service policies, procedures and guidelines in partnership with relevant specialists; ensuring clinical governance is central to the function of the service.
• Alongside the Lead Nurse, provide assurance that the CCNS is safe, caring, responsive, effective and well‑led and be able to evidence this to internal and external regulators.
• Ensure regular Friends and Family feedback /patient experience activity is carried out.
• Work with the Lead Nurse, CCNS B7 colleagues, patient experience team, PALS and Complaints team to investigate and resolve complaints, and record and celebrate compliments.
• Work with the Lead Nurse, Senior Leadership team and Trust teams to monitor activity, performance and quality of service delivery against contractual requirements.

St George's, Epsom and St Helier University Hospitals and Health Group cares for a population of four million people in South West London and North East Surrey. Our sites include St George's Hospital, one of 11 major trauma centres in the UK and the largest healthcare provider and major teaching hospital in the area; St Helier Hospital, home to the South West Thames Renal and Transplantation Unit and Queen Mary's Hospital for Children; and Epsom Hospital, home to the South West London Elective Orthopaedic Centre (SWLEOC). After years of collaboration, our two Trusts became a hospitals group in 2021. While remaining as two separate Trusts, being a hospitals group will help us to collaborate more closely on research, and the development, education, and training of our 17,000‑strong workforce. At gesh we are committed to supporting flexible working arrangements. Applicants are encouraged to discuss any flexibility they may need during the recruitment process.