Senior School Nurse (AfC equivalent Band 6)

Working with children, young people, and their families in schools and the community

Supporting children and young people with their health needs

Helping vulnerable families and reducing health inequalities

Developing your leadership and management skills while mentoring junior staff

If yes, we would love to hear from you!

About the Role:

We are seeking an enthusiastic and innovative

Senior School Nurse (SCPHN Qualified)

to join our dynamic School Health Team. This exciting role is based at Newham Dockside, with work across the borough. You will be part of a multidisciplinary team of school health professionals, addressing the health needs of children, young people, and their families in line with the Healthy Child Programme (5–19 years).

You will proactively work to reduce the impact of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) and health inequalities, delivering high-quality, evidence-based care and leading service innovation.

Main duties of the job

Deliver holistic health assessments and care plans for children and young people

Develop and maintain multi-agency partnerships at school and borough levels

Mentor and support the development of pre-registration and SCPHN postgraduate students

Lead service delivery initiatives, including drop-in sessions and allocation meetings

Promote and increase the visibility of school health services in local communities

Participate in safeguarding processes, multi-agency case conferences, and Early Help strategies

Support training programmes for schools regarding medical needs and public health initiatives

Maintain accurate electronic records using the RiO system and contribute to audit and governance activities

Engage with the ChatHealth text messaging service and other digital platforms to support accessibility

About usWhy Join Us?

Newham is a diverse borough with a very young population, experiencing regeneration as part of the Olympic legacy. With over 86,000 children and young people living in Newham, our vision is to ensure each child has the same life chances as those in other parts of London.

Newham’s 0-19 Children''s Health Service underwent a CQC inspection in 2021 and was rated

Good

in all areas.

We recognise that delivering high-quality services to the community depends on a healthy, motivated workforce. Therefore, we are proud to offer:

Genuine Management Support

Strong leadership and supportive management teams

A commitment to our HEART values and behaviours (Honesty, Equality, Ambition, Respect, Together)

Money Matters

Flexible starting salary within the allocated grade for the right candidates

Generous local government annual leave allowance

Membership of the Local Government Pension Scheme

Continued access to the NHS Pension Scheme (NHSPS) for health professionals who meet eligibility criteria

Recognition of previous NHS continuous service

Learning and Development

Support for advanced clinical training and a comprehensive workforce development package

Clear competency frameworks and career progression pathways

Access to smart technology to support modern working practices

Job responsibilitiesTo develop, implement and evaluate a comprehensive school health service that is aimed to continuously improve standards of health and social care for the school aged population; and the facilitation of collaborative and multi-professional working across professional and organisational boundaries in partnership with key statutory and voluntary organisations.

This will be achieved through leadership and clinical excellence for our staff and involvement, self-care and personalisation for our service users; taking into account corporate and directorate objectives within the clinical governance framework which underpins the National Service Framework and Healthy Child Programme.

Job descriptionJob responsibilitiesTo develop, implement and evaluate a comprehensive school health service that is aimed to continuously improve standards of health and social care for the school aged population; and the facilitation of collaborative and multi-professional working across professional and organisational boundaries in partnership with key statutory and voluntary organisations.

This will be achieved through leadership and clinical excellence for our staff and involvement, self-care and personalisation for our service users; taking into account corporate and directorate objectives within the clinical governance framework which underpins the National Service Framework and Healthy Child Programme.

The post holder will be professionally responsible and accountable for the assessment of health needs, planning and evaluation of the school health service delivery, for both individuals and groups within a defined school age population delegating casework to team members as required. They will work in partnership with schools, parents/carers and other agencies to achieve the best health outcomes for children and young people.

