Special School Nursing Team Leader

Job overview

Special School Nursing Team Leader - Band 7

An exciting opportunity has arisen within the Special School Nursing Service for a Band 7 Team Leader to manage the new nursing team at Greenmead School in Wandsworth.

We are looking for an enthusiastic individual who has experience in leadership in community paediatric nursing, children's continence and working in a special school.  An understanding of the needs of children and young people with disability and/or additional health problems is essential.

We would welcome applications from enthusiastic committed nurses with excellent clinical and leadership experience, who are able to communicate at a senior level and are able to manage their time effectively.

Main duties of the job

The successful candidate is required to provide clinical leadership to a small team of nurses who will provide nursing care and support to pupils with complex health needs attending Greenmead School.

You will be part of a multi-professional team and work directly with the school's senior leadership team, carry out assessments, provide both planned and responsive clinical care and ensure that local safeguarding policies are adhered to.

You will be identified as a role model for the Special School Nurses and support staff and education staff and offer advice and support to parents and pupils.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

• Act as direct line manager for a team of school staff nurses and health care assistants based within the special school
• Act as the lead clinician for the Children’s Continence Service
• Develops, promotes and implements integrated working (internal and external) whenever this would improve service delivery options or outcomes for individual children, young people and their families
• Ensures that all staff within the team work to SHC and ESTH policies, procedures, standard operating procedures and guidelines within the service area and actively contribute to the proposal of policy or service changes as appropriate
• Works closely and collaboratively with the Head of Children’s Services, Service Managers and other Team Leaders across Children's Services
• Ensure that the agreed service specification is implemented
• Ensure that service reports are completed in a timely manner and ensure that key performance indicators for specified services are met
• Delegates appropriately to ensure consistent coordinated care
• Act as a specialist practitioner and a resource to other staff both within the department and wider organisation
• Lead by example and maintain a high level of professional conduct at all times. Clinical Responsibilities
• Act as lead clinician for the children’s continence service
• Manages the children’s continence service caseload ensuring key performance indicators are met
• Perform effective assessment and plans care according to the identified health needs of individual children and young people in the special school and for children accessing the continence service
• Review care plans on at least a yearly basis or more frequently if needed
• Maks onward referrals where appropriate
• Manages a team of nurses and health care assistants at the school
• Provide management supervision
• Chair regular Team meetings
• Ensure that safeguarding supervision occurs at least termly and additionally where required
• Represent the school nursing team in school when needed and be confident and competent in carrying out clinical skills such as administration of medication and gastrostomy feeds and has experience of working with children with tracheostomies
• Attend annual educational reviews, child in need meetings, team around the child meetings, professional meetings, child protection case conferences and core group meetings, representing the school nursing team and providing key information to education and social services staff and parents
• Comply with infection control policies and procedures in order to minimise and prevent the spread of infection. Management Responsibilities/Professional Leadership
• Provide leadership to the special school nursing team in collaboration with senior children’s services managers
• Ensure team compliance with service delivery according to the commissioned service specification
• Responsible for ensuring that key performance indicators are met for both the special school nursing team and the children’s continence service and ensure any discrepancies are fully explained and resolved with children’s services senior managers
• Support senior children’s services managers to monitor the staffing budget for the specified service areas ensuring expenditure remains within the allocated budget
• Responsible for coordinating all absence cover within the team ensuring an adequate and safe service is maintained
• Proactively plan all annual leave, off duties and cover for training etc., in conjunction with the team to ensure that the service needs are met at all times
• Responsible for ensuring that accurate staffing records are maintained via the use of Health Roster e rostering system
• Ensure staff comply with their obligation to collect and record data in electronic records in a timely manner
• Receive and handle any complaints according to SHC and ESTH policy and ensure that all reported incidents for designated areas are fully investigated
• Work collaboratively with the risk management department to support practitioners in the identification and management of any risks involved with the service and delivery of care
• Ensure all staff comply with the incident policy and ensure that all reported incidents for designated areas are fully investigated
• Lead, motivate, develop and praise staff performance in line with Trust policies
• Responsible for the effective recruitment and selection of staff in line with Trust recruitment and selection processes and policies
• Ensure all staff receive an annual approach which identifies clear achievable objectives that link in with departmental, divisional and Trust objectives
• Ensure poor performance issues are dealt with in an appropriate and timely manner following the Trust’s disciplinary or poor performance procedures where formal action is necessary
• Ensure effective communication within designated area and ensure Trust communication systems are utilised
• Observe and comply with Trust policies and procedures for health and safety ensuring the environment you work in and are responsible for is safe, clean and tidy
• Promote equal opportunities in compliance with Trust policies
• Ensure that benefits to children and young people are maximised through careful, economical and appropriate use of NHS resources including equipment, property, budget, time etc
• Participate in the audit of services to ensure a high level of service delivery and identify areas of improvement. Education, Training and Personal Development
• Consider the professional development needs of both self and the team ensuring that all staff access statutory and mandatory training at specified times
• Develop and implement local orientation, local induction programmes and preceptorship for any new employees to the team
• Proactively plan own and team study leave in conjunction with team members and colleagues in line with personal development plans
• Ensure all staff are compliant with statutory and mandatory training whilst maintaining an adequate level of service delivery
• Work alongside the senior children’s services managers to ensure all staff are competent and confident in performing clinical skills associated with their role ensuring any poor performance issues are addressed in line with SHC and ESTH policies
• Ensure staff participate in reflective practice to ensure effective problem solving strategies within the team
• Complete verification for nursing staff undertaking their revalidation in line with NMC guidelines
• Ensure student nurses on clinical placements are allocated trained mentors to support the special school nurses ensuring that placements offer developmental opportunities and are a positive experience. Working Relationships/Communication
• Develop and maintain a highly professional and constructive relationship with the education team within the special needs schools
• Act as part of the school senior leadership team when required
• Maintain good communication with children and young people, parents, carers, staff and other professionals at all times and be able to communicate complex information in an appropriate manner to all
• Be able to handle sensitive information and act in a tactful manner when there may be a conflict of interest
• Have knowledge of alternative methods of communication such as Makaton, PECS, PODD books etc. Financial Responsibility/Service Delivery
• Be responsible for the issue of children’s continence products ensuring the identified needs of the client is met whilst maintaining the specified budget
• Attend quarterly business meetings with the contracted continence product supplier in order to monitor and compare financial data
• Support senior children’s services managers to monitor the staffing budget for the specified service areas ensuring expenditure remains within the allocated budget. Evaluation of Care and Research
• Promote evidence based practice
• Participate in the Clinical Governance programme, encouraging others in the team to participate
• Participate in any Clinical Audit programmes and the evaluation of own practice within the clinical area
• Utilise and participate in research to enhance nursing practice
• Demonstrate increased knowledge and able to assist in the implementation of innovative evidence-based, cost-effective clinical practice