Specialist Nurse/Health Practitioner Safeguarding Children, (MASH) in Brighton

We are looking to recruit a NMC registered Specialist Nurse/Health Practitioner, Safeguarding Children, to work within the Brighton and Hove MASH in Brighton. The post holder will work within the multi-agency integrated team, gathering, collating and sharing health information to assist the assessment of notifications and referrals relating to children aged 0-18 years, which are received by the Local Authority front door and processed in the MASH. This is primarily an in office role, with some opportunity for hybrid working, dependent on service needs being met.

The successful candidate will have sound knowledge and experience of safeguarding children practice from unborn to 18th birthday. They also need to be able to work in complex and challenging environments, manage their work without continual on-site line management and be prepared to cross-cover the other MASH sites. The successful candidate will have excellent verbal, written communication and analytical skills to provide safeguarding advice and to contribute to decision making within the MASH. They will be able to develop robust and positive relationships between multi-agency partners and will need to demonstrate emotional resilience.

Main duties of the job

The post holder will primarily be part of a co-located multi-agency team within an identified MASH in Sussex, which includes Police, Local Authority Children's Social Care and others, whilst maintaining strong links with Sussex Community NHS Foundation Trust (SCFT) safeguarding team. The role involves providing relevant and proportionate collation and analysis of health information, contributing to decision making for children, and providing professional challenge where necessary to ensure robust outcomes for children. The post holder will work to continually improve safeguarding arrangements across the health economy in partnership with a range of agencies and services.

The Local Authority holds statutory responsibility for the management of notifications and referrals, but the decision and planning required to inform the outcome of the notification or referral is made by the integrated MASH team. Multi-agency cooperation is a statutory duty of all professionals delivering care to children and families (Children's Act, 2004 and Working Together to Safeguard Children, 2023).

The five core elements of a MASH have been agreed by stakeholders as:

• Providing a single front door for referrals and notifications
• Co-location of key partners
• Provides a safe confidential environment
• Enables analysis of risk or need on a case-by-case basis
• Enables wider victim identification within communities

About us

Sussex Community Foundation NHS Trust is the largest provider of community healthcare services in Sussex, our teams help people to plan for and manage changes to their health, supporting patients and their families to live more independently. We employ around 5000 staff and provide community services to a population of 1.3 million people. Each year our dedicated clinicians see adult or child patients more than 2.6 million times, caring for people from their earliest moments right up to the final stages of their life. We develop and nurture our staff and recognise that they are our greatest asset. We give them clear career pathways, support their wellbeing, recognise and value their diversity and provide them with the leadership, skills and knowledge they need to deliver the best care for our patients now and in the future.

Job responsibilities

Please refer to the attached job description and person specification for more details regarding this role.

Person Specification

• Registered nurse/midwife with SCPHN, or RSCN
• Completed specific post-registration training in child protection/safeguarding children at degree level or higher OR evidence of significant safeguarding children experience
• SCPHN Health Visitor/School Nurse qualification or significant relevant post registration nurse experience.
• Evidence of continuing professional development
• Significant post registration experience in child protection casework.
• Recent Clinical experience relating to safeguarding and protecting children from harm
• Experience of partnership working within Health economy and other agencies and across organisational boundaries
• Experience of working with sensitive information in complex situations
• Experience and knowledge of making judgements involving highly complex situations and implementing workable situations
• Experience of planning and delivering a variety of teaching to single and multi-agency
• Previous experience in supervising or advising staff in Safeguarding
• Evidence of working in a MASH or similar setting
• Experience of undertaking audits
• Experience of report writing

Skills and Knowledge

• Understanding of legislation relating to safeguarding children and adults
• Ability to plan, organise, prioritise and work under pressure
• Demonstrates resilience and ability to work flexibly
• Ability to work autonomously as part of a team
• Ability to work and communicate effectively at all levels with staff within all health providers and other partner organisations.
• In depth knowledge and understanding of national and local child protection guidance, policies and procedures and legislation
• Knowledge and understanding of multi-disciplinary, inter-professional practice to include primary care and Children & Young People Services & Adult services
• Evidence of knowledge and skills in undertaking Risk Assessment.
• High level assessment and analysis skills
• High level of interpersonal communication skills, including verbal, written and presentation
• Ability to challenge decisions and articulate rationale
• Ability to influence and achieve change
• IT skills in Outlook, PowerPoint, Word and Excel

Other requirements

• Experience of managing a team and providing supervision
• Able to travel across Sussex and provide cross-cover to other MASH services
• This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.

£46,148 to £52,809 a year per annum (pro rata for part time role)