South West London and St Georges Mental Health NHS Trust

Staff Nurse

The closing date is 25 February 2026

Job summary

Lavender Ward provides safe, holistic and recovery focussed treatment for men and women with mental health difficulties. If you are forward thinking, enthusiastic, motivated and hard-working individual with assessment and management skills, this is an exciting opportunity to consider. The priorities will be with supporting the ward manager in leading on the clinical, operational management and monitoring of systems within the service, and implementation and embedding of change to enhance quality and safety on the ward. You will also be expected to contribute to the strategic development of the service.

Lavender ward is a busy, highly functioning 18 bedded mixed gender acute admissions ward located on the Springfield Hospital site. We are looking for an enthusiastic and dynamic Deputy Ward Manager to join our well-established team within the Acute Care Service line.

Main duties of the job

As a Registered Nurse you provide direct personal care to service users/patients, without direct supervision, and co-ordinate the care given bycolleagues.

The post holder will deliver high quality safe nursing care, ensuringconsistently high standards of practice and clinical excellence which comply with the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) code of professional conduct.

The role includes leading the delivery of comprehensive service userassessment, planning, implementation and evaluation of person-centeredcare in a collaborative way. The post holder will co-ordinate a first classservice that includes assessment and monitoring of physical health,maintaining service users rights, supervising junior staff and students, working collaboratively with the Multi-Disciplinary Team and maintaining a safe and therapeutic working environment and accurate records.Band 5 nursing roles are only open only to staff with a nursing registration, obtained as a result of completing a qualification recognised by the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC).

About us

We are Proud to Belong at South West London and St George's Mental Health NHS Trust.

We have expert services, a rich history and a clear commitment to providing the best quality care for those with mental ill-health. The Care Quality Commission already rates our services as 'good' - we aspire to be 'outstanding'.

This is a great time to join us. We are transforming the way we care for our communities to support our mission of Making Life Better Together. We have built two brand new mental health facilities at Springfield University Hospital, which are amongst the best in the world. More developments are planned across our sites and services as we invest a further £120m to upgrade and modernise our estate by 2027.

We are inclusive and diverse and strive to be actively anti racist. We want to attract people from all backgrounds and experiences to enrich the work we do together. We are proud to co-produce and involve our local communities in all that we do.

We offer flexible working, career development and a variety ofbenefits to enable a positive, welcoming environment in which our people and their careers can thrive.

Come and join our inclusive teams and help our patients on their recovery journey.

About our location:

This post will be based at Springfield University Hospital

Unless expressly stated in the job advert this role is not subject to sponsorship, please be advised that all offers of employment are subject to evidence of right to work in the UK.

Details

Date posted

19 February 2026

Pay scheme

Agenda for change

Band

Band 5

Salary

£31,049 to £37,796 a year per annum inclusive of Inner London HCAs

Contract

Permanent

Working pattern

Full-time

Reference number

294-AAUC-7809845-AZ

Job locations

Springfield University Hospital

15 Springfield Drive

London

SW17 0YF


Job description

Job responsibilities

Clinical Skills1. Working autonomously within the parameters of the role leading onimplementing the delivery of quality nursing care, contributing to the physical, psychological, social, recreational and spiritual care in a recovery-focused way through therapeutic engagement and activities, and taking steps to address any issues that arise.

2. Leading on and undertaking activities to ensure that the fundamentals of care are met - nutrition, hydration, hygiene, comfort, emotional and social support.

3. Co-ordinating and evaluating collaborative patient-centred care; getting feedback and improving plans with the multi-disciplinary team (MDT).

4. Providing accurate information about care in an accessible format to patients and their relatives / carers.

5. Liaising and working positively with members of the multi- disciplinary team and partner organisations.

6. Administering, and monitoring the side-effects of, medication; monitoring service user compliance.

7. Safety; safe custody of medicines, sharps, clinical equipment, report allincidents following trust policy.

8. Developing the management of care needs through:a. Initial data collectionb. Monitoring of individual service user / patient progressc. Feedback and discussiond. Producing reports and in-care reviewse. Devising a plan of care and interventions supervised by a Registered Nurse.

9. Leading on and directing junior to staff in providing hands-on care to service users including:a. Undertaking 1-1 engagement with service users in an honest, open and non judgmental way.b. Recognising and valuing service users as individuals, acknowledging the importance of maintaining the service users respect and dignity at all times and ensure that the care provided respects equality and diversity.c. Developing care plans that reflect service user needs and relevant patient care documentation working in partnership with service users, wider MDT and friends/relatives/significant others.d. Ensuring the monitoring and recording service user clinical observations are undertaken, such as Physical observations and vital signs and treating or escalating as appropriate any signs or symptoms of deterioration or that do not fulfill the personal parameters to the relevant professional for treatment.

