Band 6 Renal Clinical Practice Educator/VA Specialist Nurse

NHS; Greater London; On-site; GBP 48,000 - 57,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Flexible hours

Generous benefits

Job summary

Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust is seeking a Band 6 Renal Clinical Practice Educator / Vascular Access Specialist Nurse. You will lead renal clinical education and support haemodialysis access, coordinating with the renal team to develop competencies and clinical governance.

The role blends clinical practice with education, workforce development and research involvement, promoting evidence-based care and professional development across the renal service.

Qualifications

• Recognised teaching or mentorship qualification.
• Post registration qualification relevant to renal speciality (renal course or equivalent).
• Master’s degree or working towards it.
• Advanced assessment skills or working towards.
• Independent nurse prescribing course or willingness to undertake.

Responsibilities

• Provide a visible clinical and educational resource to renal nursing teams, focusing on haemodialysis vascular access.
• Perform vascular access assessment and surveillance; ensure safe cannulation practice and management.
• Deliver education programmes, competency assessment, bedside teaching and practice development.
• Contribute to audits, quality improvement and implementation of evidence-based practice.
• Collaborate with multidisciplinary teams to promote high standards of renal nursing care.

Skills

Leadership

Communication skills

Problem solving

Change management

Cannulation knowledge

Education

Teaching or mentorship qualification

Post-registration renal qualification

Master's degree or progress

Independent prescribing course or willingness

Advanced assessment skills

Job description

Our current vacancies

If you want to be part of the Royal Free London team, search our current vacancies below to find the job for you.

Band 6 Renal Clinical Practice Educator/VA Specialist Nurse

NHS AfC: Band 6

Main area Renal Grade NHS AfC: Band 6 Contract Permanent Hours Full time - 37.5 hours per week Job ref 391-RFL-8287716

Site Royal Free Hospital and associated dialysis units Town Hampstead Salary £47,951 - £56,863 Per annum inclusive of HCAS Salary period Yearly Closing 23/11/2026 23:59

Our trust has over 17,000 staff serving 2 million patients every year. It comprises Barnet Hospital, Chase Farm Hospital, the Royal Free Hospital, North Middlesex University Hospital and more than 30 services in the community. This larger scale organisation provides an unprecedented opportunity for us to continue our pioneering work, particularly in finding ways to deliver even better care to our patients.

Our mission is to deliver world class care and expertise in our clinical services, underpinned by world class teaching and research and we will continue to measure our progress against our five governing objectives: excellent outcomes, excellent patient and staff experience, excellent value for taxpayers’ money, being safe and meeting our external duties, and building a strong organisation.

Everyone is welcome at Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust. We're proud of our diversity and we continue to undertake new initiatives to advance equality for LGBT+, BME, gender equality, staff carers and people with disabilities and lived experiences to promote good relations and understanding between our staff.

Artificial intelligence (AI) is a set of technology that can perform various tasks that typically required human intelligence. Your application is your opportunity to demonstrate to us how you meet the requirements of the role. We recognise that AI tools can support accessibility, equity and confidence for applicants.However, it’s important that examples and responses genuinely reflect your own experience and abilities, as these will be explored further during the selection process. AI must not be used to provide misleading or false information during any stage of the application journey. Further guidance can be found in the NLPSS Applicant Toolkit https://royalfree.pagetiger.com/cuuomnr/1.

Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust is committed to ensuring that its recruitment processes are carried out with integrity, transparency, and fairness for all applicants. To help maintain these standards, we ask candidates to provide accurate and truthful information throughout the recruitment process.

If incorrect or misleading information is identified, this may affect the progression of an application, any employment offer, or continued employment. As part of our due diligence, the company may verify the information provided by applicants and take appropriate act ion where necessary.

We do not charge applicants any fees at any stage of the recruitment process, including applications, interviews, sponsorship arrangements, pre-employment checks, or employment offers. All vacancies are advertised through TRAC/NHS Jobs and candidates are assessed solely on their skills, qualifications, experience, and suitability for the role. If you are asked to make a payment in connection with an NHS job opportunity, please treat this as suspicious and contact the organisation directly using the details published on our official career's website.

Are you an experienced renal nurse looking for an exciting opportunity to develop your specialist clinical, education and leadership skills?

We at the Royal Free Hospital are looking for an enthusiastic and motivated Renal Clinical Practice Educator / Vascular Access Specialist Nurse to join our renal team in this innovative Band 6 role.

This is an exciting opportunity for a nurse who is passionate about high-quality renal care, vascular access, education and staff development, and who is keen to progress their clinical practice towards an Advanced Clinical Practitioner (ACP) role.

This unique hybrid role combines specialist clinical practice with clinical education and workforce development. You will work closely with the Senior Clinical Practice Educator (CPE) and Senior Vascular Access Clinical Nurse Specialist (CNS) to promote high standards of evidence-based renal nursing practice and support the development of a skilled, confident and competent renal workforce.

Main duties of the job

The post holder will provide a visible clinical and educational resource to renal nursing teams, with a particular focus on haemodialysis vascular access, including:

Vascular access assessment and surveillance.
Cannulation and development of safe cannulation practice.
Vascular access care and management.
Recognition of vascular access complications and appropriate escalation.
Providing specialist advice within their level of competence.
Supporting staff to develop and maintain clinical competencies.

