Looked After Children Nurse

Oxleas NHS Foundation Trust; London; On-site; GBP 32,000 - 40,000; Full time

Job summary

Join a leading healthcare provider as a Band 6 Looked After Children Nurse. You'll lead health assessments and collaborate with various professionals to improve health outcomes for vulnerable children. This role offers a chance to make a significant impact in the community while being part of a supportive team.

Qualifications

• Minimum of 3 years post qualification experience in relevant areas.
• Proven experience working with Looked After Children.

Responsibilities

• Conduct health assessments for Looked After Children.
• Develop and implement Health Care Plans.
• Collaborate with multi-agency teams for coordinated care.

Skills

Communication

Teamwork

Child Development

Education

Registered Nurse (Child, Adult, or Mental Health)

Health Visiting / School Nursing qualification

Tools

Microsoft Office

Electronic Patient Record Systems

Job description

Are you a passionate and experienced nurse looking to make a real difference in the lives of children and young people? If so, we would love to welcome you to our dedicated and dynamic team within the Children and Young People’s Directorate at Oxleas NHS Foundation Trust.

We are currently seeking an enthusiastic and innovative Band 6 Looked After Children Nurse to join us in delivering high-quality, compassionate care to our Looked After Children , aged 0–18 years. In this rewarding role, you will take the lead in carrying out statutory health assessments and play a pivotal part in identifying, addressing, and advocating for the health needs of children in care.

Working within our integrated, multi-agency team, you will collaborate with professionals across health, education, and social care to ensure a holistic and person-centred approach to care . Your insight and clinical expertise will support better health outcomes and help shape positive futures for some of our most vulnerable children and young people.

The successful candidate will be fully supported in the role by operational management, access to clinical and managerial supervision, access to clinical education team various opportunities across the trust.

If you are committed to delivering excellence in care and want to be part of a supportive team that truly values your contribution, we’d be delighted to hear from you.

Join us and be part of something that really matters.

Main duties of the job

• Work collaboratively with the Named Doctor, Named Nurse, and other key professionals to deliver comprehensive, holistic health assessments for all children entering care or currently being looked after
  
  
• In partnership with the Named Doctor, Named Nurse, and GPs, contribute to the development of personalised Health Care Plans (HCPs) to address identified and ongoing health needs.
  
  
• Lead on the coordination and implementation of Health Care Plans through effective liaison with relevant health and social care professionals.
  
  
• Take responsibility for completing statutory review health assessments for Looked After Children (LAC) aged 0–18 years in accordance with national and local guidance.
  
  
• Develop, implement, and evaluate Health Care Plans in collaboration with LAC and their carers, ensuring a person-centred approach.
  
  
• Contribute to the continuous improvement, coordination, and quality of health care provision for LAC and care leavers across services.
  
  
• Promote active involvement by supporting children, young people, carers, and families to navigate services, participate in health-related decisions, and access advocacy where appropriate.

Working for our organisation

Oxleas offers a wide range of NHS healthcare services to people in community and secure environment settings. Our services include community health care such as district nursing and speech and language therapy, care for people with learning disabilities and mental health care such as psychiatry, nursing and therapies. Our multidisciplinary teams look after people of all ages and we work in close partnership with other parts of the NHS, local councils and the voluntary sector and through our new provider collaboratives. Our 4,300 members of staff work in many different settings including hospitals, clinics, prisons, secure hospitals, children’s centres, schools and people’s homes.

We have over 125 sites in a variety of locations in the South of England. In London we operate within the Boroughs of Bexley, Bromley Greenwich and into Kent. We manage hospital sites including Queen Mary’s Hospital, Sidcup and Memorial Hospital, Woolwich, as well as the Bracton Centre, our medium secure unit for people with mental health needs. We are the largest NHS provider of prison health services providing healthcare to prisons within Devon, Dorset, Bristol, Wiltshire and Gloucestershire, Kent and South London. We are proud of the care we provide and our people.

Our purpose is to improve lives by providing the best possible care to our patients and their families. This is strengthened by our new values:

• We Listen
• We Care

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Clinical Responsibilities

Undertakes statutory health assessments for Looked After Children (LAC), including developmental and emotional well-being, in line with national and local guidelines.

