Job summary
- Main area
- Specialist Learning Disabilities Nurse
- Grade
- Band 6
- Contract
- Permanent
- Hours
- 37.5 hours per week (Full time - 37.5 hours per week)
- Job ref
- 839-7204524-SR
- Employer
- Norfolk Community Health and Care NHS Trust
- Employer type
- NHS
- Site
- Norwich Community Hospital
- Town
- Norwich
- Salary
- £37,338 - £44,962 Per Annum
- Salary period
- Yearly
- Closing
- 02/06/2025 23:59
- Interview date
- 12/06/2025
Employer heading
Specialist Childrens Learning Disabilities Nurse
Band 6
NCH&C is proud to be the first standalone NHS community trust in the UK to achieve an ‘Outstanding’ rating from the Care Quality Commission (CQC). Our focus is on continually improving the quality of care we offer to local people and on improving access to that care, helping people to move seamlessly from one service to another. Praising NCH&C’s “compassionate, inclusive and effective leadership at all levels”, the CQC observed that our staff are well supported to make positive changes and innovations.
Norfolk Community Health & Care NHS Trust is committed to continuing to create a modern and inclusive work environment. As part of this commitment we actively promote flexible working opportunities where possible, to meet the needs and wishes of our workforce to maintain and improve their wellbeing. The trust offers a range of flexibility, including flexible working patterns, and we would encourage you to discuss this with the recruiting manager before or during the application process if this would interest you.
We welcome applications from people who share our values and can help us deliver outstanding care in our local community.
Job overview
We are seeking a compassionate, innovative, and enthusiastic Band 6 Specialist Children’s Learning Disability Nurse to join our ‘Outstanding’ community Children’s and Young People’s Specialist services. You would be joining a friendly and supportive highly specialist multidisciplinary team and would contribute to the development of nursing provision within our Learning Disability Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service (Starfish).
The post is 37.5 hours per week and will working across Norfolk, including Kings Lynn, Great Yarmouth, and Norwich. Base is negotiable and flexible working is supported and includes agile/home working where relevant.
The Starfish Team offers assessment and intervention for young people of school age (4-18 years) with a diagnosed learning disability who are experiencing significant behavioural and/or mental health difficulties.
The Starfish team covers a large geographical area, so it is essential that you can drive and have access to a vehicle when pool cars are not available.
Main duties of the job
· To provide highly specialised support and advice to children and teenagers with significant learning disabilities, neurodevelopment disorders and their families.
· To provide clinical nursing services for children and young people under 18 years of age.
· To provide a range of clinical expertise and design appropriate interventions to meet the child’s changing developmental needs.
· To be committed to implementing Every Child Matters principle.
· To supervise and manage junior staff, mentor new colleagues and student nurses.
· To undertake assessment and clinical interventions for children and young people with learning disabilities and mental health problems.
· To work within a multi-disciplinary team and lead on specialist area of care pathways such as ASD, ADHD & LD. The responsibilities include assessment, planning and implementation of care pathways for children within a specialist area.
· Running nurse led clinics, writing guidelines and auditing clinic sessions and ensuring communication between Consultant, GP and others as necessary.
To participate in rolling programmes of parent education which can be delivered either into groups or individually, both in clinic settings and at home. The post holder will use a range of training approaches to meet individual needs and to overcome possible barriers to understanding.
Working for our organisation
Apply now to join an organisation that has been awarded an ‘Outstanding’ rating by the Care Quality Commission (CQC), the highest possible rating and the first stand-alone NHS community trust in the country to be awarded the title.
Find out more about working for our organisation here:
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
Clinical
o Use highly developed effective communication skills based on valuing others, recognising own and other’s strengths and differences.
o Ability to utilise an enabling and therapeutic approach with children and young people together with their families and carers.
o Ability to assess and plan enabling and outcome focussed care interventions with children, young people and their families/carers, drawing on previous nursing experience within an evidence based and theoretically grounded framework, utilising Every Child Matters principles.
o Monitor and evaluate care against agreed outcome measures.
Effectively plan and manage group work activities with colleagues.
· Ensure that care offered to children/young people is safe and needs focussed, drawing on current evidence based best practice.
· Use effective and standardised assessment tools.
· Practice in enabling and facilitative manner that aims high by drawing on strengths whilst recognising and working with stakeholders to minimise and overcome or adapt to environmental constraints.
