Clinical Lead, Specialist School Nursing and Epilepsy

ESSEX PARTNERSHIP UNIVERSITY NHS FOUNDATION TRUST; Leigh on Sea; On-site; GBP 40,000 - 55,000; Full time

Job summary

A UK healthcare organization is seeking a Clinical Lead for the Specialist School Nursing and Children's Epilepsy Services in Leigh on Sea. The role involves leading a team of nurses, ensuring high-quality care for children with complex health needs. Applicants must have a paediatric nursing qualification and exceptional communication skills. Benefits include 27 days holiday, an excellent pension, and a relocation package.

Benefits

27 days holiday, plus bank holidays

Excellent pension of up to 14.5%

Staff discounts

£8K relocation package

Flexible working options

Qualifications

• Experience working across multi-disciplinary teams and stakeholders.
• In-depth understanding of supporting a team with complex safeguarding concerns.
• Exceptional communication and negotiating skills.

Responsibilities

• Deliver specialist clinical paediatric nursing care.
• Provide leadership for specialist nursing services.
• Champion health needs of children and young people with SEND.

Skills

Communication skills

Negotiation skills

Leadership

Problem-solving

Education

Paediatric nursing qualification

Job description

Overview

Essex Partnership University NHS Trust (EPUT) is recruiting a Clinical Lead for the Specialist School Nursing and Children's Epilepsy Services. You will join an existing team of highly motivated and experienced Specialist School Nurses, two Epilepsy Nurse Specialists, Specialist School Nurse Assistants and 2 Associate Practitioners who provide a respite service to our most complex children. The Clinical Lead will travel across South East Essex.

We are looking for a highly skilled paediatric nurse to support the team. You will need to be flexible and dynamic to meet the increasing demands on services to support children and young people with disabilities and complex long term health needs to access education and achieve their best outcomes.

You will require exceptional communication, organisational and team leadership qualities to work as part of the multi‑disciplinary team, ensuring the team is providing safe, effective and high‑quality services to children and families, using evidence‑based practice to ensure all care is child‑centred and family‑focused.

You will be a champion for SEND, driving the SEND agenda operationally across the MSE community footprint to improve outcomes for children and young people with SEND.

Responsibilities

• Clinical lead and responsibility for delivering specialist clinical paediatric nursing care, promoting development, knowledge and expertise in the care and management of children and young people with complex health needs within special educational needs settings
• Clinical lead for paediatric epilepsy nursing service, supporting the epilepsy nurse in delivery and training in various settings across South East Essex
• Clinical lead for children's respite service
• Provide leadership and be a source of clinical expertise on SEND for partner organisations, specifically educational settings with 'supporting children with medical conditions'
• Be a champion for children and young people with SEND within the organisation and with partner organisations
• Direct line management (including budgetary) and responsibility for coordination and day‑to‑day operational management of the specialist school nursing team, epilepsy nurse and respite service
• Direct line responsibility and managing all staff within specialist school nursing service, children's epilepsy and children's respite services
• Be responsible for ensuring that services are delivered in line with the service specification and statutory duties (EHCP/LAC/safeguarding) and meet agreed KPI's
• Clinical expert in SEND for partner organisations
• Support and supervision to paediatric epilepsy nurses
• Provide specialist clinical support and supervision to the specialist school nurses, including support on complex safeguarding matters
• Exceptional problem‑solving skills and ability to respond to unexpected demands
• Ability to deal with sensitive information and make difficult decisions on contentious issues
• Promote voice of the child and work in collaboration with parents/carers/voluntary and parent forums
• Experience of risk assessing and completing complex risk assessments
• Lead on transition to adult services for the team
• Key member of the education and health care plan (EHCP) panel
• Key member of the children's targeted senior management team
• Direct budget responsibility for the team
• Responsible for maintaining and improving own professional knowledge and competence in accordance with NMC guidelines

Qualifications & Experience

• Exceptional communication and negotiating skills
• Experience of working across multi‑disciplinary teams and stakeholders
• In‑depth understanding of supporting a team with complex safeguarding concerns

Communication & Professional Requirements

• Strong professional leadership to champion health needs of children and young people with SEND within various forums, meetings and panels, ensuring the voice of the child/young person is paramount
• Ability to deliver and receive highly sensitive and complex information, specifically relating to safeguarding
• Exceptional ability to communicate, influence and negotiate with stakeholders to achieve best outcomes for children and young people with SEND

Reference Requirement

Important note: please ensure that as part of your application, you include professional references with business contact information covering your last three years of employment history. We are unable to accept personal or character references.

Other Employment Conditions

As a newly appointed employee, you are responsible for incurring the cost of your initial DBS check relevant to your post; the amount will be deducted from your first salary with the Trust.

Anyone directly employed to work in a Care Home or required as part of their role to be deployed to a CQC registered care home must have had both their COVID vaccinations, unless exempt. This is a requirement of the role and will form part of our pre‑employment checks.

Equal Opportunities

Our Trust is an Equal Opportunities Employer. We particularly welcome applications from people with experience of using mental health services. We also hold the Disability two‑tick symbol and have made a pledge to commit to employing more people with learning disabilities; we encourage people with a disability to apply. If you require this application form in another format (Braille, audio tape, etc.), please contact the Recruitment Department on 01375 364513 or email [email protected] and we can arrange for it to be dispatched to you.

Benefits & Support

• 27 days holiday, plus bank holidays, rising to 33 days after 10 years' service
• Excellent pension of up to 14.5% of your pensionable pay
• Staff discounts including Blue Light Card, NHS discount offers, and staff benefits
• £8K relocation package if you move to Essex to join us
• Season ticket loans are interest‑free to cover the cost of travelling to and from work via tram, rail, or bus
• Flexible working: available from day one for most roles
• Receive supervision and support to help you fulfil your potential
• Join an inclusive community and connect with others through engagement events and equality or champion networks
• Provide mental health and wellbeing services, occupational health advice and counseling
• Run recognition awards to recognise staff's hard work and dedication