Practice Educator

NHS National Services Scotland; United Kingdom; Remote; GBP 30,000 - 40,000; Full time

Job summary

A UK health board is seeking a registered nurse or midwife with child protection expertise to join a national team. The role involves delivering educational programs to enhance child protection practices in Scotland. Candidates should have excellent communication skills, experience in multiagency settings, and a strong understanding of current guidelines. Offering flexible and hybrid working arrangements, the position includes opportunities for professional development.

Benefits

Generous NHS pension scheme

Annual incremental salary progression

27 days annual leave plus public holidays

Flexible working opportunities

Qualifications

• Experience as a child protection/public protection advisor.
• Understanding of National Guidance for Child Protection in Scotland (2023).
• Ability to organize and prioritize workloads.

Responsibilities

• Deliver education and engagement activities across Scotland.
• Strengthen child protection practice through multiagency collaboration.
• Provide training on the importance of child protection.

Skills

Child protection expertise

Excellent communication skills

Collaborative working with partners

Education

Registered with the Nursing and Midwifery Council

Job description

Flexible Location

NES is a remote‑friendly employer with staff based throughout Scotland. We support office‑based and hybrid working arrangements. We welcome conversations about alternative working patterns—please get in touch during the application process to discuss.

Work Pattern

Fixed Term, Full Time, 37 hours per week.

Fixed-term or Secondment until 31 March 2026

For NHS applicants, an NHS secondment will be offered in the first instance. For non‑NHS applicants, a fixed‑term or secondment would be considered.

You must have eligibility and entitlement to work in the UK, which is required to be maintained throughout your period of employment.

Who We Are

NHS Education for Scotland (NES) is the national health board with statutory responsibilities to effect sustainable change through workforce development, education and training across the health and social care system in Scotland, while working at UK level with partner organisations.

The Nursing, Midwifery and Allied Health Professionals (NMAHP) Directorate works to support the education, training and continuing professional development of nurses, midwives, allied health professionals, health and social care chaplains and healthcare support workers. The Directorate is also responsible for providing education, training and workforce development across wider professional groups and disciplines, often in partnership with other agencies, to support key policy drivers.

The Opportunity

This is an exciting opportunity to make a real difference to the lives of children and young people through effective multiagency collaboration. We are seeking a registered nurse or midwife with experience of working with children and families and child protection expertise to join a national multiagency team delivering the National Interagency Referral Discussion (IRD) Learning and Development Programme.

You will help strengthen child protection practice across Scotland through high quality learning that builds confidence, consistency and shared understanding across agencies. The role will require travel across Scotland to deliver education and engagement activities in local areas.

Do you enjoy rising to the challenge of a fast paced, complex and political environment? Do you enjoy helping others build confidence and develop skills through supportive learning? Do you thrive bringing people together to share learning and strengthen child protection practice? Do you enjoy collaborating with stakeholders to co‑develop innovative solutions? Do you value opportunities to shape national approaches that directly impact practice across Scotland?

Working within the Women, Children, Young People and Families team, you’ll join a supportive and collaborative environment where you’ll be encouraged to share your expertise, develop new skills and grow as a professional.

What We Love to See

• Registered with the Nursing and Midwifery Council.
• Experience working as a child protection / public protection advisor.
• Comprehensive knowledge of the refreshed National Guidance for Child Protection in Scotland (2023) and its implications for practice.
• Experience facilitating or contributing to multiagency learning in relation to child protection practice.
• Proven experience of collaborative working with partners across health, social work, police, education and other agencies.
• Excellent communication skills with the confidence to manage sensitive and complex discussions in a supportive way.
• Demonstrated honesty, integrity, care and compassion when dealing with others, utilising tact and persuasion skills when necessary.
• Ability to work on own initiative, to organise and prioritise own workloads, to meet strict deadlines.

Benefits Which Matter

• Life‑work balance – with opportunities for flexible working and hybrid working.
• Generous NHS pension scheme.
• Annual incremental salary progression (up to the maximum of the salary band) plus annual NHS salary scale review.
• Annual Leave – 27 days increasing in line with service plus 8 days public holiday.
• NHS discounts and more.

Diversity and Inclusion

Developing a successful national service for Scotland is impossible without ensuring we consider the diverse needs, perspectives and backgrounds of everyone in Scotland in our work. We are focused on hiring the very best talent available for NES, and actively encourage applications from candidates of all backgrounds and aim to ensure everyone is treated fairly, with respect and has a positive recruitment experience – regardless of the outcome. It’s not essential to be in a Practice Educator role right now. You may be returning from a career break (e.g. maternity, paternity, caring for others) or returning after working in another field. Your experiences elsewhere can bring a fresh perspective to our work.

If you are considering applying and feel it would be helpful to discuss this initially, please contact Marie Balment, Principal Educator ([e-mail]).

Next Steps

**NHS candidates will be considered firstly on a secondment basis, and so are strongly encouraged to discuss this with their current NHS employer at the earliest opportunity, ideally prior to application.**

All applicants who are shortlisted for interview will be contacted by e‑mail.

In person or online interviews (including a short presentation) will take place on Thursday 13th or Friday 14th November 2025. The presentation topic will be sent to candidates selected for interview.

For further information please refer to the Job Information Pack below.

Unless otherwise stated the deadline for applications is 23:59 hours on the closing date. Please note, CVs will not be accepted.

For specific types of post, if you do not have the necessary eligibility to work in the UK, it might be possible (though not guaranteed) to secure sponsorship via a UK Skilled Worker/Health & Care Worker Visa. However, this is only possible if the employer is a licensed Sponsor, and if the post does not fall below the current minimum salary threshold or ‘going rate’. Further information on these criteria can be found here.

It is ESSENTIAL that you have checked that you either already have an appropriate right to work in the UK or that the post would be eligible to be sponsored BEFORE submitting your application form.

If you have any queries regarding the NHS Scotland National Recruitment Portal or the recruitment process, please don't hesitate to contact our recruitment partners, the East Region Recruitment Service, at: [e-mail].

To work in the United Kingdom, there is a legal requirement for an individual to demonstrate that they have the relevant permission to work in the country. This permission is, without exception, granted by the UK Visa and Immigration Service.

As part of the pre‑employment checks for a preferred candidate, NHS Scotland Boards will check your entitlement to work in the UK. It can be evidenced through a number of routes including specific types of visa as well as EU settled and pre‑settled status. To find out more about these routes of permission, please refer to the GOV.UK website here.

For targeted eligibility, if you do not have the necessary right to work in the UK, sponsorship may be negotiable, but not guaranteed. Further details can be found here.