Lead Breast Cancer Clinical Nurse

King's College Hospital; Orpington; Remote; GBP 64,000 - 71,000; Part time

Benefits offered by this job

Flexible working options

Professional development opportunities

Job summary

King’s College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust in Orpington is advertising a 12-month fixed-term maternity cover for a Lead Breast Clinical Nurse Specialist to provide professional leadership to the Breast CNS team and deliver high-quality, patient-centred care across the breast cancer pathway.

The post requires senior clinical experience (Band 7+) in cancer or acute care, with the ability to lead service development, governance, education and multidisciplinary working.

Qualifications

• MSc level qualification or willingness to work towards.
• Professional Registration is required.
• Advanced communication skills training.
• Chemotherapy training qualifications are desirable.

Responsibilities

• Provide professional and clinical leadership to the Breast CNS team.
• Independently manage a complex caseload and work with the multidisciplinary team.
• Lead service improvement initiatives and contribute to national cancer standards.
• Promote evidence-based practice, governance, education and workforce development.

Skills

Leadership

Clinical leadership

Advanced communication

Team management

Decision making

Interpersonal skills

Education

MSc level qualification

Professional Registration

Advanced communication training

Chemotherapy training qualifications

Job description

Main area Breast Grade Band 8a Contract Fixed term: 12 months (Maternity leave Cover) Hours Part time - 23.63 hours per week Job ref 213-DivisionB-8214986-B

Employer King's College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust Employer type NHS Site Princess Royal University Hospital Town Orpington Salary £63,665 - £70,887 pro rata per annum including HCAS Salary period Yearly Closing 14/10/2026 23:59

King’s College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust is one of the UK’s largest and busiest teaching Trusts with a turnover of c£2.1 billion, 1.5 million patient contacts a year and more than 14,000 staff based across 5 main sites in South East London. The Trust provides a full range of local hospital services across its different sites, and specialist services from King’s College Hospital (KCH) sites at Denmark Hill in Camberwell and at the Princess Royal University Hospital (PRUH) site in the London Borough of Bromley.

We encourage all our staff to have a healthy work/life balance. In doing so, you can apply for flexible working from the beginning of your employment. We offer a range of options which are designed to suit different circumstances and priorities in line with service requirements.

Fixed-Term Opportunity – 12-Month Maternity Leave Cover

An exciting opportunity has arisen for an experienced Lead Breast Clinical Nurse Specialist to join the Breast Cancer Service on a 12-month fixed-term basis to provide maternity leave cover.

The post holder will provide expert clinical leadership to the Breast Clinical Nurse Specialist (CNS) team, ensuring the delivery of high-quality, evidence-based, patient-centred care throughout the breast cancer pathway. Working as an integral member of the multidisciplinary team, the successful candidate will lead service development, support the delivery of national cancer standards, oversee personalised cancer care and contribute to the continuous improvement of breast cancer services.

This is a senior clinical leadership role, combining advanced specialist practice with service development, governance, education and operational oversight to ensure patients receive safe, effective and compassionate care.

Main duties of the job

The Lead Breast Clinical Nurse Specialist will provide professional and clinical leadership to the Breast CNS team whilst delivering expert specialist nursing care to patients with breast cancer. The post holder will independently manage a complex caseload and work collaboratively with the multidisciplinary team to ensure patients receive coordinated, high-quality care throughout their cancer pathway.

The role is responsible for leading service improvement initiatives, supporting delivery of national cancer performance standards, overseeing personalised cancer care and contributing to clinical governance, education, audit and research. The post holder will also promote evidence-based practice, support workforce development and work across organisational boundaries to improve patient outcomes and experience.

Working for our organisation

The Trust provides a full range of local and specialist services across its five sites. In June 2026, we launched our new strategy for 2026-31. Our vision is to transform healthcare, and we have agreed six strategic ambitions to help us improve care for patients, and the working lives of our staff.

Our six strategic ambitions are deliveringhigh-quality patient care; creating a great place to work; leading pioneering research, innovation and education; building strong and successful partnerships; providing timely and efficient care; and ensuring long-term financial sustainability.

We have also agreed four new organisational values – Caring, Collaborative, Inclusive, Innovative – and these underpin everything we do, and how our teams interact with the patients under our care.

We are at a pivotal point in our history and we require individuals who are ready to join a highly professional team and make a real, lasting difference to our patients and our people.

King’s is committed to delivering Sustainable Healthcare for All via our Green Plan. In line with national Greener NHS ambitions, we have set net zero carbon targets of 2040 for our NHS Carbon Footprint and 2045 for our NHS Carbon Footprint Plus. Everyone’s contribution is required in order to meet the goals set out in our Green Plan and we encourage all staff to work responsibly, minimising their contributions to the Trust’s carbon emissions, waste and pollution wherever possible.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

The successful candidate will provide expert clinical leadership and operational oversight of the Breast Clinical Nurse Specialist service, ensuring the delivery of safe, effective and compassionate care for patients diagnosed with breast cancer. Responsibilities include managing a specialist caseload, leading the Breast CNS team, supporting multidisciplinary working and contributing to the delivery of national cancer standards through effective pathway coordination.

The post holder will lead the development of evidence-based practice, oversee personalised cancer care, contribute to governance, audit and quality improvement, and support education and professional development within the team. Working closely with colleagues across the Trust and partner organisations, they will ensure the continued delivery of high-quality services that improve patient experience and clinical outcomes. This 12-month fixed-term maternity leave cover is essential to maintaining continuity of leadership, service resilience and the ongoing delivery of the Breast Cancer Service.

Person specification

Education and Qualification

• Professional Registration
• MSc Level qualification or willingness to work towards.
• Advanced communication Skills Training
• Chemotherapy Training Qualifications

Knowledge and Experience

• Significant post registration experience at a senior level (Band 7 or above) in cancer or acute care
• Experience of participation in service development and implementation of change
• Broard understanding of personalised care
• Experience of teaching and assessing in a variety of clinical environments
• Advanced Clinical Assessment skills
• Evidence of dissemination of knowledge in wider healthcare organisations
• Expert knowledge of KPI related to the role of the Cancer Clinical Nurse Specialist.
• Publication in healthcare journals

Skills and Competencies

• Ability to perform in stressful and complex situation
• Sound clinical reasoning & decision making
• Ability to inspire and lead a team with demonstrable management experience.
• Competent to manage work autonomously
• Skills to influence and overcome resistance through application of advanced communication skills
• Ability to develop effective interpersonal relationships with colleagues across health and social care setting

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Relying too much on AI can negatively impact your chances of success because automatically generated answers:

• might not be specific or relevant enough to address the criteria in the recruitment profile
• often seem generic and not personalised enough – an AI response won’t show your unique voice and perspective
• could misrepresent information about you, such as your qualifications, skills and experience

We monitor applications for any behaviour that could create an unfair advantage, and we check all references carefully. You are likely to be tested on your experience at interview, so be honest and make sure all the information in your application is correct.

King's College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust Annual Reports and Other Corporate Publications

King's Health Partners Academic Health Science Centre Website

King's College Hospital is part of King's Health Partners Academic Health Sciences Centre (AHSC), a pioneering collaboration between King's College London, and Guy's and St Thomas', King's College Hospital and South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trusts.

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.

Name Hannah Ford Job title Lead Breast Cancer Clinical Nurse Specialist