Identifies health needs and initiates appropriate follow-up, referrals, or interventions.

Manages a defined caseload and works collaboratively to ensure effective service delivery.

Assesses health needs of LAC across a defined population and supports accessible, community-based healthcare.

Works in partnership with social care, education, and health professionals to deliver timely health improvement interventions.

Provides sensitive support during emotionally challenging situations, such as new placements or placement breakdowns.

Recognises safeguarding concerns and collaborates with multi-agency teams to deliver coordinated care, including participation in CAF/TAC and child protection processes.

Actively contributes to child protection conferences, core groups, and multi-disciplinary assessments.

Regularly reviews caseloads and highlights service pressures or concerns to line management.

Management Responsibilities

Manages and prioritises own caseload, ensuring effective assessment, planning, and implementation of care.

Shares responsibility for the overall team caseload, ensuring smooth service delivery.

Builds and maintains positive working relationships with colleagues, clients, and external stakeholders.

Attends relevant meetings, cascades key information to the team, and contributes to service development.

Oversees local induction and orientation of new staff members.

Supports the team in achieving performance targets and KPIs.

Research, Audit & Quality

Maintains accurate, timely records in line with SOPs and data governance standards to support audit and service evaluation.

Engages in evidence-based practice and contributes to innovation, research, and education.

Participates in audits, quality improvement projects, and research initiatives as required.

Keeps abreast of emerging evidence and applies learning to practice development.

Effectively communicates with children, carers, and professionals to promote health and well-being through individual, group, and clinic-based interventions.

Collaborates with GPs, social care, and multi-agency teams, sharing complex and sensitive information appropriately and professionally.

Demonstrates confident communication skills across all levels of the organisation and partner agencies.

Adapts communication methods to meet the diverse needs of service users.

Attends and contributes to key meetings, representing the LAC health service.

Uses sound judgment to assess complex situations and influence positive outcomes in multi-agency settings.

Learning & Professional Development

Actively participates in forums, working groups, and the development of care packages tailored to local needs.

Demonstrates a commitment to ongoing professional development for self and peers.

Provides quality placement experiences and supervision for pre-registration nursing and midwifery students.

Engages in the annual appraisal process and completes identified training.

Supports and contributes to internal and external training related to the role.

Person specification

Qualifications

• Registered Nurse (Child, Adult, or Mental Health) with the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC).
• Health Visiting / School Nursing professional qualification, with entry onto the 3rd part of the NMC Register.
• Minimum of 3 years post qualification or significant experience in relevant areas of practice

Experience

• Proven and relevant experience working with Looked After Children, children in need, or children on a safeguarding pathway.
• Evidence of high communication skills through verbal meetings and written reports with the ability to prioritise own workload
• Ability to work effectively and efficiently individually and within a team environment
• Experience of working autonomously within a community setting
• A good understanding of general child development and recognizing developmental issues
• Willing to participate in developing professional/practice guidelines and standards

Knowledge

• Current and relevant knowledge of Looked After Children, safeguarding children, and child protection legislation and guidance
• Proficient in using Microsoft Office and common software packages inclusive of Rio
• Recognise and respond appropriately to current and new safeguarding concerns
• Awareness and understanding of current concerns/health outcomes faced by Children Looked After with the ability to promote relevant strategies available to promote optimum health
• Experience of using electronic patient record systems

We are committed to creating an inclusive workplace that welcomes and supports individuals of all abilities. Remember, if you meet the minimum criteria for this role and you have a disability, you can be guaranteed an interview under the Disability Confident Scheme - Please ensure you select this on your application form. We would encourage you to be open about your needs so we can work with you to design a comfortable and accessible interview experience. Any information you provide regarding a disability or a need for adjustments will be treated in confidence and will only be shared with colleagues who are supporting this request.

If you require any adjustments to participate fully in the interview process, please let us know by adding the relevant details when scheduling your preferred interview date and time. Please feel free to contact the appointing manager to discuss your needs.

We encourage applicants to contact the hiring manager before their interview, if they have any questions about the role or the process. This is a great way to get clarity and prepare effectively for the interview.

Please note that the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) is prohibited during the interview process. We also discourage overuse of AI during the application process because this can negatively impact the quality of your application and may hinder your chances of being shortlisted. Thank you.

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.