Matron

Sussex Partnership Nhs Foundation Trust; Chichester; On-site; GBP 85,000 - 105,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Flexible working

Professional development

Supportive leadership

Job summary

Sussex Partnership NHS Foundation Trust in Chichester is seeking a Clinical Matron to provide strategic nursing leadership at The Chichester Centre, a low secure forensic unit. You will champion quality, safety and a person-centred care ethos, modelling professional standards and empowering the nursing team.

The role focuses on clinical governance, audits and service user experience, with support from the Head of Nursing and opportunities to develop future nursing leaders.

Qualifications

• Registered Mental Health Nurse with current UK registration
• Educated to degree level (or equivalent)
• Post qualification study to Master's level (or equivalent)
• Must meet NMC requirements for registration and maintain it

Responsibilities

• Provide clinical nursing leadership across services in the designated area
• Lead governance, infection control, safeguarding and data-driven quality improvement
• Develop and lead the nursing team, fostering a learning culture and professional development
• Respond to clinical incidents and crises and ensure least restrictive practice

Education

Degree level in Nursing (RN) or equivalent

Post qualification study to Master's level (or equivalent)

Job description

As Clinical Matron, you will be a visible, accessible and trusted nursing leader, modelling compassionate, person-centred care and advocating for patients and staff. Your key responsibilities will include: Championing Quality & Safety: Lead clinical governance, including infection control and safeguarding, using data and patient feedback to improve safe, evidence-based care. Leading and Empowering our Nursing Team: Provide expert leadership to nurses, nursing associates and healthcare support workers, developing skills and fostering a supportive learning culture. Transforming the Patient Experience: Put patients' and carers' voices at the heart of care through co-production and constructive responses to feedback, improving privacy, dignity and experience. Driving Clinical Excellence: Promote evidence-based practice, lead clinical audits, support research and encourage innovation and continuous quality improvement. Supporting a Therapeutic Environment: Respond effectively to clinical incidents and crises. Complete PMVA training to help teams maintain a safe, therapeutic and least restrictive environment. The post provides strategic, professional and clinical nursing leadership across services or geographical areas determined by Chief Nursing Office and the division. The post holder will provide expert nursing intervention within their area, whilst influencing more broadly in the development of the wider workforce. The post holder will ensure the delivery of safe, effective, evidence-based, person-centred care whilst supporting clinical innovation and quality improvement in line with the Trust strategy and national guidance for the relevant area of practice (e.g. NICE, LeDeR, STOMP, Transforming Care, NHS Long Term Plan) with the aim of reducing health inequalities. The post leads on the development and delivery of specialist training, education and development for nursing staff and others in their specialist area. The postholder must adhere to NMC code of conduct and ensure that all nurses under their leadership comply with code requirements. This post will act as professional lead for all nurses, nurse associates and HCSW within their area and has lead accountability for the delivery of objectives outlined below and included within the area of 'patient experience'.

• Registered Mental Health or Learning Disability Nurse.
• Educated to degree level (or equivalent)
• Post qualification study to Master's level (or equivalent)
• Completion of Mentorship Course/ENB equivalent
• Meet NMC requirement for maintenance of registration, Extensive experience as Ward Manager or equivalent in the community
• Extensive previous experience in relevant setting
• Demonstration of personal development
• Experience working with people with serious mental health problems or learning disability (LD) as appropriate to area
• Demonstrable working knowledge of Health and Social Care governance
• Experience of staff management and supervision
• Experience of performance management
• Experience of Risk Assessment and management
• Demonstration of collaborative working with Multi-Disciplinary Team / other services.
• Working knowledge of the 2025 (Amended) Mental Health Act, Mental Health Act 2007, Mental capacity Act 2005, Care Programme Approach, Safeguarding adults and children and other relevant legislation / government developments, Successful candidates are normally appointed to the bottom of the pay scale unless previous NHS experience in a similar role can be evidenced, You must have appropriate UK professional registration.
• Sussex Partnership NHS Foundation Trust (SPNFT) was formed in April 2006 and provides mental health, learning disability and substance misuse services to the people of Brighton and Hove, East Sussex, West Sussex and parts of Hampshire. The trust published its latest clinical strategy in 2017 ('Our 2020 Vision') that sets out its vision for services. https://www.sussexpartnership.nhs.uk/our-clinical-strategy SPNFT was rated as 'Good' by the CQC in its most recent inspection report https://www.cqc.org.uk/provider/RX2
• Sussex is a beautiful county with good access to National Parks, spectacular countryside, pristine beaches and vibrant cities. London is easily accessible by train from most parts of Sussex.
• Why Join Sussex Partnership? In return for your expertise and commitment, we will offer you a supportive and collaborative working environment, a strong emphasis on your own professional development, and the opportunity to work in a beautiful part of the country. You will be joining a Trust that is committed to delivering outstanding care and creating a great place to work.
• We're looking for people who share our values of compassion, accountability and optimism to help us provide high quality care for the patients, carers, families and communities we serve. We specialise in NHS mental health and learning disability services and we're proud to make a difference every day. At SPFT we put people first. We'll do everything possible to help you feel respected, valued and included. You'll have opportunities to learn, grow and gain new experiences to support your career, with access to lifelong learning and professional development. We actively promote flexible working and understand how important work life balance is, especially in healthcare. Whether it's part time hours, hybrid working or flexible start and finish times, we'll explore what works for you and the role. We recognise that tools like AI are becoming part of everyday life and you may choose to use them when preparing your application. We welcome this, as long as what you submit reflects your own experience, skills and voice. AI can be helpful for structuring or refining your answers, but it should not replace your own examples or create content that isn't based on your real experience. Our recruitment process is designed to get to know you, and we'll explore your examples further at interview, so it's important your application genuinely represents what you bring. You can read more about using AI in applications and interviews on our recruitment process page. We're shaping a workplace where ideas are encouraged, technology supports you and everyone has a voice in how we improve.
• Job overview Are you a visionary nursing leader passionate about quality, safety and improving forensic mental health care? Join Sussex Partnership NHS Foundation Trust as Clinical Matron at The Chichester Centre, our low secure forensic unit. This pivotal clinical leadership role focuses on care quality, patient safety and service-user experience. We seek a dynamic, inspiring leader who empowers staff and champions high standards. Why This Role is Different Our structure protects your time to focus on what matters most: Clinical Leadership, Not Operational Overload: Day-to-day operations sit with the Service Manager, enabling you to concentrate on clinical and professional leadership. Supportive Professional Structure: Receive professional supervision and mentoring from the Head of Nursing, plus clinical supervision from Nurse Consultant John Canning. Develop the Next Generation: Line manage a Clinical Nurse Specialist and help develop future nursing leaders.