Alongside specialist clinical responsibilities, they will contribute to the delivery of education programmes, competency assessment, bedside teaching, coaching and practice development.

They will also have opportunities to contribute to audit, quality improvement and the implementation of evidence-based practice, helping to identify areas for improvement and translate learning into meaningful changes in patient care.

Working for our organisation

The Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust is one of the UK’s biggest and most innovative trusts. Across three main hospitals, our dedicated army of staff care for over 1.6million patients, treat more than 200,000 in A&E, deliver over 8,000 babies and carry out more than 17million tests.

Our size, scale and influence offer you unrivalled career opportunities and a forward-thinking approach to working that works around your lifestyle. From flexible hours and generous benefits, to next level training, we make it easier to take your career to the top.

For more information please follow link https://www.royalfreelondonjobs.co.uk/.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Please see attached job description for more information about this role and working at Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust.

Person specification

Education and professional qualifications

• Recognised teaching or mentorship qualification.
• Post registration qualification relevant to specialty (renal course or equivalent)
• Evidence of ongoing professional development in vascular access and haemodialysis practice.
• Master’s degree or working towards
• Advanced assessment skills or working towards
• Independent nurse prescribing course or willingness to undertake

Experience

• Substantial post-registration experience in area of renal specialty (HD/CPE/VA)ken nurse led clinics.
• Experience of assessing clinical competence and supporting staff to achieve and maintain required competencies
• Current experience in leading or promoting good practice in cannulation/IPC
• Experience of working collaboratively with multidisciplinary teams
• Previous experience of research and audit
• Undertaken nurse led clinics.

Skills and Aptitudes

• Able to lead, manage and motivate others in complex problem solving and assessment skills.
• Demonstrates evidence of knowledge and ability to undertake change management
• Knowledge of current advances and pathways of care relevant to specialty
• Ability to develop collaborative working relationships with multi professional teams.
• Skilled in use of computer/keyboard
• Able to manage stressful situations and challenge decisions to ensure that patient needs are met
• Excellent communication skills and ability to negotiate and influence
• Expert specialist skills for the post
• Ability to problem-solve, priorities and to work to deadlines.
• Ability to motivate staff and improve individuals and team performance.

Personal qualities and attributes

• Be a positive role model with the ability to demonstrate credible and professional approach
• Evidence of proven, on-going professional development
• Ability to work under pressure
• Ability to work as a team and form professional relationships with colleagues
• Diplomatic and calm
• To be flexible and approachable

Royal Free shared commitments

• Demonstrable ability to meet the Trust shared commitments
• AT* - Apprenticeship Training. Where AT* is entered next to the job title indicates that this vacancy is for an apprenticeship role.
• By applying for this role, you accept if successful, that your personal data may be transferred from the Trust to another NHS organisation where your employment transfers within the NHS. This is in accordance with the streamlining programme which aims at saving you time and improving efficiencies within the NHS when your employment transfers.Therefore we require you to complete your stat and Man e-learning modules prior to joining our organisation.
• Some administrative recruitment activities may be undertaken using automated workflow and robotic process automation technologies. These tools assist authorised staff in processing recruitment records and employment checks but do not make decisions regarding your employment.
• EU/EEA citizen who does not have EU Settlement or Pre-Settled status, you will require a visa to work in the UK.
• You must already have the right to work in the United Kingdom or fully meet the eligibility criteria for sponsorship under the Skilled Worker visa route. We welcome applications from candidates who require visa sponsorship; however, we can only consider these where all UKVI requirements are met. Before applying, please ensure that both you and the role satisfy the relevant UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) points‑based system criteria, as applications that do not meet these requirements cannot be progressed. For more information about the criteria, please click here
• If you are offered a role with one of the NLPSS partner trusts, as part of pre-employment checks youridentity and right to work documentation will be verifiedremotely (in most circumstances), using a certified identity verification service provider TrustID. You will be asked to capture an image of the relevant documents as well as a “selfie” using your smartphone/tablet (if available) for facial matching. TrustID will also perform a digital address check using Trunarrative and Equifax, which is a soft check and does not leave a footprint on your credit rating. For more information, visit www.trustid.co.uk
• The Trust uses electronic new starter forms on Trac to collect personal details. Information collected is securely stored and used to set up the employee record on the ESR HR system.
• The Trust will request a DBS(CRB) if post involves regulated activities. The Trust is compliant with the Disclosure and Barring Service Codes of practice and the Rehabilitation of offenders act.
• By applying for this post you are agreeing to Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust transferring the information contained in this application to its preferred applicant management system. If you are offered a job, information will also be transferred into the national NHS Electronic Staff Records system.

Applications are welcome from people wishing to job share or work flexible patterns. We are committed to equal opportunities.

Please be advised that due to exceptionally high demand, all Royal Free accommodation is at full capacity and waiting lists are being held. Average waiting times are 12 months. Please do not rely on Trust accommodation when you commence your role and ensure you investigate alternative accommodation for your arrival.

Employer certification / accreditation badges

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.