Promote healthy lifestyles and give health promotion advice and support.e. Implementing the principles of recovery: encouraging and supporting service users to engage with healthy lifestyles, facilitating psychosocial activities andother activities of their interest. Where appropriate contributing to psychological interventions.

10.Escorting service users, as required, in line with Trust policies.

11.Facilitating the admission and discharge of service users, ensuring needs of the patient and service including relevant legislative or required documentation are completed.

12.Advocating for service users needs and rights within Trust policy. Encouraging and empowering service users to have an optimum level of responsibility for their individual programme of care.Knowledge and Frameworks

13.Demonstrating an enhanced understanding of Mental Health signs and symptoms and an understanding of how these may present in practiceincluding recognition of impact on patient presentation and behaviour including risk factors. Supporting junior staff to develop understanding of mental health signs and symptoms and develop appropriate responses to these in practice.

14.Recognizing and responding appropriately to challenging behaviour in line with Trust policies and training. Supporting junior staff in managing difficult situations and deescalation and developing resilience and strategies to manage.

15.Demonstrating a depth of knowledge and understanding of the fundamentals of the MHA, MCA and DOLS and other legislation applicable to the practice area and how they are implemented in practice ensuring adherence to legislation at all times.Communication

16.Contributing to an effective communication process with appropriate and accurate information to patients, carers, family, friends and colleagues. Engaging and listening carefully and actively, and responding using appropriate language and accessible communication methods and skills. Developing communication skills to enable and support difficult conversations, acknowledging cultural differences and professional boundaries.

17.Demonstrating effective clinical communication and documentation to internal and external stakeholders ensuring: effective verbal and written handover of relevant and objective information. Demonstrating ability to determine key information, ability to recognize and describe effectively symptoms of mental illness, distress or of a deteriorating patient, and ability to escalate issues of concerns effectively and in a timely manner

18.Contributing towards the on-going quality of service and care by managing the patient caseload, organizing care including delegating tasks and duties appropriately to staff with relevant competency, identifying and mitigating anyrisk issues in relation to the service users health and social care. Informing therelevant Health care professionals if there are any significant:a. Changes in the service users physical or mental stateb. Factors relevant to the service userc. Incidents related to the service user

19.Maintaining timely and accurate service user written/electronic records in line with Trust policy. Use care plans, pathway documents and Information System progress notes appropriately and in a timely manner20.Reporting, without delay, any safety or security concerns to maintain the safety of service users, carers, staff and others to appropriate persons ( this could include clinical, environmental, legal)

21.Understanding and contributing to the Trust risk assessment policy, including being aware of the need to follow all safeguarding procedures; being aware of the necessity to safeguard and promote the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults at all times when working with service users.

22.Responding respectfully to concerns / complaints raised by patients, families and carers and escalate in accordance with trust polices.23.Maintaining confidential information in accordance with Trust Policies.Teamworking and Professional development24.Protecting service users, self and others by maintaining a clean and healthy environment in accordance with health and safety and infection control policies.

Ensuring safe working practices and working environment including monitoring and maintaining cleanliness of the service area and report, without delay, all hazards - real and potential. Leading audit and compliance activities and reports.

25.Working in ways that support shared responsibility within the team:demonstrating support, respect and courtesy towards colleagues; working in a professional manner and with Trust values always in mind, respecting the boundaries of the relationship with service users/patients, carers and staff.

26.Leading, attending and participating in team meetings and contributing ideas to multi-professional team discussions.

27.Engaging in reflective practice to ensure effective patient care is based on evidence based practice and with Trust values in mind. Attending staff training and meetings including reflective practice groups and activities including the development of reflective portfolio.

28.Participating in supervision by nominated senior staff member, including annual review of performance as part of the appraisal (or PADR) system. Providing supervision to Provide supervision to Band 3 and 4 non-registered staff.

29.Demonstrating own role to others and acting as role model to others at all times in accordance with Trust values providing junior leadership role.

30.Undertaking mandatory training as required by Trust policy other CPD training related to the role or area of work. Maintain a relevant work development portfolio and comply with all requirements of NMC revalidation

31.Contributing to clinical or governance reviews of the teams activity and the monitoring of performance. Contributing to relevant audit practice development on research activity that may be taking place in the work area.

32.Contributing in training and development programmes of staff and supporting the clinical placements of student nurses.

33.Acting as lead for the assessment and co-ordination of the Care Certificate for all Healthcare Support Workers in the clinical area, particularly if reasonable adjustments need to be made to complete training and learning.

34.Ability to fulfil all the requirements of the role (including physical) and if unable to then reasonable adjustments may need to be made either to your role or place of work to ensure safety of self, staff and patients.

