Job summary
This clinical leadership role within Sussex Community NHS Foundation Trust's Children & Young People's Community Nursing Service provides expert guidance for Special School Nursing across identified SEND schools.
The post holder will offer advanced clinical expertise, drive practice development, support audit and research, and lead service improvement projects locally and Trust-wide. They will work with senior nurses to develop and standardise policy and practice in line with national and Trust standards.
They will collaborate strategically with Local Authorities and headteachers to ensure inclusive access to education for CYP with SEND, ensuring nursing needs are reflected in EHCPs.
The Clinical Lead will support Special School Nurses to deliver high-quality, evidence-based care for CYP on the SEND school register. Proficient in clinical assessment and interventions, they will adapt flexibly to meet the needs of CYP and families.
Working closely with health, education, statutory, and third-sector partners, they will also provide safeguarding advice and collaborate with the School Safeguarding Team. Education, training, and competency assessments for staff, students, families, and CYP will be a key part of the role. Prescribing may be included where qualified.
Main duties of the job
The role is responsible for delivering high-quality nursing care, support, and advice to children and young people (CYP) accessing SEND Schools in West Sussex and Brighton & Hove. Provides leadership and guidance to staff, supporting professional development and clinical best practice. Maintains strong communication with stakeholders and families to ensure seamless, safe, and effective care
Develops and reviews clinical protocols and SOPs to support safe practice. Builds team expertise, ensuring necessary clinical skills are maintained. Delivers teaching on clinical procedures, equipment, and treatment plans to school and education staff
Ensures accurate documentation of care and acts as a role model and expert resource in Special School Nursing. Collaborates with senior leaders to evolve services based on need and best practice, aligned with SCFT governance. Participates in local and national groups to develop clinical standards and promote effective transitions to adult services
May be required to work across CYPCN services based on commissioning needs. This role may evolve with service development in agreement with the post holder
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?o Positive 2024 NHS Staff Survey results, highlighting compassionate leadership and wellbeingo Varied environments: community hospitals, patients' homes, and bases across Sussexo Flexible working options: part-time, flexi-time, annualised hours, and flexi-retiremento Excellent training, development, and research opportunitieso Accredited Living Wage Employer, we ensure fair pay for all our staffo Cost-effective workplace nurseries in Crawley, Hove, and Brightono Active EMBRACE, Disability & Wellbeing, LGBTQIA+, and Religion & Belief networkso Level 3 Disability Confident Leader and Veteran Aware Trust
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 description
Job responsibilities
The Clinical Lead for Special School Nursing ensures safe, consistent care for children and young people (CYP) in identified SEND schools, supporting equity across caseloads. They set and maintain clinical standards, support the wider CYP Community Nursing Service, and deliver on agreed SEND priorities. They provide cover for Special School Nurses (SSNs) as needed and manage operations in the absence of the SSN Team Lead.
They lead on health needs profiling to support funding bids, contribute to workforce planning, and support staff development through supervision, appraisals, training, and performance management. The role includes leading clinical projects, maintaining accurate health records, overseeing safe use of medical devices, and ensuring compliance with SCFT policies.
They participate in safeguarding processes, multi-agency meetings, and contribute to audit, research, and service development. They monitor and evaluate service data to guide improvements and ensure effective use of resources. The role includes developing policies, SOPs, and education tools with senior leaders. The Clinical Lead also ensures health and safety compliance, supports incident reporting and investigation, and may join an on-call rota to support end-of-life care for CYP known to the service.
Please see the attached job description and person specification for full details.
Job description
Job responsibilities
The Clinical Lead for Special School Nursing ensures safe, consistent care for children and young people (CYP) in identified SEND schools, supporting equity across caseloads. They set and maintain clinical standards, support the wider CYP Community Nursing Service, and deliver on agreed SEND priorities. They provide cover for Special School Nurses (SSNs) as needed and manage operations in the absence of the SSN Team Lead.
They lead on health needs profiling to support funding bids, contribute to workforce planning, and support staff development through supervision, appraisals, training, and performance management. The role includes leading clinical projects, maintaining accurate health records, overseeing safe use of medical devices, and ensuring compliance with SCFT policies.
They participate in safeguarding processes, multi-agency meetings, and contribute to audit, research, and service development. They monitor and evaluate service data to guide improvements and ensure effective use of resources. The role includes developing policies, SOPs, and education tools with senior leaders. The Clinical Lead also ensures health and safety compliance, supports incident reporting and investigation, and may join an on-call rota to support end-of-life care for CYP known to the service.
Please see the attached job description and person specification for full details.
