Nurse - Children in Care

Job summary
An exciting and rewarding opportunity has arisen for a Nurse with significant experience of working with Children in Care, to join our caring and compassionate team who wants to make a real difference to the children and young people we work with.

You will be working collaboratively within the Children in Care team, supporting the Named Nurse and Specialist Children in Care professionals to ensure the organisation fulfils its statutory and contractual responsibilities for Children in Care.

Main duties of the job

• Provide timely, person-centred health assessments and interventions for children and young people aged 0-18 years, in line with statutory guidance.
• Manage a caseload of children in care, ensuring their health needs are assessed, monitored, and addressed effectively.
• Deliver a needs-led, outcome-focused health service that is accessible and responsive to children and young people's individual circumstances.
• Offer specialist advice, support, and guidance to colleagues and partner agencies regarding the health and wellbeing of children in care.
• Contribute to the delivery of training and education for professionals working with children in care.
• Participate in audits, peer reviews, and quality improvement activities to ensure service standards are maintained and developed.

About us
Working as a partnership, both Isle of Wight NHS Trust and Portsmouth Hospitals University NHS Trust have a shared vision for excellence in care for our patients and communities; with a set of strategic aims underpinning how we will achieve this.

The single corporate service is delivered across both organisations. You may be based at either IWT or PHU and individuals may be required to undertake business travel between sites. For leaders managing staff across multi-site locations, you will need to be visible and provide in person leadership. The arrangements and frequency will be agreed locally.

The health and wellbeing of our staff is at the forefront of everything we do. We are proud to be able to offer our staff some fantastic benefits including our on-site Nursery, access to our free Beach Hut for those long summer days, our on-site Wellness Centre including a gym and a swimming pool, access to our fantastic staff networks including LGBTQ, Race Equality and DisAbility, and awards ceremonies to recognise your achievements. We believe we can offer support to all of our staff when they need it the most.

We welcome the unique contributions that you can bring in terms of your education, opinions, culture, ethnicity, race, sex, gender identity and expression, nation of origin, age, languages spoken, veterans' status, colour, religion, disability, sexual orientation, and beliefs.

Job responsibilities
The Isle of Wight NHS Trust serves a population of approximately 150,000 residents, making the services we offer variable and personalised with a flexible approach to our service users.

We actively recruit people of all ages, backgrounds and levels of experience. This helps us understand the different needs of the patients and provide the best possible services.

Job summary

• To achieve equity of health outcomes for Children in Care through the provision of an evidenced based and nurse-led service.
• To ensure that all children in care on the Island are offered a health assessment, in line with current statutory guidance and local guidelines. This will include liaison with Paediatricians and mainland services.
• To work in collaboration with the Isle of Wight Local Authority and other Local Authorities to ensure that the health of Care Experienced children and young people is prioritised across services.
• To increase staff awareness by raising the profile of care experienced children and young people across the Trust.
• Fulfil the requirements of the post as outlined in Promoting the Health and Well-being of Looked After Children 2015 and Looked After Children, Intercollegiate document (2025) Safeguarding children and young people & children and young people in care: Competencies for health care staff.

It is desirable if you hold a Community/Specialist Practitioner: A Specialist Community Public Health Nurse (SCPHN) qualification (School Nursing or Health Visiting) or a Community Specialist Practitioner degree.

Attached you will find the person specification document which provides more detail about the essential and desirable skills and experience needed for this role. We highly recommend you review this document and use it when completing your application as these criteria are used by hiring managers as guidance during shortlisting.

Sometimes a role is very popular, and we may need to close it earlier than the date we've shown here. If you're keen to join our team, we'd love to hear from you so please apply as soon as you can.

For full job details please refer to enclosed job description.

Person Specification
Skills and Knowledge
Essential

• Knowledge of the Children Act 1989 and 2004 and the legislative framework relating to Children in Care.
• Understanding of Statutory Guidance for Promoting the Health and Wellbeing of Looked After Children.
• Comprehensive knowledge of safeguarding children, child protection procedures, and managing risk.
• Understanding of the health inequalities and vulnerabilities experienced by Children in Care and Care Leavers.
• Knowledge of child development, attachment theory, trauma, adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), and their impact on health and wellbeing.
• Understanding of consent, confidentiality, information sharing, Gillick competence, and Fraser guidelines.
• Knowledge of relevant NHS, local authority, and multi-agency policies affecting Children in Care.
• Understanding of physical, emotional, mental health, and developmental needs of children and young people.
• Knowledge of health assessment processes, health care planning, and reviewing health outcomes for Children in Care.
• Awareness of equality, diversity, inclusion, and the needs of children with disabilities and additional needs.

Desirable

• Knowledge of SEND (Special Educational Needs and Disabilities) legislation and processes.
• Understanding of learning disabilities, neurodiversity, and complex health needs.
• Knowledge of CAMHS pathways and emotional wellbeing services.
• Understanding of public health approaches to improving outcomes for vulnerable children and young people.
• Knowledge of quality improvement, clinical audit, and clinical governance.
• Understanding of the impact of exploitation, substance misuse, domestic abuse, and youth violence on children and young people.

Qualifications
Essential

• Registered Nurse with current NMC registration (Registered Children's Nurse, Registered Nurse Learning Disabilities, or equivalent relevant nursing registration).
• Degree in Nursing or equivalent professional nursing qualification.
• Evidence of Continuing professional development relevant to working with children and young people.
• Demonstrable training and knowledge in safeguarding children and young people.

Desirable

• Community/Specialist Practitioner: A Specialist Community Public Health Nurse (SCPHN) qualification (School Nursing or Health Visiting) or a Community Specialist Practitioner degree.
• Completion of required The Trusts mandatory training updates.
• Postgraduate qualification or study in a relevant area, such as safeguarding, public health, leadership, child mental health, or care experienced childrens health.
• Practice Assessor, Practice Supervisor, Mentorship, or Teaching qualification.

Experience
Essential

• Minimum of 2 years relevant clinical experience.
• Evidence of relevant post basic study.
• Significant post-registration experience working with children, young people, and families.
• Experience of safeguarding and multi-agency working.
• Experience undertaking health assessments and managing a caseload.

Desirable

• Experience working with children in care, care leavers, complex health needs, SEND, or learning disabilities is highly desirable.

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).