Job summary
- Main area
- Emergency medicine
- Grade
- NHS AfC: Band 6
- Contract
- Permanent: (12 months FTC also available)
- Hours
- Full time
- Part time
- Job ref
- 339-TA-MED3157-EDB6
- Employer
- Bristol NHS Foundation Trust (BFT)
- Employer type
- NHS
- Site
- Southmead Hospital
- Town
- Bristol
- Salary
- £39,959 - £48,117 pro rata
- Salary period
- Yearly
- Closing
- 06/09/2026 23:59
Employer heading
Sister/Charge nurse
NHS AfC: Band 6
North Bristol NHS Trust (NBT) and University Hospitals Bristol and Weston NHS Foundation Trust (UHBW) have merged as of 1st July 2026 to become Bristol NHS Foundation Trust. This creates an exciting future that brings together the best of both organisations. As a single, strong and sustainable organisation, we will not only be able to deliver better outcomes for our patients and fairer care for our population, but it will also provide greater opportunities for our people.
Bristol NHS Foundation Trust recognise the value of a healthy work-life balance. When applying, speak to us about how we might be able to accommodate flexible working, so your work life fits around your home life.
We particularly welcome applications from Black, Asian and minority ethnic candidates as they are under-represented within the Trust.
Our job adverts may close as soon as sufficient applications have been received. Considering this, if you are interested in this role, please do apply as soon as you can.
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Job overview
If you’re a highly experienced emergency care nurse with significant post-registration experience, join Southmead Hospital’s Emergency Department!
As one of only two Major Trauma Centres in the region, you will gain highly acute experience across the full urgent and emergency care pathway, working with specialist regional services including neurosurgery, stroke, vascular surgery, renal medicine and transplantation.
With opportunities to combine advanced clinical practice, leadership and professional autonomy, while influencing how emergency care is delivered, you will be responsible for delivering high-quality patient care, supporting patient flow and making timely clinical decisions within a fast-paced, challenging environment.
You will provide operational management to designated areas, demonstrating strong clinical judgement, excellent communication skills and visible leadership. You will work autonomously while supporting and developing junior colleagues, fostering a positive team culture and ensuring safe and efficient delivery of care.
With ongoing departmental reconfiguration and expansion of our workforce, help shape the future of emergency services at Southmead. We are proud to offer a CQC-commended education programme and a wide range of development opportunities, including an Advanced Clinical Practitioner training pathway, making this an ideal role for nurses looking to strengthen their leadership and progress their career in emergency care.
Main duties of the job
As a Band 6 Emergency Nurse, you'll be a senior clinical leader on the shop floor, helping to ensure patients receive safe, effective and timely care from the moment they arrive.
Working across the Emergency Department and Minor Injury Unit, you'll utilise your advanced assessment skills to deliver high-quality care, support patient flow and make timely clinical decisions in a fast-paced environment.
A key part of the role is taking responsibility for the operational management of designated areas within the department. Whether coordinating Majors, Minors, Resus, the waiting room, the front door or ambulance offload, you'll maintain oversight of patient flow, staffing, clinical priorities and emerging risks, ensuring safe, effective care is delivered throughout your shift.
You'll work autonomously within your scope of practice while supporting and developing junior colleagues, leading by example and contributing to the continued improvement of the department.
Working for our organisation
Bristol NHS Foundation Trust brings together more than 28,000 staff to deliver over 160 clinical services across thirteen hospital locations, operating from three main sites at Southmead, Bristol city centre and Weston.
With an annual turnover of £2.3 billion, we are now one of the largest NHS trusts in the United Kingdom. Our hospitals are spread across Bristol and Weston, join us and you can enjoy the very best of both worlds; city living within a stone’s throw of the countryside or beside the seaside, both with easy access to all that the South West has to offer.
Bristol NHS Foundation Trust values all people as individuals. As an equal opportunities employer actively working towards a diverse workforce we aim to recruit and retain a workforce which represents the rich diversity of the local population at all levels and are committed to designing our services around the needs of individual patients and those around them. Anonymous information will be used from your application in order to ensure we’re meeting our pledge.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
Essential requirements include:
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A minimum of 3 years' post-registration experience working within a busy Emergency Department.
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Competence in the full range of extended Emergency Department nursing skills, including:
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Independent requesting of X-rays.
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Wound assessment and suturing.
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Front door streaming and Emergency Department triage.
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Significant experience in ambulance offload assessment, making rapid, safe and effective decisions to prioritise patients and maintain patient flow.
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Experience coordinating clinical areas within the Emergency Department, demonstrating the ability to prioritise workload, manage patient flow, allocate resources and respond effectively to changing operational pressures.
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A sound understanding of Emergency Department performance indicators and operational metrics, including patient flow, ambulance handover performance, time-critical pathways and the 4-hour standard, with the ability to use these to support safe, high-quality patient care while reducing delays and maintaining patient safety.
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The ability to assess complex clinical presentations quickly, recognising deterioration, initiating appropriate interventions and escalating concerns promptly.
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Excellent communication skills, with the confidence to work effectively alongside consultants, specialty doctors, ACPs, nurses, paramedics, therapists, healthcare support workers and operational teams across all grades.
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Proven ability to remain calm, organised and clinically focused while managing multiple patients, competing priorities and frequent interruptions within an exceptionally busy department.
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Strong leadership skills with the confidence to coordinate clinical areas, support colleagues, make timely decisions and foster a positive, collaborative team culture.
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A commitment to delivering compassionate, patient-centred care, even under pressure, while acting as a role model for professional standards and clinical excellence.
Person specification
Education
Essential criteria
- Registered nurse
- Relevant speciality post registration qualification
Experience
Essential criteria
- 3 years post graduate experience
- A minimum of 3 years post reg experience in ED
Knowledge
Essential criteria
- Emergency department nursing competencies includingIndependent requesting of X-rays, Wound assessment and suturing, Front door streaming and Emergency Department triage.
- A sound understanding of Emergency Department performance indicators and operational metrics.
- A sound understanding or research and clinical governance
Personal qualities
Essential criteria
- Excellent communication skills
- Able to demonstrate leadership skills
- Able to work and lead others within a diverse community of patients & health care professionals
Employer certification / accreditation badges
Applicant requirements
You must have appropriate UK professional registration.
This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service.
Documents to download
Further details / informal visits contact
- Name
- helen Deval
- Job title
- ward manger
- Email address
- [email protected]
- Additional information
Charlotte Chylewski - Matron - 0117 4145017
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