Job summary
The Lead Nurse for Children and Young People's Continuing Care (CYPCC) will provide strategic and operational leadership to ensure the delivery of high-quality, safe, and child-centred care across Kent and Medway. This role involves leading a skilled nursing team, overseeing the continuing care assessment and review process in line with the National Framework, and ensuring robust governance, safeguarding, and commissioning practices.
The post holder will act as the clinical expert within the service, supporting complex decision-making, promoting equitable access to care, and ensuring that services meet the diverse needs of children and families. They will work collaboratively with health, social care, education, and voluntary sector partners to provide integrated, personalised care packages and support safe, timely hospital discharges.
In addition, the Lead Nurse will contribute to service development, quality improvement, and policy implementation, and ensure that the team operates efficiently, accountably, and in line with national and local priorities.
Main duties of the job
Main Duties and Responsibilities:
- Lead and manage the CYPCC team across Kent & Medway.
- Deputise for the Head of Children and Young People within the All Age Continuing Care (AACC) service.
- Act as the clinical lead for CYP continuing care assessments and reviews.
- Ensure compliance with the National Framework for CYP Continuing Care.
- Oversee timely, holistic assessments with clear recommendations for panel decisions.
- Promote and ensure the offer of Personal Health Budgets (PHBs) to eligible families.
- Work closely with health, social care, education, and voluntary agencies.
- Support safe and coordinated hospital discharges.
- Lead risk assessment and management planning for complex care packages.
- Attend and contribute to safeguarding and commissioning meetings on behalf of the CYPCC team.
- Contribute to audits, service evaluations, and quality improvement initiatives.
- Ensure care provision is safe, equitable, and evidence-based.
- Promote a high-performing, accountable, and motivated team culture.
- Support professional development and foster inclusive, respectful working relationships.
Additional Working Pattern: Monday - Friday 9am-5pm
About us
Would you like to work flexibly? In the NHS, we are reminded every day of how important life is. As a flexible working friendly organisation, we want to be sure that you can work in a way that is best for us, for our patients and for you. Speak to us about how we might be able to accommodate a flexible working arrangement which will not mean sacrificing time for personal interests or family commitments. We aim to support you to work flexibly in a way that will suit you and us.
We work with staff to agree objectives through regular supervision, annual appraisal, and access to training opportunities.
We are committed to equal opportunities and diversity. In order to reflect the diversity of our population, we positively encourage applications from all areas of the community regardless of gender, race, faith, disability, age or sexual orientation.
Job description
Job responsibilities
The job description and person specification gives you all the information you need about this role. Please look carefully at the criteria in the person specification and tell us what you have done that shows you meet this.
Still have questions? The recruiting manager would love to hear from you, their contact details can be found in the job advert.
We can get a lot of applications for some roles so to be in with the best chance of being shortlisted please make sure you apply as soon as possible. A vacancy may close early if there is a lot of interest in the job.
If you need an application form in an alternative format please let our recruitment team know so they can help you with this.
All information you supply on your application should, to the best of your knowledge, be true and accurate.
Job description
Job responsibilities
The job description and person specification gives you all the information you need about this role. Please look carefully at the criteria in the person specification and tell us what you have done that shows you meet this.
Still have questions? The recruiting manager would love to hear from you, their contact details can be found in the job advert.
We can get a lot of applications for some roles so to be in with the best chance of being shortlisted please make sure you apply as soon as possible. A vacancy may close early if there is a lot of interest in the job.
If you need an application form in an alternative format please let our recruitment team know so they can help you with this.
All information you supply on your application should, to the best of your knowledge, be true and accurate.
Person Specification
Qualifications
Essential
- Registered Children's Nurse (NMC) with a master's degree or equivalent senior-level experience in a specialist field. Membership in a relevant professional body.
Experience
Essential
- Extensive expertise in the specialist area, with evidence of post-qualification and ongoing professional development.
- Evidence of being a skilled practitioner in interpreting national policies and researching best practices across sectors to advise on system reforms.
- Experience of successfully leading and managing a team, demonstrating the ability to motivate staff, manage performance, and delivering high-quality outcomes in a complex healthcare environment.
Desirable
- Knowledge about the roles of Department of Health, NHS England/Improvement, providers, and commissioners.
- Well-versed in current healthcare policies in the Southeast and their implications for service delivery and engagement.
- Experienced in budget management, including setting budgets and understanding financial processes.
Attributes
Essential
- Confident decision-maker, capable of handling difficult or contentious issues with autonomy under tight deadlines.
- Comfortable challenging others respectfully and open to receiving constructive feedback for growth
- Maintains calm professionalism and efficiency in clinical and leadership roles.
Competencies
Essential
- Skilled communicator, able to deliver and negotiate complex, sensitive, or contentious information with senior stakeholders and large audiences.
- Exercises sound clinical judgement ensuring safe, effective, and patient-centered care
- Takes full accountability for own role and responsibilities, while confidently holding others to account to ensure high standards of practice and service delivery are maintained.
Person Specification
Qualifications
Essential
- Registered Children's Nurse (NMC) with a master's degree or equivalent senior-level experience in a specialist field. Membership in a relevant professional body.
Experience
Essential
- Extensive expertise in the specialist area, with evidence of post-qualification and ongoing professional development.
- Evidence of being a skilled practitioner in interpreting national policies and researching best practices across sectors to advise on system reforms.
- Experience of successfully leading and managing a team, demonstrating the ability to motivate staff, manage performance, and delivering high-quality outcomes in a complex healthcare environment.
Desirable
- Knowledge about the roles of Department of Health, NHS England/Improvement, providers, and commissioners.
- Well-versed in current healthcare policies in the Southeast and their implications for service delivery and engagement.
- Experienced in budget management, including setting budgets and understanding financial processes.
Attributes
Essential
- Confident decision-maker, capable of handling difficult or contentious issues with autonomy under tight deadlines.
- Comfortable challenging others respectfully and open to receiving constructive feedback for growth
- Maintains calm professionalism and efficiency in clinical and leadership roles.
Competencies
Essential
- Skilled communicator, able to deliver and negotiate complex, sensitive, or contentious information with senior stakeholders and large audiences.
- Exercises sound clinical judgement ensuring safe, effective, and patient-centered care
- Takes full accountability for own role and responsibilities, while confidently holding others to account to ensure high standards of practice and service delivery are maintained.
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).
