Specialist Midwife for Retention and Recruitment

University Hospitals Bristol NHS Foundation Trust; Bristol; On-site; GBP 46,000 - 53,000; Full time

Job summary

University Hospitals Bristol NHS Foundation Trust is seeking a Specialist Midwife for Retention and Recruitment. This Band 7 role focuses on enhancing midwifery workforce experience, supporting staff wellbeing, and leading recruitment strategies. The ideal candidate will possess strong leadership skills and a proactive approach to improve staff retention and morale.

Qualifications

• Registered Midwife with current NMC Registration.
• Degree qualification or equivalent required.
• Masters level 7 education undertaken or willingness to work towards.

Responsibilities

• Lead on strategies for midwifery recruitment, retention, and wellbeing.
• Coordinate onboarding efforts and promote midwifery careers.
• Maintain a strong ward presence and contribute to reporting and strategic planning.

Skills

Excellent communication

Leadership Skills

Management Skills

Ability to work on own initiative

Ability to initiate change

Ability to work effectively under pressure

Motivated and enthusiastic

Education

Registered Midwife

Current NMC Registration

Degree qualification or equivalent

Masters level 7 education

Qualification in Teaching and Assessing

Job description

This post is only open to internal applicants.

Specialist Midwife for Retention and Recruitment

Band 7

Main area Specialist Midwife for Retention and Recruitment - Band 7 Grade Band 7 Contract Permanent Hours Full time - 37.5 hours per week Job ref 387-WC2367-HN

Site Bristol Royal Hospital for Children Town Bristol Salary £46,148 - £52,809 pa pro rata Salary period Yearly Closing 03/06/2025 23:59 Interview date 11/06/2025

As an organisation we recognise the value of a healthy work-life balance. When applying, speak to us about how we might be able to accommodate flexible working, so your work life fits around your home life.

We particularly welcome applications from Black, Asian and minority ethnic candidates as they are under-represented within the Trust.

We are excited to offer a unique opportunity within Maternity services at University Hospitals Bristol and Weston NHS Foundation Trust (UHBW) as a Specialist Midwife for Retention and Recruitment.

This Band 7 role is central to enhancing the experience of our midwifery workforce — with a strong focus on wellbeing, retention, and recruitment. You will lead on strategies that empower staff, support career development, and ensure that midwives feel truly valued in their roles. This role requires a proactive and compassionate individual who can respond to the changing needs of our workforce while driving long-term improvements in staff experience.

You’ll work closely with divisional leaders and staff to deliver Trust and Maternity strategies, using innovative approaches to create a supportive and sustainable working environment.

Main duties of the job

In this highly visible and autonomous role, you’ll act as the main point of contact for midwifery recruitment, retention and wellbeing across the division. You’ll be responsible for developing and supporting initiatives that improve staff wellbeing and reduce workforce vacancies — ensuring midwives have the support they need to deliver exceptional care.

You’ll coordinate onboarding efforts, maintain contact with prospective staff including apprentices, and promote midwifery careers at recruitment events and open days. A key part of your role will be to listen to staff, provide expert non-clinical advice, and signpost support services as needed.

Whilst following Trust initiatives you’ll maintain a strong ward presence, helping to identify areas of concern and acting as a role model across departments. You’ll also contribute to reporting and strategic planning to monitor progress in recruitment and retention.

If you’re passionate about creating a positive workplace culture and supporting the midwifery workforce to thrive then this is the role for you.

Working for our organisation

University Hospitals Bristol and Weston NHS Foundation Trust (UHBW) is one of the largest acute Trusts in the country, bringing together a combined workforce of over 13,000 staff and over 100 different clinical services across 10 different sites, serving a core population of more than 500,000 people across South West England. UHBW has been rated by the CQC as ‘Good’ overall and our staff are proud to deliver excellent care to the people of Bristol, Weston and beyond. As a forward- thinking multi-award winning Trust and a digital exemplar committed to improving patient care, our world-leading research and innovations are having a positive local and global impact. Our hospitals are spread across Bristol and Weston, join us and you can enjoy the very best of both worlds; city living within a stone’s throw of the countryside or beside the seaside, both with easy access to all that the South West has to offer. UHBW is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults. As an equal opportunities employer actively working towards a diverse workforce we aim to recruit and retain a workforce which represents the rich diversity of the local population at all levels and are committed to designing our services around the needs of individual patients and those around them. Anonymous information will be used from your application in order to ensure we’re meeting our pledge.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

For a more detailed job description and main responsibilities, please refer to the job description document attached to this vacancy.

