Chief Nurse

Job summary
Thank you for your interest in joining Kent and Medway Mental Health NHS Trust. Our patients and staff are at the heart of everything we do. As Chief Executive, I am proud of the incredible commitment and compassion shown by our teams across Kent and Medway. This is an exciting time for us, as we continue to evolve our culture and have a relentless focus on quality, in addition to the opportunities presented by the NHS 10-year plan and the launch of our new five-year strategy.

The Chief Nurse is a critical role for the organisation and will be fundamental in successfully delivering our quality improvement plan (QIP). We are committed to providing high-quality services for our local population, ensuring that we improve patient outcomes, working in collaboration with our partners to deliver care closer to home in local neighbourhoods. You will help us turn that ambition into better outcomes and experiences for the people we serve.

Through your leadership you will support the delivery of high quality, compassionate care and provide strategic advice to the Trust Board on patient safety, quality assurance and regulatory standards. You will be the lead executive for our relationship with the Care Quality Commission (CQC).

Main duties of the job
As a member of our executive team and Trust Board, you will also play a key role in shaping our culture and leading improvement across the organisation, recognising that a positive, inclusive culture and the quality of care we provide are intrinsically linked. You will champion the voices and experiences of patients, families and carers, ensuring they shape how we improve and develop our services.

We are seeking an experienced senior mental health/learning disability nurse leader who brings extensive experience of the key areas of quality, patient safety, workforce development, and infection prevention and control. Finally, you will lead our approach to the identification, mitigation and management of risk. You will have the experience and ability to operate at Board level and work as part of a highly engaged executive team.

You will be a visible and compassionate leader who aligns people behind our vision to help communities stay well and live well, and who embodies our values: caring in how you lead and the standards you set; inclusive in how you listen and bring people together; curious about how we can continually learn and improve; and confident in constructively challenging and taking action when things need to change.

About us
We are Kent and Medway Mental Health NHS Trust. We care for the mental health and wellbeing of people across Kent and Medway and are rated 'Good' by the Care Quality Commission (CQC).

Our teams support children, young people and adults with a wide range of mental health needs. We also provide specialist services, including all-age eating disorder services and neurodevelopmental assessments for children and young people, such as autism and ADHD.

Because we work across the whole county and across hospital and community settings, we can make care more joined up and easier to access for the people we serve.

Our vision is simple: we are here to help communities not just live with mental illness, but live well. It's why we're passionate about working with communities to make mental health care better for everyone. Everything we do is guided by our values: caring, inclusive, curious and confident.

Join us if you share our passion for better mental health care and want to be part of a team that's working well together.

Job responsibilities
Please see application pack and job description attached for the full responsibilities of the role.

Closing date is midnight, Wednesday 30 September 2026

Informal candidate conversations with Sheila Stenson will be held via Microsoft Teams on:

• Friday 11 September 2026 (15-minute slots)Friday 18 September 2026 (15-minute slots)

Focus groups and interviews will be held in-person on Friday, 30 October 2026. Please see application pack attached for further details.

We are serious about diversity and inclusion, and we are working hard to build this into our DNA. We warmly welcome applications for any of our roles from people from diverse backgrounds, and we are proactively encouraging applications from under-represented communities for our more senior roles, like this one.

The post holder must hold a full, valid UK driving licence for business purposes, unless you have a disability as defined by the Equality Act 2010. Do you meet this requirement?

Person Specification
Education
Essential

• Current Mental Health or Learning Disability Nurse registration with the NMC and a demonstrable record of professional integrity
• Educated to degree level or equivalent professional experience.
• Evidence of ongoing professional development.
• Meets the Fit and Proper Person requirements for Board Directors.

Knowledge and Experience
Essential

• Significant senior nursing leadership experience within mental health, learning disability or related healthcare services.
• Proven experience leading quality, safety and patient experience improvement, including patient safety and clinical risk management (PSIRF).
• Successful track record of leading large-scale organisational transformation and cultural change with demonstrable outcomes.
• Strong understanding of current nursing, AHP, quality, regulatory and professional issues
• Experience of working collaboratively across integrated health and care systems and influencing in complex and politically sensitive environments.
• Understanding of health inequalities, population health, equality, diversity and inclusion, and their application to service improvement.

Skills and Aptitudes
Essential

• Exceptional leadership with a commitment to high-quality, safe and compassionate care.
• Highly developed strategic, analytical, communication and organisational skills.
• Ability to influence, negotiate and build effective relationships across organisational boundaries.
• Ability to manage competing priorities and deliver results in complex environments.
• Inclusive, visible and compassionate leadership style, demonstrating integrity, resilience and personal credibility.

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.
Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).