Nurse Consultant
The closing date is 06 April 2026
This is an exciting opportunity for a new role within the Trust as a Nurse Consultant in Paediatric Palliative Care, to be a expert practitioner that embodies the 4 pillars of practice, working across all paediatric palliative care and bereavement services.
The Nurse Consultant will be a dedicated, strong nursing voice in the strategic vision for paediatric palliative care across the Trust, with emerging opportunities for pathway development, service evaluation and service design for equitable provision for children, regardless of diagnosis.
As an expert practitioner, the Nurse Consultant role will evaluate practice and focus on service development, embed research into practice, lead new evidence based clinical practice and further advance clinical skills within the team. They will work alongside the clinical educator to develop and manage teaching programs to share expertise and advanced clinical practice.
The Nurse Consultant will develop and maintain a regional and national profile, influencing practice through networks, forums, and collaborative partnerships, representing the service locally, regionally, and nationally.
* Interview Date Tuesday 05 May 2026
* You will be redirected to Trac to apply for the vacancy. Please expand the job details section and read all of the information before applying for the vacancy
NO AGENCIES PLEASE
Main duties of the job
The Nurse Consultant will be a clinical expert in Children's Palliative Care, drawing on a diverse range of specialist knowledge (symptom control, complex care coordination, ethical frameworks, safeguarding, advance care planning, end‐of‐life care, bereavement support) to inform clinical reasoning and decision‐making. They will determine evidence based assessment, investigation and treatment options, tailored to the child's and family's priorities, culture, and values.
They will gather and collate clinical data for audit and service evaluation (e.g., pain/symptom control metrics, hospital avoidance, preferred place of care/death, family experience measures), and disseminate good practice across partner organisations. The post holder will generate research ideas relevant to practice, lead research initiatives within the clinical area, and contribute to the wider research agenda, collaborating with local, regional, and national partners.
This role will professionally support and lead the nursing team, advancing practice in line with service development and continuous improvement, reviewing and transforming services to ensure high‐quality, family centred, compassionate care.
About us
As a flexible working friendly organisation, we want to be sure that you can work in a way that is best for us and for our patients, and for you. Speak to us about how we might be able to accommodate a flexible working arrangement. If it works for the service, we will do our best to make it work for you.
With around 2 million contacts with patients every year, we deliver care from:
* Royal Victoria Infirmary (RVI)
* Freeman Hospital
* Newcastle Dental Hospital
* Newcastle Fertility Centre
* Northern Centre for Cancer Care, North Cumbria
* Northern Genetics Service
These include a range of flagship services which deliver cutting‐edge care (supported by state‐of‐the‐art diagnostic services in both radiology and pathology) and are a catalyst for innovation to support pioneering clinical practice in the NHS.
We also have offices at Regent Point in Gosforth and community sites.
Please see attached information on what Staff Benefits we have to offer at our Trust under 'Documents to download' or 'Supporting documents'.
Job responsibilities
Key responsibilities in leading the Childrens Palliative Care Nursing Service include:
* Providing specialised clinical advice and strategic direction to nursing and medical teams across the Trust and partner organisations, ensuring clarity, compassion, and accuracy in communication.
* Overseeing the development and maintenance of care pathways (e.g., symptom management, advance care planning, end‐of‐life care, rapid response/out‐of‐hours support, transition to adult services, bereavement pathways) aligned to a regional hub‐and‐spoke model to support equitable access and consistent standards.
* Adapting communication styles to suit a variety of audiences healthcare professionals, commissioners, non‐medical stakeholders, schools, parents, carers, and patients ensuring inclusion and accessibility.
* Working collaboratively with key providers across primary, secondary, tertiary, hospice, and community services to enable integrated care, streamline processes, enhance outcomes, improve sustainability, and uphold Trust values.
Key Priorities for the First Year
* Establish review process for children with life limiting conditions
* Contribute to development of regional paediatric palliative care clinics and pathways.
* Increase knowledge and capability within the wider childrens nursing teams.
* Develop and deliver a regional paediatric palliative care conference for primary, secondary, and tertiary providers.
* Expand education provision, including study days and income‐generating opportunities.
The Nurse Consultant will be the clinical lead for nursing development, promoting additional skills training for nurses at all grades and allied professionals, enhancing roles in line with service needs (e.g., pain and symptom control, syringe driver competency, anticipatory prescribing, recognition of the dying child, communication skills, cultural competence, safeguarding, psychological support).
The post holder has responsibility to undertake audits and Quality Improvement (QI) projects to improve and develop best practice in line with national guidance and local priorities.
As a member of the senior leadership team, they will play a key role in developing, monitoring, and evaluating the service, guiding and advising on future development, workforce planning, equitable access, and digital/sustainability opportunities.
Person Specification
Qualifications & Education
* Registered Nurse (appropriate to branch) with extensive experience of clinical work in specialist area
* Current NMC registration
* Possession of a Master's Degree
* Evidence of specialist education related to area of clinical expertise
* Hold a recognised teaching qualification
* Meets Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) requirements for mentorship relevant to role
* Possession of or working towards a Doctorate
Knowledge & Experience
* Audit / research experience
* Knowledge and understanding of relevant NHS policy or project specific policy context
* Has understanding / experience of adult / child safeguarding
* Previous experience of corporate development of nursing and nursing services
* Experience of contributing to the development of nursing at a regional / national level
Skills & Abilities
* Excellent interpersonal and leadership skills
* Report writing skills
* Ability to prioritise a complex workload and work in a rapidly changing environment
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.
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