· Be sensitive to and validatory of, social and cultural difference whilst maintaining the primacy of safeguarding principles.
· Keep timely, concise and accurate records, maintaining confidentiality.
· Carry caseload as allocated by Integrated Team Leader, developing individualised nursing care plans.
· Lead or participate in individual or group work with children and young people, adapting resource packages to meet specific needs.
· Exercise clinical judgement, soundly grounded and evidence based, supported by effective case supervision.
· Engage in play with children and young people.
· Applying evidence-based nursing knowledge to specific situations.
· Adapting standardised methodology to meet individual need, carefully analysing situations that arise in light of previous experience and best practice.
· Exercising sound clinical judgement with children, young people and families/carers who may have extensive needs but who have access to limited resources.
· Person to person contact with children, young people and their family/carers on a regular basis.
· To participate in regular reviews of cases and attend case discussions, conferences and reviews as appropriate, including safeguarding core groups and the conference process.
Professional
· Identify and request sufficient time to continue professional development.
· Actively engage in monthly peer support meetings.
· Keep up to date regarding current practice and policy developments.
· Participate in research as allocated by the Integrated Team Leader/Clinical Pathway Lead following NCH&C guidelines and policies.
Organisational
· Collaborative working with inter-disciplinary and multi-agency partners.
· Manage diary effectively to maximise clinical/development/travelling time to cover large mixed rural and urban populations.
· Report workload pressures appropriately.
· Supervise and manage junior members of staff including PDR and capability processes.
· Be aware of and responsive to, issues of potential and actual risk that may arise in carrying out care, reporting promptly using recognised NCH&C systems.
· Participate in service development work as directed by Integrated Team Leader utilising own strengths and areas of professional interest/specialism.
· Input client data as required on current IT system.
· Maintain security and confidentiality of information acquired, stored and sent within local and national guidelines
· Regularly visit children and their carers at home and may frequently be lone workers.
The post holder may use VDU equipment for at least an hour daily.
Person specification
Qualifications
Essential criteria
- RNLD/RN/RMHN – Diploma level
- ENB 998
- LSCB Core Module
- Norfolk Steps
- Additional specialist knowledge and expertise (equivalent to diploma level) in ADHD/ASD/LD
Desirable criteria
- ENB 807
Experience
Essential criteria
- Substantial experience of working with children who have learning disabilities and their families
- Substantial experience of collaborative multi-disciplinary and multi-agency working
Desirable criteria
- Community Learning Disability Nursing
- Participation in group work
Skills, Abilities and Knowledge
Essential criteria
- Established Named Nurse skills
- Evidence based and outcome led nursing practice
- Sensitivity to and understanding of the individual needs of children and their families
- Effective use of information technology
- Extensive knowledge of the emotional, psychological, developmental and social needs of children and young people with learning disabilities
- Proven ability to apply evidence based clinical interventions
- Ability to evaluate clinical effectiveness
- Understanding of non-verbal communication systems and their use with children and young people
- Accurate, timely and concise recording
- Thorough understanding of the Common Assessment Framework
- Ability to work in partnership with others
Desirable criteria
- Knowledge of local statutory and non-statutory resources available for this particular group
- Good working knowledge of Sign-a-long, PECS/ Widget
- Holder of identified caseload
- Participation in group work
- Individualised enabling direct work with children/young people
- Webster Stratton
- Theraplay
Communication
Essential criteria
- Able to speak and understand English Language
- Able to communicate on all levels with children/young people/parents/carers and other professionals
- Good written and verbal communication skills
- Good presentation skills
- Able to work as part of a multi-disciplinary team
Personal and People Development
Essential criteria
- Able to supervise junior staff
- Able to deliver parent training with other colleagues
Desirable criteria
- Line management responsibilities
Personal Attributes / Behaviours (linked to the Trust’s Behaviour Framework)
Essential criteria
- Able to identify with the Trust’s commitment to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people/vulnerable adults
- Value diversity
- Must hold full and valid UK driving licence and have use of a vehicle
- Enhanced DBS check
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
- Laura Wetton
- Job title
- Clinical Lead / Speech & Language Therapist
- Email address
- [email protected]
- Telephone number
- 01603 272319
- Additional information
Becky Cramp - Specialist Learning Disabilities Lead Nurse
If you have problems applying, contact
- Address
-
Room 218, Norwich Community Hospital
Bowthorpe Road
Norwich
NR2 3TU
- Telephone
- 01603697444
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