Director of Professional Nursing

Royal Surrey NHS Foundation Trust; Guildford; On-site; GBP 115,000 - 132,000; Full time

Job summary

Royal Surrey NHS Foundation Trust is seeking an exceptional nursing leader to join the senior leadership team as Director of Professional Nursing & Patient Experience.

You will shape patient care, experience and professional practice across the organisation, providing strategic leadership for nursing, midwifery and allied health professionals while championing patient-centred care and continuous improvement.

Qualifications

• Current NMC registration as a First Level Registered Nurse.
• Experience implementing significant organisational change.
• Experience working at scale across organisational boundaries and in partnership with other organisations.

Responsibilities

• Lead the delivery of the Trust's Patient Experience Strategy.
• Provide professional leadership for nursing, midwifery and allied health professionals.
• Drive improvements in quality, patient safety and patient outcomes.
• Lead workforce, education and professional development initiatives.
• Provide senior clinical leadership during operational pressures and escalation events.
• Support the delivery of safe patient flow and effective discharge processes.
• Act as a senior advocate for patients, carers and families.
• Develop strong partnerships across the Integrated Care System and wider health community.
• Deputise for the Chief Nurse when required and participate in the Executive On-Call rota.

Skills

Strategic thinking

Leadership

Partnership working

Education

NMC registration (First Level Registered Nurse)

Job description

Employer Royal Surrey NHS Foundation Trust Employer type NHS Site Royal Surrey Foundation Trust Town Guildford Salary £115,052 - £132,053 pro rata per annum inclusive of HCAS Salary period Yearly Closing 15/10/2026 23:59

Director of Professional Nursing

9

Job overview

We are seeking an exceptional and inspirational nursing leader to join our senior leadership team as Professional Director of Nursing & Patient Experience.

This is a key executive nursing leadership role responsible for shaping and delivering outstanding standards of patient care, patient experience, professional practice, workforce development and quality improvement across the organisation. Working closely with the Chief Nurse and Executive Team, the successful candidate will provide strategic leadership for nursing, midwifery and allied health professionals while championing patient-centred care and continuous improvement.

Main duties of the job

The post holder will play a pivotal role in developing nursing leadership, strengthening patient experience, leading quality improvement programmes, supporting workforce transformation and providing senior clinical leadership across operational flow, capacity management and patient safety agendas.

Working for our organisation

Royal Surrey is a compassionate and collaborative acute and community Trust. Recognising that our 5,000 colleagues are our greatest strength, we offer a comprehensive health and wellbeing programme alongside a strong commitment to developing your career. Our diverse and welcoming Royal Surrey family ensures you feel valued from your initial interview and throughout your time with us.

We are clinically led and provide joined-up care by bridging hospital and community services, alongside delivering regional specialist cancer care. Our main acute hospital site is in Guildford, with community sites at Milford, Haslemere and Cranleigh, and services delivered in patients’ homes across Guildford and Waverley.

We work in partnership with Ashford & St Peter’s Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust through a collaborative Group Model, supporting joined-up services, workforce flexibility and development opportunities.

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has rated us as Outstanding. We are proud of our achievements and continue to invest in our people and infrastructure.

To learn more about life at Royal Surrey, please watch our short video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R96pMboIYdo

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

• Leading the delivery of the Trust's Patient Experience Strategy.
• Providing professional leadership for nursing, midwifery and allied health professionals.
• Driving improvements in quality, patient safety and patient outcomes.
• Leading workforce, education and professional development initiatives.
• Providing senior clinical leadership during operational pressures and escalation events.
• Supporting the delivery of safe patient flow and effective discharge processes.
• Acting as a senior advocate for patients, carers and families.
• Developing strong partnerships across the Integrated Care System and wider health community.
• Deputising for the Chief Nurse when required and participating in the Executive On-Call rota.

Person specification

Qualifications

• Current NMC registration as a First Level Registered Nurse.

Knowledge and Experience

• Evidence of implementing significant organisational change and improvement.
• Evidence of working at scale across organisational boundaries and in partnership with other organisations to improve pathways of care.

Capabilities

• Strategic thinking and ability to work in partnership to develop, review and create Trust strategies and operationally anticipate and resolve problems before they arise

Employer certification / accreditation badges

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.