Skip to main content
Please wait, loading

Job summary

Main area
Paediatrics
Grade
8A
Contract
Permanent
Hours
Full time - 37.5 hours per week
Job ref
374-LB5291
Employer
East Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust
Employer type
NHS
Site
Conquest Hospital
Town
.
Salary
£57,528 - £64,750 PA, Pro rata
Salary period
Yearly
Closing
13/08/2026 23:59

Employer heading

East Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust logo

Clinical Matron Paediatrics

8A

We are proud to provide ‘Outstanding’ care and be a great place to work.

East Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust provides safe, compassionate and high quality hospital and community care to the half a million people living in East Sussex and those who visit our local area. 


We are one of the largest organisations in East Sussex with an annual income of £700 million and we are the only integrated provider of acute and community care in Sussex. 


Our extensive health services are provided by over 8,000+ dedicated members of staff working from two acute hospitals in Hastings and Eastbourne, three community hospitals in Bexhill, Rye and Uckfield, over 100 community sites across East Sussex, and in people’s own homes. 


The Care Quality Commission (CQC) rated us as ‘Good’ overall, and ‘Outstanding’ for being Caring and Effective. The Conquest Hospital in Hastings and our Community Services were rated ‘Outstanding’ and Eastbourne DGH was rated ‘Good’ Our two acute hospitals have Emergency Departments and provide 24 hour a day care, offering a comprehensive range of surgical, medical, outpatient and maternity services, supported by a full range of diagnostic and therapy services. 

 

Job overview

An exciting opportunity has arisen for an experienced and ambitious children's nurse to join our Women and Children’s Division as Clinical Matron for Paediatrics.

This is a senior clinical leadership role with responsibility for a diverse portfolio of services, including Acute Paediatrics, Children’s Community Nursing,  Special Care Baby Unit (SCBU), Child Development Services and a range of specialist children's services. We are seeking a highly credible Registered Children's Nurse with a significant acute paediatric background and a passion for delivering outstanding care across both hospital and community settings.

As Clinical Matron, you will provide visible and compassionate leadership to multidisciplinary teams, ensuring the delivery of safe, effective and high-quality services for children, young people and their families. You will have a strong track record of embedding professional, clinical and regulatory standards, using assurance processes, audit, quality improvement and governance frameworks to monitor performance, drive improvement and sustain excellence.

Working closely with operational, nursing and medical leaders, you will play a key role in shaping services, developing the workforce and supporting innovation across the paediatric pathway. You will be expected to influence practice, challenge poor standards where required and create a culture that promotes accountability, learning and continuous improvement.

The successful candidate will demonstrate exceptional leadership, communication and relationship-building skills, with experience of leading teams through change, managing operational pressures and ensuring compliance with national standards, regulatory requirements and quality indicators. A commitment to improving patient experience, safety and outcomes for children and young people will be central to your approach.

This is an ideal opportunity for an experienced senior paediatric leader who is passionate about making a difference, developing others and helping to shape the future of children's services.

What we are looking for

  • Registered Children's Nurse (RN Child) with active NMC registration.
  • Significant senior leadership experience within acute paediatric services.
  • Experience across complex children's pathways, including community and specialist services.
  • Proven ability to embed, monitor and improve clinical standards and quality outcomes.
  • Strong experience in governance, patient safety, quality improvement and service assurance.
  • Demonstrable ability to lead teams, influence practice and deliver sustainable service improvement.
  • Values-driven leader with a visible, compassionate and inclusive leadership style.

Join us and help deliver exceptional care for children, young people and families across East Sussex, while leading services that are safe, effective, responsive and continuously improving.

Main duties of the job

Provide visible clinical and professional leadership across acute, community, neonatal and specialist paediatric services.

Ensure the delivery of safe, effective and high-quality care for children, young people and families.

Lead quality improvement, patient safety, governance and assurance programmes.

Monitor clinical standards, audits, incidents and performance, driving continuous improvement.

Develop and support the workforce through recruitment, education, appraisal and professional development.

Work collaboratively with nursing, medical and operational leaders to improve services and patient pathways.

Lead on safeguarding, infection prevention, risk management and regulatory compliance.

Manage staffing, resources and operational performance to ensure safe and sustainable services.

Provide expert professional advice and act as a visible role model for compassionate leadership.

Participate in the senior clinical leadership on-call and out-of-hours rota

Working for our organisation

A wide range of staff benefits are available to our staff including staff development, enrolment in the NHS pension scheme, auto-enrolment to our Temporary Workforce Service, access to onsite nurseries. staff restaurants and accommodation.

In addition to an internal Occupational Health department, all staff also have access to free psychological support through our confidential Employee Assistance Programme. Onsite parking is available from only £50 a year. 

There has never been a better time to join East Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust, submit your application today.

Statement on the Use of AI

We value the individuality that each candidate brings to the application process. While we understand that AI tools are widely available, we strongly discourage applicants from using AI-generated content when applying for jobs with us. We believe that your application should reflect your true skills, experiences, and motivations, which are best conveyed through your own words and unique perspective.

Using AI for your application may not accurately represent your knowledge, skills, and experience and may result in a disconnect between your qualifications and our assessment of your application.

We encourage applicants to take the time to thoughtfully complete their applications; by doing so, you allow us to better understand your true potential and ensure a fair and transparent evaluation of your application. Over reliance on AI-generated content may diminish your chance of success.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Please see attached the job description

 

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to get in touch

 

 

Person specification

Qualifications

Essential criteria
  • Registered Nurse and hold active registration with NMC or Registered AHP and hold active registration with HCPC
  • Masters level qualification relevant to role to demonstrate expert clinical and leadership skills
Desirable criteria
  • Mentoring or coaching qualification
  • Project management and Quality improvement qualification

Experience

Essential criteria
  • Proven experience working in a leadership position within NHS or relevant healthcare organisation.
  • Demonstrate experience of : Quality/Service improvement- Project Management - Operational leadership - People Management
Desirable criteria
  • Demonstrates evidence of national or regional networking

Employer certification / accreditation badges

NHS Pastoral Care Quality AwardVeteran AwareApprenticeships logoNo smoking policyDisability confident leaderImproving working livesCare quality commission - GoodArmed Forces Covenant Gold AwardNational Preceptorship for Nursing Quality MarkGold Award 2026 - Wellbeing at Work - East Sussex

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.

Application numbers

This vacancy may close early if it receives a high number of applications. Please complete and submit your application in good time to avoid disappointment.

Documents to download

Apply online now

Further details / informal visits contact

Name
Mark Standen
Job title
DDN
Email address
[email protected]
Telephone number
07880781072
Additional information

Catherine Rose