Jobs for the Disability sector

The Head of Nursing and Quality is a senior strategic and operational leader within The Children’s Trust, responsible for delivering the highest standards of nursing, clinical care, safety, and clinical governance across the organisation. Reporting directly to the Director of Nursing and Quality, the postholder provides professional leadership for the nursing and care workforce, oversees the day to day clinical management of the organisation and deputises for the Director of Nursing and Quality / Registered Manager as required.

This role ensures compliance with all relevant regulatory frameworks, including CQC, OFSTED Care, National Minimum Standards for Children’s Homes, and national patient safety requirements, while fostering a culture of excellence, continuous learning, and improvement. The postholder will lead on the development of evidence-based practice, ensuring services are safe, equitable, responsive, and aligned with The Children’s Trust’s strategic objectives.

Interview date: Friday 2 January 2026

This role is not open for sponsorship.

Duties and Responsibilities

Strategic Leadership and Professional Practice

• Provide highly visible, credible leadership to nursing and care teams across the organisation.
• Act as a key delegate and deputy for the Director of Nursing and Quality / Registered Manager.
• Champion a culture that promotes safe, equitable, compassionate, and evidence-based care.
• Ensure children, young people, and families are meaningfully involved in shaping service delivery and evaluating their experience.
• Lead the development and delivery of organisational initiatives, contributing to strategic objectives, the business plan, and the organisational dashboard.
• Proactively network externally to promote the organisation’s clinical and professional profile.

Regulatory Compliance and Quality Assurance

• Ensure full compliance with CQC, OFSTED Care, National Minimum Standards for Children’s Homes, NMC standards, and other applicable legislation.
• Lead audits of CQC and Ofsted standards, identifying gaps and implementing robust action plans.
• Assist in the continued development, implementation, and maintenance of an effective organisation-wide clinical governance framework.
• Jointly coordinate the completion of the annual Quality Account.
• Lead clinical policy development, ensuring all clinical policies are evidence-based, current, and understood by staff.

 Patient Safety, Clinical Risk and Incident Management

• Lead a culture of transparency, learning, and continuous improvement within the Nursing and Care directorate.
• Implement and oversee the Patient Safety Incident Response Framework (PSIRF) and annual associated plan alongside the Head of Clinical Governance.
• Ensure timely review and oversight of incident reporting, risk assessments, serious incident investigations, and associated actions.
• Promote and strengthen organisational processes for identifying, mitigating, and monitoring clinical risks.
• Communicate themes and learning from incidents across the organisation.

Workforce Leadership, Development and Management

• Provide professional leadership to nursing, care, safeguarding, respiratory, pharmacy, clinical governance and clinical education teams.
• Line manage: Business Support Manager, Senior Clinical Lead, Lead Respiratory Nurse and three house managers, and associated teams.
• Ensure robust workforce planning, including appropriate skill mix and safe staffing.
• Lead recruitment and retention strategies for nursing and care services in partnership with the People Team.
• Ensure regular, high-quality clinical supervision, appraisal, and professional development opportunities.
• Oversee NMC revalidation processes and compliance with professional standards.
• Build high-performing teams through motivation, recognition, coaching, and consistent performance management.

Nursing and Care Leadership

• Provide strategic leadership for the nursing and care education team and line manager this through the Senior Clinical Lead.
• Ensure a safe and effective education provision aligned with national standards and NMC, and other regulatory requirements.

Safeguarding

• Ensure strong collaboration with safeguarding professionals ensuring safeguarding governance, policy implementation, training compliance, and multi-agency collaboration.
• Provide senior oversight of safeguarding concerns, investigations, and learning in conjunction with the Director of Nursing and Quality, and wider safeguarding team.

Infection Prevention and Control (IPC)

• Provide leadership for infection prevention and control, ensuring compliance with national guidelines.
• Monitor infection data, oversee IPC audits, and initiate improvement strategies.
• Promote best practice in all clinical and residential settings.

Documentation, Information Management and Digital Systems

• Ensure safe, accurate and secure medical and care records, with regular audit for compliance.
• Maximise use of digital systems to support clinical decision-making, documentation, and governance.
• Ensure clear, consistent standards for record-keeping across all clinical and care areas.

Resource, Budget and Performance Management

• Hold delegated responsibility for staffing and non-staffing budgets across nursing, care, and residential services.
• Lead capital and equipment planning to ensure all clinical environments are safe and fit for purpose.
• Review and ensure effective skill mix and resource allocation.
• Set SMART objectives for direct reports and monitor performance through structured quarterly reviews.