35.Undertake any other duties that are commensurate with the band and nature of the post

Research and Quality36.Contributing to research and audit activities, disseminating knowledge and results and contributing to relevant audit practice development on research activity that may be taking place in the work area.

37.Contributing to service improvement (Quality Improvement and Innovation) and developments, benchmarking exercises.

Job description

Job responsibilities

Clinical Skills1. Working autonomously within the parameters of the role leading onimplementing the delivery of quality nursing care, contributing to the physical, psychological, social, recreational and spiritual care in a recovery-focused way through therapeutic engagement and activities, and taking steps to address any issues that arise.

2. Leading on and undertaking activities to ensure that the fundamentals of care are met - nutrition, hydration, hygiene, comfort, emotional and social support.

3. Co-ordinating and evaluating collaborative patient-centred care; getting feedback and improving plans with the multi-disciplinary team (MDT).

4. Providing accurate information about care in an accessible format to patients and their relatives / carers.

5. Liaising and working positively with members of the multi- disciplinary team and partner organisations.

6. Administering, and monitoring the side-effects of, medication; monitoring service user compliance.

7. Safety; safe custody of medicines, sharps, clinical equipment, report allincidents following trust policy.

8. Developing the management of care needs through:a. Initial data collectionb. Monitoring of individual service user / patient progressc. Feedback and discussiond. Producing reports and in-care reviewse. Devising a plan of care and interventions supervised by a Registered Nurse.

9. Leading on and directing junior to staff in providing hands-on care to service users including:a. Undertaking 1-1 engagement with service users in an honest, open and non judgmental way.b. Recognising and valuing service users as individuals, acknowledging the importance of maintaining the service users respect and dignity at all times and ensure that the care provided respects equality and diversity.c. Developing care plans that reflect service user needs and relevant patient care documentation working in partnership with service users, wider MDT and friends/relatives/significant others.d. Ensuring the monitoring and recording service user clinical observations are undertaken, such as Physical observations and vital signs and treating or escalating as appropriate any signs or symptoms of deterioration or that do not fulfill the personal parameters to the relevant professional for treatment.

Promote healthy lifestyles and give health promotion advice and support.e. Implementing the principles of recovery: encouraging and supporting service users to engage with healthy lifestyles, facilitating psychosocial activities andother activities of their interest. Where appropriate contributing to psychological interventions.

10.Escorting service users, as required, in line with Trust policies.

11.Facilitating the admission and discharge of service users, ensuring needs of the patient and service including relevant legislative or required documentation are completed.

12.Advocating for service users needs and rights within Trust policy. Encouraging and empowering service users to have an optimum level of responsibility for their individual programme of care.Knowledge and Frameworks

13.Demonstrating an enhanced understanding of Mental Health signs and symptoms and an understanding of how these may present in practiceincluding recognition of impact on patient presentation and behaviour including risk factors. Supporting junior staff to develop understanding of mental health signs and symptoms and develop appropriate responses to these in practice.

14.Recognizing and responding appropriately to challenging behaviour in line with Trust policies and training. Supporting junior staff in managing difficult situations and deescalation and developing resilience and strategies to manage.

15.Demonstrating a depth of knowledge and understanding of the fundamentals of the MHA, MCA and DOLS and other legislation applicable to the practice area and how they are implemented in practice ensuring adherence to legislation at all times.Communication

16.Contributing to an effective communication process with appropriate and accurate information to patients, carers, family, friends and colleagues. Engaging and listening carefully and actively, and responding using appropriate language and accessible communication methods and skills. Developing communication skills to enable and support difficult conversations, acknowledging cultural differences and professional boundaries.

17.Demonstrating effective clinical communication and documentation to internal and external stakeholders ensuring: effective verbal and written handover of relevant and objective information. Demonstrating ability to determine key information, ability to recognize and describe effectively symptoms of mental illness, distress or of a deteriorating patient, and ability to escalate issues of concerns effectively and in a timely manner

18.Contributing towards the on-going quality of service and care by managing the patient caseload, organizing care including delegating tasks and duties appropriately to staff with relevant competency, identifying and mitigating anyrisk issues in relation to the service users health and social care. Informing therelevant Health care professionals if there are any significant:a. Changes in the service users physical or mental stateb. Factors relevant to the service userc. Incidents related to the service user

19.Maintaining timely and accurate service user written/electronic records in line with Trust policy. Use care plans, pathway documents and Information System progress notes appropriately and in a timely manner20.Reporting, without delay, any safety or security concerns to maintain the safety of service users, carers, staff and others to appropriate persons ( this could include clinical, environmental, legal)

21.Understanding and contributing to the Trust risk assessment policy, including being aware of the need to follow all safeguarding procedures; being aware of the necessity to safeguard and promote the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults at all times when working with service users.

