Matron/Lead AHP SURGERY

ESHT; Eastbourne; Hybrid; GBP 58,000 - 65,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

NHS pension scheme

Staff restaurants

Onsite nurseries

Accommodation

Psychological support (EAP)

Job summary

East Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust in Eastbourne seeks an experienced Matron (Grade 8A) to lead clinical services across multiple divisions. You will provide visible, compassionate leadership, uphold professional standards, and drive governance, audit and quality improvement initiatives.

The role focuses on paediatric pathways, workforce development, and continuous improvement while ensuring patient safety and high standards of care, including out-of-hours coverage.

Qualifications

• Registered nurse or AHP with active registration and leadership experience.
• Evidence of governance, quality improvement and safeguarding.
• Experience in out-of-hours operational leadership and change management.

Responsibilities

• Provide visible clinical and professional leadership across services.
• Deliver safe, effective, high‑quality patient care and governance.
• Lead quality improvement, patient safety and assurance programmes.
• Develop workforce through recruitment, education and appraisal.
• Collaborate with nursing, medical and operational leaders to improve pathways.

Skills

Senior leadership

Governance

Patient safety

Operational management

Staff development

Communication

Education

NMC/HCPC registration

Masters level qualification

Mentoring or coaching qualification

Project management qualification

Job description

We do not charge fees for job applications, recruitment processes, sponsorship arrangements or employment offers. All current vacancies can be found below, with the published contact details being the only authorised routes for recruitment communications, applications and verification of job offers.

Main area Matron Grade 8A Contract Permanent Hours Full time - 37.5 hours per week (out of hours roster) Job ref 374-ND1708

Site East Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust Town Eastbourne Salary £57,528 - £64,750 Per annum, Pro rata Salary period Yearly Closing 12/10/2026 23:59

We are proud to provide ‘Outstanding’ care and be a great place to work.

East Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust provides safe, compassionate and high quality hospital and community care to the half a million people living in East Sussex and those who visit our local area.

We are one of the largest organisations in East Sussex with an annual income of £700 million and we are the only integrated provider of acute and community care in Sussex.

Our extensive health services are provided by over 8,000+ dedicated members of staff working from two acute hospitals in Hastings and Eastbourne, three community hospitals in Bexhill, Rye and Uckfield, over 100 community sites across East Sussex, and in people’s own homes.

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) rated us as ‘Good’ overall, and ‘Outstanding’ for being Caring and Effective. The Conquest Hospital in Hastings and our Community Services were rated ‘Outstanding’ and Eastbourne DGH was rated ‘Good’ Our two acute hospitals have Emergency Departments and provide 24 hour a day care, offering a comprehensive range of surgical, medical, outpatient and maternity services, supported by a full range of diagnostic and therapy services.

Job overview

An exciting opportunity has arisen for the professional and operational leadership of our clinical services in the newly created 8a Matron roles.

These are senior clinical leadership roles with responsibility for a diverse portfolio of services, in our Clinical Divisions.

As Matron, you will provide visible, compassionate leadership to multidisciplinary teams, ensuring the delivery of safe, effective and high-quality patient care. You will have a proven ability to uphold professional, clinical and regulatory standards through robust governance, audit, quality improvement and assurance processes.

Working closely with operational, nursing and medical colleagues, you will support service development, workforce growth and innovation across the paediatric pathway. You will promote a culture of accountability, learning and continuous improvement, challenging poor practice where necessary and driving high standards of care.

The successful candidate will demonstrate strong leadership, communication and relationship-building skills, with experience of managing change, operational pressures and compliance with national standards and quality indicators. A commitment to improving patient safety, experience and outcomes will be at the heart of your approach.