Person Specification
Qualifications and/or professional registration
Essential
- Registered Children's Nurse - current NMC registration
- BSc/MSc Specialist Practice in Community Health/Specialist Practitioner Children's Community Nurse / SCPHN (School Nursing) or BSc/MSc Children's Nurse Practitioner or other relevant degree programme
- Relevant study at Level 7 & willing to work towards relevant Masters qualification
- ENB 998 / Mentorship module or equivalent
- Completed Practice Supervisor / Practice Assessor Training
Desirable
- Physical Assessment of Children/Young People at level 6/7 or equivalent
- Management / Leadership / Change Management qualification
- Other relevant advanced nursing qualifications at level 6/7 e.g. Palliative & Complex Care, Advanced Communication, Safeguarding
Experience
Essential
- Extensive post registration relevant clinical children's community /school nursing experience at Band 6 or above
- Significant experience working with a diverse range children/young people and their families in the community setting including complex disability, complex care & palliative care
- Recent experience of a relevant leadership role
- Experience of service development / change management
- Proficient in teaching /mentoring /supervision / coaching
- Ability to develop policy, protocols, guidelines and education material
- Extensive experience of planning, managing and co-ordinating programmes of care in collaboration with other allied health, social, education and volunteer agencies
- Evidence of initiating and participating in clinical audit, service evaluation & critical analysis
- Competent in a range of clinical skills appropriate to the role e.g. airway management & Long Term Ventilation, enteral feeding, advanced bowel & bladder management, tissue viability & skin care & management of the deteriorating child in the community
- Evidence of post registration professional development within the last three years
Skills and knowledge
Essential
- Robust understanding of Special School Nursing role
- Excellent communication and interpersonal skills
- Advanced clinical assessment, differential diagnosis and referral skills
- Effective and proactive assessment and management of risk
- Critical thinking and decision making/advanced clinical judgment and problem solving
- Analytical skills including clinical reflection and action planning
- Excellent understanding of children/young people's communication, physical well-being & emotional needs; can identify their changing individual needs and preferences and promote independence
- Skills in critical appraisal and evaluation of research and other evidence
- Implementation of research/audit in practice
- Ability to disseminate knowledge e.g. through publication or presentation
- Ability to organise the service workload; prioritising, delegating and maintaining quality care in times of pressure
- Ability to develop, set up and implement new working practices, structures to support them, and evaluate processes once implemented and initiate support
- Ability to demonstrate knowledge of child and adult safeguarding and take appropriate action to safeguard
- Awareness of professional responsibilities and boundaries
- Computer literate; interest in new technologies, processes and applications and a working knowledge of IT applications with willingness to develop.
- Able to work across professional boundaries; collaboratively with multi-disciplinary interagency teams and to liaise effectively with a wide range of stakeholders.
- Ability to organise and respond efficiently to complex information/ distressing news, understanding when they need to seek supervision or assistance
- Ability to multitask
Other Requirements
Essential
- Ability to travel as required to meet the needs of the service on a daily basis around the county
- Car Driver
Person Specification
Qualifications and/or professional registration
Essential
- Registered Children's Nurse - current NMC registration
- BSc/MSc Specialist Practice in Community Health/Specialist Practitioner Children's Community Nurse / SCPHN (School Nursing) or BSc/MSc Children's Nurse Practitioner or other relevant degree programme
- Relevant study at Level 7 & willing to work towards relevant Masters qualification
- ENB 998 / Mentorship module or equivalent
- Completed Practice Supervisor / Practice Assessor Training
Desirable
- Physical Assessment of Children/Young People at level 6/7 or equivalent
- Management / Leadership / Change Management qualification
- Other relevant advanced nursing qualifications at level 6/7 e.g. Palliative & Complex Care, Advanced Communication, Safeguarding
Experience
Essential
- Extensive post registration relevant clinical children's community /school nursing experience at Band 6 or above
- Significant experience working with a diverse range children/young people and their families in the community setting including complex disability, complex care & palliative care
- Recent experience of a relevant leadership role
- Experience of service development / change management
- Proficient in teaching /mentoring /supervision / coaching
- Ability to develop policy, protocols, guidelines and education material
- Extensive experience of planning, managing and co-ordinating programmes of care in collaboration with other allied health, social, education and volunteer agencies
- Evidence of initiating and participating in clinical audit, service evaluation & critical analysis
- Competent in a range of clinical skills appropriate to the role e.g. airway management & Long Term Ventilation, enteral feeding, advanced bowel & bladder management, tissue viability & skin care & management of the deteriorating child in the community
- Evidence of post registration professional development within the last three years
Skills and knowledge
Essential
- Robust understanding of Special School Nursing role
- Excellent communication and interpersonal skills
- Advanced clinical assessment, differential diagnosis and referral skills
- Effective and proactive assessment and management of risk
- Critical thinking and decision making/advanced clinical judgment and problem solving
- Analytical skills including clinical reflection and action planning
- Excellent understanding of children/young people's communication, physical well-being & emotional needs; can identify their changing individual needs and preferences and promote independence
- Skills in critical appraisal and evaluation of research and other evidence
- Implementation of research/audit in practice
- Ability to disseminate knowledge e.g. through publication or presentation
- Ability to organise the service workload; prioritising, delegating and maintaining quality care in times of pressure
- Ability to develop, set up and implement new working practices, structures to support them, and evaluate processes once implemented and initiate support
- Ability to demonstrate knowledge of child and adult safeguarding and take appropriate action to safeguard
- Awareness of professional responsibilities and boundaries
- Computer literate; interest in new technologies, processes and applications and a working knowledge of IT applications with willingness to develop.
- Able to work across professional boundaries; collaboratively with multi-disciplinary interagency teams and to liaise effectively with a wide range of stakeholders.
- Ability to organise and respond efficiently to complex information/ distressing news, understanding when they need to seek supervision or assistance
- Ability to multitask
Other Requirements
Essential
- Ability to travel as required to meet the needs of the service on a daily basis around the county
- Car Driver
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.
Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).
From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).
UK Registration
Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see
NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).
Additional information
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.
Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).
From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).
UK Registration
Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see
NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).
