Operational Team Lead (Children's Audiology)

Sussex Community NHS Foundation Trust; Crawley; Hybrid; GBP 40,000 - 55,000; Full time

Job summary

A healthcare service provider in Crawley is seeking an Operational Team Lead for Children's Audiology to manage service delivery and lead a professional clinical team. Applicants should have excellent communication and leadership skills, along with a degree-level qualification. The role involves travel between sites and offers a chance to contribute to improving service quality. This post requires the ability to work autonomously and manage a dedicated workforce.

Benefits

Flexible working options

Excellent training and development opportunities

Close working relationships with management

Qualifications

• Ability to work autonomously.
• Current knowledge of local and national health policies.
• Experience in managing teams and delivering change.

Responsibilities

• Ensure safe and effective service delivery.
• Provide operational management and leadership.
• Develop supportive relationships with stakeholders.

Skills

Autonomous individual

Good numeracy and literacy skills

IT literate

Excellent communication skills

Knowledge of clinical governance

Leadership and influencing skills

Problem-solving skills

Education

Degree level qualification

Management qualification or willingness to undertake

Tools

Microsoft Office applications

Job description

Operational Team Lead (Children's Audiology)

An opportunity has arisen to join the Children's Audiology team at Sussex Community NHS Foundation Trust as the service Operational Team Lead.

The post holder will be responsible for the operational management of Children's Audiology and be accountable for the direct delivery of the service. They will have the opportunity to contribute to the trust agenda as a member of the management team. Operational leadership that enhances the motivation and dedication of the workforce will be important.

The post holder will benefit from a close working relationship with the Deputy Operational Head of Service and the Operational Head of Service. The post holder will be expected to advise as appropriate on the implementation of policies and developing the service at all times.

The post holder will need to work towards the maintenance of the service UKAS accreditation under the IQIPS standard and work collaboratively with the service Professional Leadership to ensure standards are maintained within the service Quality Management System.

A willingness to travel between the 3 sites Children's Audiology operate from is required (Crawley Hospital, Brighton General Hospital and Nightingale Child Development Centre).

Main duties of the job

a) Provide operational management and leadership to ensure the delivery of safe, high quality and effective service.

b) The post holder will manage the defined area with minimal supervision for daily operations, seeking support and guidance from Deputy Operational Head of Service and/or Operational Head of Service as required.

c) Maintain a coordinated professional clinical team ensuring that communication and engagement are key to the development of the service.

d) Cultivate supportive and productive relationships with General Practice, secondary care, and local authority colleagues.

e) Work towards proactive excellence rather than reactive management in care: identifying gaps within the service and reducing locality health inequalities.

f) Use excellent communication skills to enable facilitation and or negotiation of complex and sensitive information.

g) In conjunction with the Deputy Operational Head of Service and/or Operational Head of Service translate and take account of the impact of local national and other external policies and guidance for the defined area and implement these into practice and service delivery.

About us

We are the main provider of NHS community services across East and West Sussex, with 6,000 staff serving 1.3 million people. We deliver essential care to adults and children, helping them manage their health, avoid hospital admissions, and reduce hospital stays.

Our Trust vision is to provide excellent care at the heart of the community. We offer opportunities across medical, clinical, support, and corporate services.

Why work for us?

• Positive 2023 NHS Staff Survey results, highlighting compassionate leadership and well-being
• Varied environments: community hospitals, patients' homes, and bases across Sussex
• Flexible working options: part‑time, flexi‑time, annualised hours, and flexi‑retirement
• Excellent training, development, and research opportunities
• Cost‑effective workplace nurseries in Crawley, Hove, and Brighton
• Active EMBRACE, Disability & Wellbeing, LGBTQIA+, and Religion & Belief networks
• Level 3 Disability Confident Leader and Veteran Aware Trust
• Beautiful Sussex location near the South Downs and coast

Our values--Compassionate Care, Working Together, Achieving Ambitions, Delivering Excellence--guide everything we do.

We embrace diversity and encourage applications from all backgrounds, particularly from ethnically diverse, disabled, and LGBTQIA+ individuals. We aim to create an inclusive environment and support reasonable adjustments during recruitment.

This post may close early if sufficient applications are received.

Job responsibilities

a) To ensure the delivery of high-quality care working with the staff and patients to deliver appropriate assessment, investigation and treatment for all pathways.

b) To be responsible for the operational management and be accountable for the direct delivery of the service.

c) To provide operational leadership to ensure a motivated and dedicated workforce.

d) To contribute to the Trust agenda as a member of the management team.

e) The post holder is expected to work within organisational and other NHS and Government policies and interpret and facilitate how they are implemented within a defined area.

f) The post holder will also be expected to advise the Deputy Operational Head of Service and/or Operational Head of Service as appropriate on the operational implementation of policies, forward visioning and developing the service at all times.

Please see attached Job Description and Job Specification for further information.

Person Specification

Skills and Knowledge

• Ability to work as an Autonomous individual
• Good numeracy and literacy skills
• IT literate with the ability to use all Microsoft office applications
• Demonstrates excellence in communication skills with an ability to negotiate and manage conflict
• Current knowledge of local and national policies informing health and social care
• Knowledge of Clinical governance, clinical audit and clinical supervision
• Demonstrate ability to reflect and learning from situations
• Identifies difficulties as challenges and works with others to identify solutions
• Demonstrate self‑awareness, able to identify personal limitation and shows openness to address them
• Awareness of professional responsibilities and boundaries.
• Knowledge of local and national policies relevant to clinical area.
• Well developed leadership and influencing skills with the ability to enthuse, motivate and involve individuals and teams, and have them understand the Trust's and your performance expectations.
• Ability to analyse complex problems and to develop practical and workable solutions to address them.
• Ability to think and plan tactically and creatively, and to prioritise work programmes in the face of competing demands

Experience

• Experience of managing a team or other relevant management experience
• Knowledge and experience in using various IT systems
• Demonstrable success in delivering change and performance with and through your teams, by engaging them in development & delivery plans, establishing clear work priorities with them, delegating effectively, ensuring a capability to deliver, monitoring performance and giving feedback.
• Experience of managing a multi-professional team/collaborative working

Qualification and/or Professional Registration

• Degree level qualification and/or relevant management experience
• Evidence of continued professional development
• Evidence of leadership education/development or a willingness to undertake this
• Management qualification or willingness to undertake

Other requirements

• Must be a car driver, have access to a car for work purposes and be willing to travel between sites, potentially at short notice

Disclosure and Barring Service Check

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.