There are opportunities across our Surgery Division

General Surgery / Breast - CONQUEST

Head and Neck ( ENT, Maxillofacial and Ophthalmology) - EASTBOURNE / BEXHILL

Urology/ Vascular - EASTBOURNE

Main duties of the job

What we are looking for

• Registered Nurse or AHP with active NMC/HCPC registration.
• Significant senior leadership experience within clinical services and ability to provide senior operational and professional leadership out of hours.
• Proven ability to embed, monitor and improve clinical standards and quality outcomes.
• Strong experience in governance, patient safety, quality improvement and service assurance.
• Demonstrable ability to lead teams, influence practice and deliver sustainable service improvement.
• Values-driven leader with a visible, compassionate and inclusive leadership style.

Provide visible clinical and professional leadership

Ensure the delivery of safe, effective and high-quality care

Lead quality improvement, patient safety, governance and assurance programmes.

Monitor clinical standards, audits, incidents and performance, driving continuous improvement.

Develop and support the workforce through recruitment, education, appraisal and professional development.

Work collaboratively with nursing, medical and operational leaders to improve services and patient pathways.

Lead on safeguarding, infection prevention, risk management and regulatory compliance.

Manage staffing, resources and operational performance to ensure safe and sustainable services.

Provide expert professional advice and act as a visible role model for compassionate leadership.

Participate in the Matron of the day rota which includes evening and weekend working.

Working for our organisation

A wide range of staff benefits are available to our staff including staff development, enrolment in the NHS pension scheme, auto-enrolment to our Temporary Workforce Service, access to onsite nurseries. staff restaurants and accommodation.

In addition to an internal Occupational Health department, all staff also have access to free psychological support through our confidential Employee Assistance Programme. Onsite parking is available from only £50 a year.

Statement on the Use of AI

We value the individuality that each candidate brings to the application process. While we understand that AI tools are widely available, we strongly discourage applicants from using AI-generated content when applying for jobs with us. We believe that your application should reflect your true skills, experiences, and motivations, which are best conveyed through your own words and unique perspective.

Using AI for your application may not accurately represent your knowledge, skills, and experience and may result in a disconnect between your qualifications and our assessment of your application.

We encourage applicants to take the time to thoughtfully complete their applications; by doing so, you allow us to better understand your true potential and ensure a fair and transparent evaluation of your application. Over reliance on AI-generated content may diminish your chance of success.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Please see attached the job description

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to get in touch

Person specification

Qualifications

• Registered Nurse and hold active registration with NMC or Registered AHP and hold active registration with HCPC
• Masters level qualification relevant to role to demonstrate expert clinical and leadership skills
• Mentoring or coaching qualification
• Project management and Quality improvement qualification

Experience

• Proven experience working in a leadership position within NHS or relevant healthcare organisation.
• Demonstrate experience of : Quality/Service improvement- Project Management - Operational leadership - People Management
• Demonstrates evidence of national or regional networking

Skills / Knowledge / Abilities

• Leadership and operational management skills that demonstrate the ability to manage self and lead others
• Demonstrates knowledge of National NHS and Nursing/AHP agenda including national/local performance targets and able to interpret/develop policy change
• Expert clinical skills and competence relevant to role to support innovative, evidence-based practice.
• Demonstrates research skills, to critically analyse and interpret data, problem solve and prioritise.
• Digital Skills, use of systems, report writing and presentation skills
• Able to develop and maintain effective working relationships with all professional groups and senior managers within the organisation and external stakeholder, including conflict management
• Experience of out of hours operational management and on call training/skills.
• Research/Audit knowledge and skills

Other

• Flexibility in working hours and patterns
• Full driving licence and access to a vehicle (for domiciliary community role) and ability to travel between sites

Patients come first at East Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust.

Our vision is to be:

• The healthcare provider of first choice for the people of East Sussex.

Our mission is to:

• Deliver better health outcomes and an excellent experience for everyone we provide with healthcare services.

Our strategic objectives are to:

• Improve quality and clinical outcomes by ensuring that safe patient care is our highest priority.
• Play a leading role in local partnerships to meet the needs of our local population and improve and enhance patients’ experiences.
• Use our resources efficiently and effectively for the benefit of our patients and their care to ensure our services are clinically, operationally and financially sustainable.

Our aims are that all services delivered by the Trust are:

• Safe
• Effective
• Caring
• Responsive and
• Well led

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.