Specialist Nurse for Children in Care | Cambridgeshire Community Services NHS Trust

Cambridgeshire Community Services NHS Tr; Cambridgeshire and Peterborough; On-site; GBP 60,000 - 80,000; Full time

Job summary

A health services organization in the UK is seeking a dedicated Children in Care Specialist Nurse to join their multi-agency team. The role involves providing health assessments and ensuring the implementation of Health Action Plans for Looked After Children. The ideal candidate will have strong communication and analytical skills, and relevant safeguarding training. This is an opportunity to impact children's health outcomes positively within a supportive team environment.

Qualifications

• Proactive in identifying own education/development needs.
• Ability to provide specialized advice for children and young people in care.
• Experience in collaborating with multi-agency teams.

Responsibilities

• Provide health assessments for Looked After Children in Cambridgeshire.
• Ensure Health Action Plans are implemented timely.
• Participate in quality assurance of health assessments.

Skills

Communication

Analytical skills

Motivational skills

Planning and organizational skills

Education

Level 3 Safeguarding Children training

Job description

Overview

Are you looking to specialise in children’s health services and support the health and wellbeing of children in care across Cambridgeshire and Peterborough? Would you like to develop your knowledge and skills in a role that truly makes a difference?
Do you want to work for Cambridgeshire Community Services; a Trust that is outstanding with the CQC?

We are a team of paediatricians, nurses, and administrators with excellent relationships with our partner agencies. We have consistently positive feedback from our service users. Our vision is to improve the health outcomes of Children in Care and achieve a standard of health and development as good as the children of the same age living in the same area.

The team are looking for an enthusiastic, innovative, highly motivated, and passionate dedicated nurse to work as an integral part of a multiagency service to provide a seamless pathway and in accordance with the Statutory Guidance for Promoting the Health and Wellbeing of Looked After Children (DH & DoE 2015). Why not click on the link to the Job Description and find out more about the role. We look forward to receiving your application.

Job Purpose

The Children in care Specialist Nurse will work as an integral part of a multiagency service to provide a seamless pathway and aim to improve the health outcomes of Children in Care and achieve a standard of health and development as good as the children of the same age living in the same area in accordance with the Statutory Guidance for Promoting the Health and Wellbeing of Looked After Children (DH & DoE 2015).

Job Summary

The post holder will work collaboratively with the other members of the Children in Care health team and all other CCS health providers, the Designated Nurse for Children in Care within the Integrated Care Board, the Local Authority, Primary Care, and Education to provide timely quality assessments that meet the needs of the individual children, young people, their carers and their relatives and effectively manage resources to assure a high standard and that recommendations from the written Health Action Plan are implemented. Expected results are defined but the post holder will decide how they are best achieved with the guidance of national and local policies, peers, and external sources.

Duties and Responsibilities

• To provide all Looked After Children placed in Cambridgeshire a choice of a health assessment consultation face to face within the home, by video, by telephone or via a questionnaire to offer specialist health advice in line with statutory guidance.
• To ensure the resulting Health Action Plan is received by the relevant agencies, carers, and young people as appropriate and that they are carried out in a timely manner.
• Follow up in a 3‑month period to ensure that any actions or outcomes on the health action plan have been met.
• Attend external and internal meetings for a Children in Care as required within capacity or provide a recent report.
• Play an active role in health promotion activities utilising Making Every Contact Count strategy.
• Develop own and colleagues practice by engaging in ongoing professional development knowledge and skills and sharing these, and those brought to the team from previous posts and engaging in peer supervision.
• Provide health and support to Local Authority workers.
• Support care leavers to maximise quality of their healthcare in adulthood and provide Care Summaries/passports of previous care received as far as is possible with information available.
• Provide quality assurance of Review Health Assessment for those placed outside Cambridgeshire to ensure equity of quality of care is provided to all Cambridgeshire children.

Education and Training

Be proactive in identifying own education/development needs in line with manager and continue to develop own specialist knowledge and practice into the needs of children and specifically those of CLA/Care Leavers, up to and including Level 3 Safeguarding Children training.

Communication and Relationship Skills

Provide and receive complex, sensitive information and use motivational and negotiating skills to elicit agreement and cooperation where they may be barriers to understanding and establish and maintain effective communication with a wide range of individuals and groups. Develop and maintain close working relationships with the Children in Care Health Team, partner health providers, Local Authority, carers and children and young people providing highly specialised advice and clinical support when required. Support Led Nurse to liaise with other CLA Health Teams across CCS to ensure effective working relationships and promote positive outcomes for all Children in Care.

Analytical and Judgement Skills

Make judgements that involve complex facts and/or situations which require analysis, interpretation, and comparison of a range of options.

Planning and Organisational Skills

Plan and organise service requirements and own work to undertake provision, a broad range of complex activities such as health assessment, meetings, follow‑up of action plans, quality assurance, and provision for health care plans for those outside the service expectation and generic email inbox which requires the formulation and adjustment of plans.

Physical Skills and Effort

Standard driving and keyboard skills, sitting, standing, and walking.

Patient Client Care

Provides specialised advice in relation to the care of children and young people in care.

Policy and Service Development Implementation

Responsible for policies for own area of work and propose policy and service changes that impact beyond own area of activity.

Financial and Physical Resources

Observes personal duty of care in relation to equipment and resources used in such as weighing scales, stadiometers, and calibration of equipment.

People Management

Maintaining own professional development and requirement to take part in appraisal and KSF process. Receive and give appropriate supervision as required by Trust policy. Maintain up‑to‑date knowledge in own area of expertise and undertake development as appropriate. Maintain personal records of professional development as required by the NMC and Trust Mandatory training policy.

Responsibility for Information Resources / Research and Development

Regularly undertakes audits and participate in research and development and take an active role in collection of statistics and data using computer‑based data entry programmes such as excel to audit compliance of the Children in Care health team and partner agencies.

Emotional Effort

Occasional exposure to highly distressing or emotional circumstances.

Clinical and Practice Governance

Observe and maintain strict confidentiality with regards to any patient/family/staff/ records and information in line with the requirements of the Data Protection Act. Any data that is taken/shared as part of a phone call or transported, faxed, or transferred electronically must be undertaken about the Trust Information Governance and Information Security policies. The post holder must adhere to the Trust risk assessment and risk management processes. Be aware of and adhere to Trust infection control policies and procedures. It is a condition of your employment that you are currently registered with NMC and it is your responsibility to maintain your professional registration. Undertake mandatory training and any other training relevant to the role as required by Cambridgeshire Community Services NHS Trust. The post holder must participate in clinical and other audits as required. Provide patients and their families /carers with information on standards they should expect from the team. Participate in clinical, management and safeguarding supervision on a regular basis. The post holder is required to participate in relevant emergency preparedness process for their team.

This advert closes on Sunday 14 Dec 2025

Should we receive a high number of applications we reserve the right to close this vacancy after 5 December 2025.