22.Responding respectfully to concerns / complaints raised by patients, families and carers and escalate in accordance with trust polices.23.Maintaining confidential information in accordance with Trust Policies.Teamworking and Professional development24.Protecting service users, self and others by maintaining a clean and healthy environment in accordance with health and safety and infection control policies.

Ensuring safe working practices and working environment including monitoring and maintaining cleanliness of the service area and report, without delay, all hazards - real and potential. Leading audit and compliance activities and reports.

25.Working in ways that support shared responsibility within the team:demonstrating support, respect and courtesy towards colleagues; working in a professional manner and with Trust values always in mind, respecting the boundaries of the relationship with service users/patients, carers and staff.

26.Leading, attending and participating in team meetings and contributing ideas to multi-professional team discussions.

27.Engaging in reflective practice to ensure effective patient care is based on evidence based practice and with Trust values in mind. Attending staff training and meetings including reflective practice groups and activities including the development of reflective portfolio.

28.Participating in supervision by nominated senior staff member, including annual review of performance as part of the appraisal (or PADR) system. Providing supervision to Provide supervision to Band 3 and 4 non-registered staff.

29.Demonstrating own role to others and acting as role model to others at all times in accordance with Trust values providing junior leadership role.

30.Undertaking mandatory training as required by Trust policy other CPD training related to the role or area of work. Maintain a relevant work development portfolio and comply with all requirements of NMC revalidation

31.Contributing to clinical or governance reviews of the teams activity and the monitoring of performance. Contributing to relevant audit practice development on research activity that may be taking place in the work area.

32.Contributing in training and development programmes of staff and supporting the clinical placements of student nurses.

33.Acting as lead for the assessment and co-ordination of the Care Certificate for all Healthcare Support Workers in the clinical area, particularly if reasonable adjustments need to be made to complete training and learning.

34.Ability to fulfil all the requirements of the role (including physical) and if unable to then reasonable adjustments may need to be made either to your role or place of work to ensure safety of self, staff and patients.

35.Undertake any other duties that are commensurate with the band and nature of the post

Research and Quality36.Contributing to research and audit activities, disseminating knowledge and results and contributing to relevant audit practice development on research activity that may be taking place in the work area.

37.Contributing to service improvement (Quality Improvement and Innovation) and developments, benchmarking exercises.

Person Specification

Education & Qualification

Essential

  • Registered Adult Nurse and/or Registered Mental Health Nurse and/or Registered Learning Disabilities Nurse

Desirable

  • Mentorship qualification

Experience & Qualification

Essential

  • Experience of research-based/reflective practice, e.g. understanding and ability to use supervision to reflect on skills, attitude and knowledge and develop these by using evidence based practice.
  • Knowledge of relevant Professional and Clinical legislation

Desirable

  • Experience of shift co-ordination
  • Experience of supervising and mentoring junior staff and students
Person Specification

Education & Qualification

Essential

  • Registered Adult Nurse and/or Registered Mental Health Nurse and/or Registered Learning Disabilities Nurse

Desirable

  • Mentorship qualification

Experience & Qualification

Essential

  • Experience of research-based/reflective practice, e.g. understanding and ability to use supervision to reflect on skills, attitude and knowledge and develop these by using evidence based practice.
  • Knowledge of relevant Professional and Clinical legislation

Desirable

  • Experience of shift co-ordination
  • Experience of supervising and mentoring junior staff and students

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.

Certificate of Sponsorship

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.

Certificate of Sponsorship

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).

Employer details

Employer name

South West London and St Georges Mental Health NHS Trust

Address

Springfield University Hospital

15 Springfield Drive

London

SW17 0YF


Employer's website

https://www.swlstg.nhs.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)


Employer details

Employer name

South West London and St Georges Mental Health NHS Trust

Address

Springfield University Hospital

15 Springfield Drive

London

SW17 0YF


Employer's website

https://www.swlstg.nhs.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)


Employer contact details

For questions about the job, contact:

Ward Manager

Efosa Osemwenkha

efosa.osemwenkha@swlstg.nhs.uk

Details

Date posted

19 February 2026

Pay scheme

Agenda for change

Band

Band 5

Salary

£31,049 to £37,796 a year per annum inclusive of Inner London HCAs

Contract

Permanent

Working pattern

Full-time

Reference number

294-AAUC-7809845-AZ

Job locations

Springfield University Hospital

15 Springfield Drive

London

SW17 0YF


Supporting documents

Privacy notice

South West London and St Georges Mental Health NHS Trust's privacy notice (opens in a new tab)