Associate Director of Nursing - Safeguarding

MFT; Manchester; On-site; GBP 94,000 - 109,000; Full time

Job summary

Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust (MFT) invites applications for an Associate Director of Nursing - Safeguarding. The post provides strategic leadership for safeguarding adults and children across the Trust, ensuring statutory and regulatory obligations are met and high standards of care are delivered in hospital and community settings.

Reporting to the Deputy Chief Nursing Officer, you will line-manage the Head of Safeguarding, oversee governance, drive cross‑agency collaboration, and

Qualifications

• Registered Nurse/Midwife with UK registration
• Masters Degree in a health-related subject or equivalent
• Extensive experience as a senior nurse/manager in acute or community services
• Experience leading integration of services across agencies

Responsibilities

• Provide strategic leadership for safeguarding across the Trust
• Line manage Head of Safeguarding and oversee safeguarding portfolios
• Ensure governance systems and regulatory compliance are in place
• Work with partners to develop safeguarding provision across Manchester

Skills

Influence skills

Change management

Communication skills

Project management

Conflict resolution

Interdisciplinary collaboration

Autonomy

Education

Masters degree in health-related subject

Job description

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Associate Director of Nursing - Safeguarding

NHS AfC: Band 8d

Main area Assistant Deputy Trust Chief Executive/ Chief Nurse (Safeguarding) Grade NHS AfC: Band 8d Contract Permanent Hours Full time - 37.5 hours per week Job ref 349-COR-8310797-RL4

Site Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust Town Manchester Salary £94,356 - £108,814 Per annum / per annum Salary period Yearly Closing 08/10/2026 23:59

Job overview

Reporting to the Deputy chief nursing officer, the post holder will provide strategic leadership for safeguardingvulnerablepeopleacrosstheTrustandensurethattheTrustmeetsitsstatutoryand regulatory obligations. S/he will ensure that the highest standards of safeguarding adults and children are delivered in line with national, regional and local policy and guidance.

S/he will ensure appropriate safeguarding governance systems are in place and provide a key leadershiproleinrespondingtotherequirementsoftheregulatorsincludingCQCandMonitoras well as professional bodies. S/he will work closely with the Director of Clinical Governance to oversee the Trust’s compliance with CQC standards relevant to the portfolio and establish systems to ensure that the nursing care needs of vulnerable people are met compassionately in hospital and community settings.

S/hewillprovideakeyleadershiproleinthefuturedevelopmentofsafeguardingprovisionacross the city of Manchester, representing the Trust on partnerships and working closely with other agencies to ensure that people are safeguarded within a co-ordinated system.

Main duties of the job

The postholder will line manage the Head of Safeguarding and be accountable for the delivery of adult and children’s safeguarding services, and for the strategic leadership and delivery of the Trust’s learning disability, autism and mental health portfolio

Working for our organisation

Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust (MFT) is a leading, integrated healthcare provider, the largest of its kind in specialist services, and our Oxford Road Campus in Manchester, the largest health academic campus in Europe, serving over 1 million people per year through our 10 hospitals and extensive community services. With a workforce of 30,000 plus, we are at the forefront of system leadership, innovation, and transformation across Greater Manchester.

As a senior manager, you will play a critical role in shaping and delivering our strategic objectives. You will lead complex programmes, drive operational excellence, and influence Trust-wide transformation, working collaboratively with or through Executive and Clinical Leaders to deliver sustainable improvements for our patients, staff, and communities.

MFT offers a dynamic, inclusive environment where your leadership, vision, and expertise are valued. You will have the opportunity to lead high-impact projects, develop future talent, and contribute to a culture of continuous improvement, supported by advanced digital infrastructure and a commitment to professional development.
Join us to make a lasting impact—help shape the future of our Trust, drive innovation, and deliver outstanding care for the people of Manchester, Trafford and beyond.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

To find out more about the key responsibilities and the specific skills and experience you’ll need for this role, take a look at the Job Description & Person Specification attachments under the ‘Supporting Documents’ heading.

Explore ‘Inside MFT – Your Candidate Place’

To help you feel confident, prepared and fully informed before you apply, we invite you to explore Inside MFT – Your Candidate Place.

To access ‘Inside MFT – Your Candidate Place, simply click on the relevant PDF document under the ‘Supporting Documents’ section and once opened, you can where either scan QR code or click on the link provided.

We welcome applications from a wide range of backgrounds and experiences.
To help us manage applications fairly and give each one the time it deserves, our adverts may close early if we receive a high level of interest. Early applications are therefore encouraged.

Diversity Matters
MFT is committed to promoting equality of opportunity, celebrating and valuing diversity and eliminating any form of unlawful discrimination across our workforce, ensuring our people are truly representative of the communities we serve. All individuals regardless of age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex and sexual orientation are encouraged to apply for this post. As an inclusive employer, we are here to support you. If you have any special requirements to help you with your application, please contact the manager named below.

Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in your application

Here at Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust, we’re proud to be ALL HERE FOR YOU—for our patients, our communities, and each other.
As part of our commitment to fairness, transparency, and personal integrity, we ask all applicants to ensure that their job applications reflect their own experiences, skills, and motivations. While AI tools can support spelling, grammar, or formatting, we expect that the content of your application—especially personal statements and responses to role-specific questions is written by you. This helps us get to know the real you and ensures that our recruitment process remains equitable and meaningful for everyone.

Thank you for helping us uphold the values that make our Trust a place where people belong, grow, and thrive. We look forward to receiving your application.

Person specification

Knowledge

• Registered Nurse/Midwife
• Masters Degree in a health related subject/equivalent
• Extensive knowledge of safeguarding statute and regulation
• Evidence of training in compliance with Intercollegiate Guidance
• Able to demonstrate level 4 competencies as set out in Intercollegiate Guidance

Experience

• Extensive experience as a senior nurse /manager within acute or community services
• Highly experienced clinical practitioner in community settings
• Experience of leading integration of service across agencies
• Demonstrates breadth and depth of understanding of current NHS Policy and ability to interpret and implement in practice
• Significant experience across a range of health care priorities
• Experience in a management position at directorate level
• Experience in developing clinical teams
• Experience in managing change successfully
• Significant experience of safeguarding practice
• Experience in acute hospital settings
• Experience of membership of partnership boards

Skills

• Evidence of influence and negotiating skills
• Evidence of successful change management
• Evidence of highly developed written and verbal communication skills
• Evidence of managing complex projects
• Evidence of managing conflict and deploying successful conflict resolution strategies
• Ability to work with different disciplines across the health, education, social care and voluntary settings
• Demonstrates values and behaviours that accord with the Trust’s values and behaviours
• and behaviours. Demonstrates high degree of autonomy & decision making
• Able to work unsupervised and manage deadlines
• Ability to work at pace under pressure
• Ability to manage different projects simultaneously
• Evidence of transformational change management
• Ability to role model values and standards of the organisation to lead the profession
• Evidence of presentations

Employer certification / accreditation badges

You must have appropriate UK professional registration.

The postholder will have access to vulnerable people in the course of their normal duties and as such this post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service to check for any previous criminal convictions.