Senior Leadership and Organisational Responsibilities

• Serve as a critical member of the Nursing and Care Senior Leadership Team.
• Participate in the senior site manager weekend rota.
• Communicate organisational messages effectively and relay staff feedback to senior leaders.
• Undertake additional duties aligned with the role’s scope and organisational requirements.
• Ensure full compliance with Health & Safety regulations and The Children's Trust policies.

 Wellbeing and Emotional Resilience

• Maintains a positive approach and outlook when dealing with change and overcoming challenges and problems.
• Recognises own limitations, develops realistic goals, and uses support network resource when or if necessary.
• Treats challenges and problems as a learning experience.
• Remains organised and focused when under pressure.
• Responds appropriately and effectively to all constructive feedback.
• Motivates self and other.

Education:

• Registered Nurse.
• Leadership / management qualification.
• Master’s degree in relevant subject. 

Experience:

• Evidence of recent management and leadership experience at equivalent to Band 8c or above, for a minimum of two years.
• Evidence of continuous professional and personal development.
• Experience of working with children and families with complex health needs.

Skills, Abilities & Knowledge:

• Dynamic, passionate, open, collaborative, and supportive leadership style.
• Able to build teams and delegate.
• Able to problem solve and make informed decisions, and take charge of events.
• Excellent interpersonal skills.
• Strong influencing skills in depth knowledge of all relevant regulatory legislation, with experience of implementing and working to them.
• Demonstrable track record of achievement in quality and patient safety.
• Experience of leading a service and of transformational change.
• Experience managing projects.
• Experience of effective partnership working, with both internal and external stakeholders.
• Experience of managing budgets.

Personal Qualities:

• Commitment to the vision and values of The Children’s Trust.
• Flexible and ‘can do’ attitude to competing commitments in workload.
• Highly motivated and reliable.
• Ability to cope working in a demanding environment.
• Commitment to maintaining personal wellbeing and the wellbeing of colleagues. 

About Us

The Children’s Trust is the UK’s leading charity for children with acquired brain injury, providing expert rehabilitation, education, therapy, and care at our national specialist centre in Tadworth, and to children and their families across the UK, via our Brain Injury Community Service.

Boasting a beautiful 24-acre site in Surrey, we are located just outside of London, close to the M25 (accessible via Junction 8, A217 to Tadworth) and easily accessible via National Rail, by way of: Clapham Junction, Sutton, and Epsom.

Staff Benefits

The work we do is highly rewarding, and in addition to an attractive salary, we offer a valuable range of benefits on our staff flexible benefits platform, on-site nursery, free eye tests, enhanced Maternity and Paternity Pay, time out days for those experiencing menopause symptoms and time off for gender reassignment.

We also offer additional annual leave days for those with long service, with entitlements ranging from 35 to 41 days (including bank holidays) depending on your length of service.

Other benefits include free on-site parking; a staff shuttle service from Epsom and Sutton train stations to Tadworth Court, subsidised cafeteria, on-site staff accommodation (subject to availability), the ability to retain your NHS pension (where applicable), Teacher’s pension (where applicable) or the opportunity to join an alternative scheme, and the opportunity to develop your career in a supportive and collaborative environment.

Rehabilitation of Offenders

Many roles at The Children’s Trust are exempt from the provisions of Section 4 (2) of the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974, by virtue of the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (as amended in 2013 and 2020) and as such, are subject to an Enhanced DBS check.  Successful applicants will be required to complete an Enhanced Disclosure & Barring Service (DBS) check, which will disclose all unspent convictions and adult cautions and any spent convictions or adult cautions that would not be protected.  The exceptions to this are our retail roles within The Children’s Trust shops, which are subject to Basic DBS checks which will disclose unspent convictions or adult cautions.

Equal Opportunity Employer

To help us achieve our ambition to give children and young people with brain injury and neurodisability the opportunity to live the best life possible, we want to accurately reflect the UK’s diverse population. We want equity, diversity, and inclusion to be at the heart of everything we do, and our people, services, and culture to reflect the diverse needs of all. Through our diversity and inclusion strategy, we have made a commitment to increase the diversity of our charity and create an inclusive culture. We have networks across the organisation working to ensure that these aims are met - including an LGBTQIA2S+ group, Ethnic Diversity Group, and Spark – our broad EDI group. Read more about our EDI work here. We welcome applications from all who share our ambition regardless of background. We will strive to ensure that any reasonable adjustments are made in respect of interview and working arrangements.

Online Searches

In accordance with statutory safeguarding and child protection guidance, online searches will be conducted for shortlisted candidates before interview. The online searches will be conducted by a person who is independent of the interview and selection process and will focus on relevant information returned via searches of the candidate’s name (and variations thereof). Social media searches will be limited to professional platforms such as LinkedIn. Any concerns relating to suitability for work with children and young people will be forwarded to the interview panel, for discussion during the interview.