Surrey and Borders Partnership NHS Foundation Trust

Chief Nursing Officer (Mental Health & Learning Disability)

The closing date is 16 November 2025

Job summary

Are you ready to lead nursing excellence at the heart of one of the country's most progressive mental health and learning disability trusts?

Surrey and Borders Partnership NHS Foundation Trust is seeking an exceptional Chief Nursing Officer to shape the future of compassionate, high-quality care for our communities across Surrey and North East Hampshire.

Rated Good by the CQC, we are proud to be at the forefront of integrated health and social care - delivering support close to home, driving innovation through research, and transforming lives every day. From opening Silverwood, our new state-of-the-art inpatient service, to winning two HSJ Patient Safety Awards, our impact speaks for itself.

The Trust's expectation is that colleagues are expected to be in person at their place of work during their working hours in order to optimise team effectiveness, with flexible working policies guiding any variation to this which takes into account team and individual circumstances. Colleagues are expected to be present at Trust sites a minimum of 3 days a week.

Main duties of the job

As our new Chief Nursing Officer you will:

Champion clinical excellence and inspire our outstanding nursing workforce.
Drive innovation, improvement, and equality at every level of care.
Work alongside our Board and partners to shape strategy, deliver performance, and transform experience for patients, carers, and staff alike.

You'll bring a bold vision for the future of nursing in mental health, a deep commitment to person-centred care, and the leadership to help our teams thrive.

Join us in creating better lives for the communities we serve.

Please read through the candidate information pack for more details on the requirements and duties of this role.

Candidates who are shortlisted will be invited to undertake an assessment centre, the outcome of which will inform which candidates are invited to the stakeholder discussions and interview.

About us

Surrey and Borders Partnership NHS Foundation Trust is the leading provider of mental health, learning disability, neurodevelopmental and drug and alcohol services in Surrey and North East Hampshire. We support people of all ages and are passionate about providing high quality care that is delivered at the right time as close to home as possible to help people recover and stay well.

We are one of the top 10 mental Health, Learning Disability and Community Trust to work for nationwide. Our Trust is an inclusive and supportive employer that offers a wide range of staff networks, flexible working, free parking and excellent health and wellbeing support. We also provide a wide range of opportunities to help staff develop and progress.

Surrey is a beautiful county lying just 30 minutes away from Central London and from the South Coast. Our historic market towns and bustling districts are enveloped in wonderful countryside, and our excellent road and rail networks bring the rest of the country within easy reach. For international travel, both Gatwick and Heathrow airports are nearby.

Please note that we reserve the right to close posts as soon as sufficient applications are received.

Regrettably, due to UK Home Office requirements we cannot offer sponsorship for all our job roles.

Applicants must have the right to work in the UK for the duration of the role.

We look forward to receiving your application!

Date posted

21 October 2025

Pay scheme

Very senior manager (VSM)

Salary

Depending on experience circa £125k depending on experience

Contract

Permanent

Working pattern

Full-time

Reference number

325-7562991-CORP

Job locations

Trust Headquarters

18 Mole Business Park

Leatherhead

KT22 7AD

Job description

Job responsibilities

Please check the candidate information pack for more information about this role and the Trust and the requirements for this job.

Job description

Job responsibilities

Please check the candidate information pack for more information about this role and the Trust and the requirements for this job.

Person Specification

Qualifications

Essential

Registered Nursing qualification and NMC Registration
Post Graduate or equivalent qualification
General management qualification and/or demonstrable equivalent experience

Experience

Essential

Considerable and recent experience as a director in a complex health and social care or equivalent environment; managing safety critical services
Considerable experience of leading and shaping sound health and social care governance
General management experience at a senior level, including managing large budgets, with a track record of partnership working producing tangible outcomes through influence and relationship management
Experience of leading and managing successfully significant assurance, change and improvements programmes

Person Specification

Qualifications

Essential

Registered Nursing qualification and NMC Registration
Post Graduate or equivalent qualification
General management qualification and/or demonstrable equivalent experience

Experience

Essential

Considerable and recent experience as a director in a complex health and social care or equivalent environment; managing safety critical services
Considerable experience of leading and shaping sound health and social care governance
General management experience at a senior level, including managing large budgets, with a track record of partnership working producing tangible outcomes through influence and relationship management
Experience of leading and managing successfully significant assurance, change and improvements programmes

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).