Person specification

Qualifications an Training

• Registered Midwife
• Current NMC Registration
• Degree qualification or equivalent
• Professional Midwifery Advocate
• Masters level 7 education undertaken or willing to work towards
• Qualification in Teaching and Assessing
• Coaching qualification or willingness to work towards

Skills & Abilities

• Excellent communication/Interpersonal skills
• Leadership Skills
• Management Skills
• Ability to work as part of as well as lead a team
• Ability to work on own initiative
• Ability to initiate change
• Ability to facilitate development in others
• Evidence of teaching skills
• Child protection training
• Motivated and enthusiastic
• Sympathetic and supportive attitude
• Flexibility to meet the daily needs of the job
• Ability to lead, plan and organise work programmes, and to adjust programmes as required, ensuring effective delivery.
• Ability to prioritise competing demands across the team, and to balance project development requirements with day-to-day operational needs.
• Flexibility to move quickly from one topic to another in a fast-moving environment.
• Ability to work effectively under pressure
• Ensure that activity is well lead, managed and delivered to the highest standards, and in alignment with the Trust strategies Values
• Awareness of current national changes in nursing
• Ability to build effective working relationships with staff at all levels across different teams in the hospital and across the region, including neonatal, maternity services, fetal medicine, delivery suite, patient safety and psychology.
• Ability to work across a variety of digital platforms and collate and analyse data for staffing outcomes.
• Acts as a role model, aligning behaviour to trust vision and values to demonstrate the highest professional standards
• Self-motivated, with the ability to work independently towards agreed goals and with minimal management intervention
• Personable and collaborative
• Highly motivated, with the ability to influence and inspire others.
• Work, collaborate and influence closely with other staff within the Trust.
• Alignment to Trust Values and Core Behaviours

We hope that you will decide to join us and become part of this exciting journey, helping us to shape our future together.

· As an equal opportunities employer actively working towards a diverse workforce we aim to recruit and retain a workforce which represents the rich diversity of the local population at all levels and are committed to designing our services around the needs of individual patients and those around them. Anonymous information will be used from your application to ensure we’re meeting our pledge.

· The Trust is committed to investing in and caring for all our staff. We will support you in maintaining and improving your health and wellbeing, as well as your career development through management and training support - developing exceptional people for exceptional careers.

· UHBW is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people, and vulnerable adults.

· To comply with Part 7 of the Immigration Act 2016 all applicants must be able to speak fluent English to an appropriate standard which will be assessed at Interview.

· If you require sponsorship for a visa to work in the UK, to avoid disappointment, please check to ensure you are eligible under the UKVI points based system.

· The Trust uses electronic new starter forms on Trac to collect personal details. Information collected is securely stored and used to set up the employee record on the ESR HR system.

· By applying for this post, you are agreeing to University Hospitals Bristol and Weston NHS Foundation Trust transferring the information contained in this application to its preferred applicant management system. If you are offered a job, information will also be transferred into the national NHS Electronic Staff Records system.

· Please be aware of scams – unless specified above, we will only communicate with you via @recruit.trac.jobs or nhs.net e-mails and we will never ask you for any payments.

IMPORTANT:

Please note that if you apply for a position with this Trust, you may be contacted via Trac or via email. This includes invites for job interviews. We therefore recommend that you regularly check your Trac account and email accounts. We may also contact you by texting the mobile number, if provided, on the application form.

Due to the high number of applications that are received for some posts we may close this vacancy before the advertised closing date. Therefore, please apply for this post as soon as you can, if you are interested and you meet the requirements of the Person Specification

Only those candidates who clearly demonstrate how they meet the person specification will be shortlisted for this job.

As a guide interviews should usually take place within 3 weeks of the closing date.

When providing employment reference details, please provide correct work-related email addresses so references can be sought promptly when we are looking to progress your application. Your referee must all be known to you in a line manager or professional lead capacity.

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.

Name Jenni Fryer Job title Recruitment, Retention & Wellbeing Lead Email address w&[e-mail] Additional information

Sarah Windfeld - Director of Nursing , [e-mail]