Clinical Lead

Northamptonshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust; Wellingborough; Hybrid; GBP 65,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

Northamptonshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust is seeking a Clinical Lead for the Wellingborough and East Northants CMHT on a 12-month basis. The post blends clinical leadership with service development to improve care for people with complex mental health needs.

You will lead a supportive team, ensure high standards of care, and drive service delivery using key systems to support governance and quality improvement. This role sits within a proactive leadership triad.

Qualifications

• Registered Mental Health Professional with at least three years of post-registration experience.
• Experience delivering clinical leadership within a multidisciplinary team.
• Experience in Adult Mental Health Community Services.

Responsibilities

• Provide day-to-day clinical leadership to the Community Mental Health Team.
• Oversee workload, allocation of duties and delivery of safe, high-quality care.
• Lead on governance, audits, and continuous improvement within the team.
• Support staff development, supervision and preceptorship for learners.

Skills

Clinical leadership

Team building

Job description

This is a really exciting opportunity to take on a 12 month Clinical Lead role within the Wellingborough and East Northants CMHT. It offers the chance to bring together your clinical experience and leadership skills, while making a real difference to people with complex mental health needs as part of a developing service.

In this role, you will provide day to day clinical leadership to a supportive and experienced team, helping to maintain high standards of care and supporting staff to grow and develop. As community mental health services continue to evolve, this is an important role for someone who is motivated, forward thinking and keen to shape how services are delivered in the future.

You will work closely within a triumvirate leadership team alongside a Band 7 Operational Manager and a Band 7 Specialist Nurse, reporting to the Band 8a Service Manager. Together, you will focus on delivering safe, effective and person centred care, while continuing to improve the service and outcomes for the people we support.

Main duties of the job

The Clinical Lead is responsible for ensuring the delivery of high quality, evidence based care within the CMHT that is recovery focused. They will act as a source of expert clinical advice, leadership and support to the wider team, promoting safe and effective practice.

The post holder will use a range of clinical systems, including SystmOne, SMART, MaST and Datix, to support governance, quality monitoring and service delivery. They will have oversight of the day to day workload of the clinical team, supporting effective allocation of work and ensuring care is delivered safely and efficiently.

Working closely with the Operational Manager, the Clinical Lead will ensure adherence to local and national safeguarding procedures and will support the development, implementation and embedding of both national and local policies within the team.

Working for our organisation

NHFT is an NHS Community and Mental Health Foundation Trust, providing physical, mental health and specialty services in hospital settings and in the community. We provide over 200 services across the county - as well as some specialist services in bordering and nearby counties. We work together with our partners to ensure that everyone who comes through our doors receives compassionate, person-centred care, regardless of their background or circumstances.

NHFT promotes a culture of learning, to improve the care and safety of our patients and colleagues. We have achieved our ‘outstanding’ rating by encouraging opportunity, innovation, development and growth across our workforce.
At NHFT we believe that work should be rewarded in every sense which is why we are proud to an accredited living wage employer.

We aim to support financial wellbeing and create an environment where are people feel valued and able to thrive.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

The Clinical Lead will provide effective clinical leadership to the Community Mental Health Team, ensuring the delivery of safe, high quality and recovery focused care. Working as part of the triumvirate leadership structure, the post holder will support service development, workforce capability and continuous improvement within a changing healthcare environment.

Clinical leadership and quality

Provide visible clinical leadership and expert advice to support safe, effective and evidence based practice

Promote a culture of continuous improvement, ensuring care is person centred, recovery focused and aligned with best practice

Lead on clinical quality standards, including audits, care standards and governance requirements such as MaST and infection control

Use systems including SystmOne, SMART, MaST and Datix to support quality monitoring and clinical governance

Service delivery and performance

Oversee the day to day management of clinical activity, including caseload oversight and allocation of work

Work in partnership with the Operational Manager to ensure effective management of demand, capacity and waiting lists, including the Referral to Treatment pathway

Support the delivery and monitoring of key performance indicators, ensuring services are safe, responsive and efficient

Safeguarding, governance and risk

Ensure adherence to local and national safeguarding procedures and statutory requirements

Support the implementation and embedding of national and local policies within the team

Lead on learning from incidents, complaints and patient safety investigations, ensuring improvements are embedded in practice

Leadership, supervision and workforce development

Provide clinical supervision and support to a range of staff including Band 6 qualified clinicians such as Occupational Therapists and Community Psychiatric Nurses, as well as non qualified staff including Community Support Workers

Support newly qualified staff through structured preceptorship, helping them to build confidence, consolidate clinical skills and transition safely into practice

Promote reflective practice, professional curiosity and continuous professional development across the team

Foster a positive and inclusive learning culture where staff feel valued, supported and able to grow

Oversee the supervision of learners and contribute to maintaining a high quality learning environment

Deliver teaching, training and development opportunities, sharing advanced clinical knowledge and skills

Collaborative working and communication

Chair and contribute to multi disciplinary meetings, supporting the management of complex clinical situations

Build and maintain strong working relationships with internal and external partners

Communicate highly complex, sensitive or contentious information in a clear and professional manner

Service development and improvement

Contribute to service transformation, supporting the development of new ways of working and improved care pathways

Act as a champion for research, innovation and evidence based practice within the team

Work with the leadership team to identify opportunities for service improvement and improved patient outcomes

Experience

• Registered Mental Health Professional with a minimum of three years' post-registration experience working within Adult Mental Health Services.
• Clinical experience working within Adult Mental Health Community Services.
• Experience providing clinical leadership within a multidisciplinary

CPD

• Personal statement demonstrates a clear understanding of the role and evidences how the applicant meets the essential criteria.
• Evidence of continued professional development (CPD) and commitment to maintaining and developing professional knowledge and skills.

By completing an application you are giving authorisation for the transfer of your data. In submitting an application form, you authorise us to confirm any previous NHS service details via the Electronic Staff Record (ESR) Inter Authority Transfer (IAT) process. Including factual reference, occupational health clearance and statutory and mandatory training records and full service history.

You must ensure that your application, including supporting statements and behaviour examples, are truthful and factually accurate. Please note plagiarism can include presenting the ideas and experience of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own.

Correspondence regarding your application will be sent to you via a TRAC system account.

We are an equal opportunities employer, which aims to employ a workforce that reflects the diverse communities we serve. We welcome applications from all suitably qualified persons from all backgrounds.

All roles are subject to the home office immigration rules and therefore eligibility must meet certain requirements for any sponsorship to be considered. Please visit the government website for more information regarding eligibility,

At NHFT we support many of our colleagues to work flexibly and we will consider requests for flexible working from day one. For this role, we are open to discussing a range of options including flexible hours, agile/home working, compressed hours and part time hours. Please have a conversation with the recruiting manager about the flexibility you need and we will promise to explore what is possible with you.

Applicants who have a disability and meet the essential criteria for the job will be considered under the Guaranteed Interview Scheme. If you require a reasonable adjustment at any stage of the recruitment process please make the recruitment services team aware as soon as possible.

All posts that are engaged in a regulated activity will be subject to a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check and a DBS re-check on a three yearly basis whilst employed in such a role. Staff employed in these posts will therefore be asked to register with the DBS Automatic Update Service upon receipt of their DBS certificate and must update yearly , the annual fee will be reimbursed subject to Trust policy. For further information please visit: DBS Update Service: applicant guide - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

Please note if a DBS is applicable for the position then a charge will be deducted from your first salary.

Please note that all new starters to the trustare subject to a probationary period.

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.