Children in Care Nurse

Are you a compassionate and dedicated Public Health Nurse? Do you have the skills and passion to support Children in Care and Care Leavers in improving their health and wellbeing? If so, we would love to hear from you.

As a Children in Care Nurse, you will play a vital role in promoting positive health outcomes for children and young people across Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire (BNSSG), including those placed just outside the area. You will undertake holistic health assessments, ensuring each child or young person’s needs are understood and addressed. Working collaboratively, you will develop tailored health action plans and share these with key stakeholders, including Social Workers, Reviewing Officers, GPs, carers, and the young people themselves. Your work will contribute directly to helping each young person achieve their full potential. You will also be part of a supportive and forward-thinking team, with opportunities to contribute to the ongoing development and improvement of Children in Care services.

The age range of Children in Care is 0-18 years (however, we are hoping to start incorporating care experienced young people), and it is envisaged that the Children’s in Care Nurse will have contact and case manage children across this age including unaccompanied asylum seeking children and young people. Most children and young people have experienced severe social dysfunction in their families together with significant traumatic life events, sometimes in complex combinations. These may include family break up and dysfunction, frequent changes of home and/or school, bereavement, violence, major illness or hospitalisation, and physical, emotional and/or sexual abuse. These factors exacerbate inherent medical issues, as well as impacting on the educational and social achievement.

• Promote the physical, mental and social aspects of children and young people.
• Assist in assessing care needs, planning, delivery and evaluation of care.
• Ensure that the needs of these children and young people are recognized and that appropriate care is initiated by the caseload holder.
• Assist in facilitating health education and health promotion for service users.
• Ensure comprehensive health assessments are produced for Children in Care, including young people with complex health problems.
• The caseload holder is able to utilise skills flexibly so that interventions can be creatively thought about, and provided within the young persons home, school, area office or other appropriate setting.

We welcome and encourage all applicants. We are committed to having a workforce that reflects the communities we support and are proactively seeking to improve the diversity of our workforce. We know diversity fosters creativity and innovation. We are committed to equality of opportunity, to being fair and inclusive, and to being a place where all belong. We aim to draw upon the widest possible range of views and experiences to meet the changing needs of our colleagues, partners and communities we serve.

Qualifications:

• Holds recognised qualification in first level registered nursing as recognised by the NMC
• Public Health Qualification
• An understanding of statutory/local policies and procedures including vulnerable children
• NMC Code of Conduct, policies and values
• A knowledge of guidance/research relating to children in care
• Relevant experience in children and young people's nursing/health field
• Ability to communicate with, engage with and advocate for Children and young people in care.
• Mental health knowledge
• Knowledge of the statutory responsibilities for children in care
• Public Health knowledge or experience

You must have appropriate UK professional registration. This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service.