Main Duties and Responsibilities:

Deliver holistic health assessments and care plans for children and young people

Develop and maintain multi-agency partnerships at school and borough levels

Mentor and support the development of pre-registration and SCPHN postgraduate students

Lead service delivery initiatives, including drop-in sessions and allocation meetings

Promote and increase the visibility of school health services in local communities

Participate in safeguarding processes, multi-agency case conferences, and Early Help strategies

Support training programmes for schools regarding medical needs and public health initiatives

Maintain accurate electronic records using the RiO system and contribute to audit and governance activities

Engage with the ChatHealth text messaging service and other digital platforms to support accessibility

As the key health worker, the school nurse will promote the health and wellbeing of the school-aged child so as to enable each child to reach his/her full potential in line with Newham’s inclusive education policy, helping to minimise effects of social, cultural and racial inequality.

The post holder will be required to develop a specialist role in areas of school nursing practice in line with service requirements and their personal development plan.

Key Tasks and AccountabilitiesKey tasks and accountabilities are intended to be a guide to the range and level of work expected of the post holder. This is not an exhaustive list of all tasks that may fall to the post holder and employees will be expected to carry out such other reasonable duties which may be required from time to time.

Provide a service to a caseload of children as the named school nurse in appropriate settings such as school, clinic, home, youth clubs, special educational units and other educational establishments

Identify and work in partnership to provide a service to vulnerable and socially excluded children who may or may not be attending school

Work collaboratively within community hubs, in partnership with children, young people, parents/carers and other agencies to meet the needs of children and young people

Complete a targeted school entry health assessment for children entering a school in Newham, including screening of vision, hearing, growth and general health

Work in partnership with immunisation nurses to achieve immunisation programme targets

Plan, deliver and evaluate health promotion activities in line with the school health curriculum, public health and locally agreed priorities

Offer individual support and advice to children, young people, parents/carers, teachers and other professionals

Demonstrate user involvement through surveys, meetings, focus groups to plan for meeting community needs

Identify and devise appropriate individualised health care plans for the school age child

Identify and provide training programmes as identified through school needs

Adhere to local child protection procedures and represent health at case conferences and other meetings

Attend and participate in Team Around the School (TAS) meetings

Provide reports for social services investigations

Refer children to other agencies as appropriate and document referrals

Use school health profiling to develop the service and influence local policies

Develop local service provision agreements for schools in partnership with specialist leads

Support clinical team leaders in operational duties and supervise practice

Provide preceptorship/mentorship to associate school nurses and preregistration students

Provide cover for sick or absent colleagues as required

Keep accurate and contemporaneous records in line with policies and NMC guidelines

Ensure records are managed per service procedure on RiO and use Early Help templates as required

Record statistical data for ICT system and meet data deadlines

Provide mental health support as tier 1 practitioners and refer to other services as needed

Review induction programs for new staff and reflect current guidelines

Contribute to quality data collection to inform users and commissioners and improve service

Participate in audits for service development

Professional Responsibilities

Comply with the NMC Code of Professional Conduct (Jan 2024) and ensure revalidation every three years

Engage with research findings to ensure evidence-based practice

Participate in clinical and child protection supervision

Undertake regular performance reviews with the line manager

Develop practice through continued education and CPD; maintain an electronic record of all training

Report incidents/accidents to the line manager

Undertake other duties commensurate with the post

Person SpecificationExperience

Significant post-registration experience working with children, young people, and families

Working knowledge of safeguarding procedures and multi-agency collaboration

Skills and Knowledge

Strong clinical leadership and supervisory skills

Excellent communication, interpersonal, and report-writing abilities

Knowledge of public health issues affecting school-aged children

Ability to teach and assess students and junior staff

Competence in using clinical and administrative IT systems

Understanding and commitment to equality, diversity, and inclusion principles

Qualifications

Registered Nurse (NMC Registered)

Specialist Community Public Health Nurse (School Nursing)

Postgraduate qualification (or currently undertaking and near completion)

Other Requirements

Ability to travel independently within the borough

A positive, resilient, and flexible attitude towards change and service improvement

Disclosure and Barring Service CheckThis 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 CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.

£44,331 to £47,532 a year inclusive of the high cost area supplement (HCAS)

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