East Kent Hospitals University NHS Foundation Trust

Associate Director of Nursing - Fundamentals of Care

The closing date is 23 February 2026

Job summary

Responsible for leading and delivering the Fundamentals of Care Programme and the Ward Accreditation Programme across the Trust working closely with key stakeholders.

The post holder will work strategically with the Care Group Triumvirates across all sites to minimise harm, enhance patient experience, quality of care and ensure patient safety. In addition, they will ensure effective systems are in place to monitor and improve clinical and operational performance of nursing teams and individuals in order to drive quality.

Main duties of the job

Provide visible, professional and clinical leadership to ensure the consistent delivery of high-quality, safe and compassionate care across all fundamental care services. Lead on quality standards relating to falls prevention, tissue viability, nutrition and hydration, ensuring evidence-based practice is embedded, monitored and continuously improved.

Operate independently within professional scope and organisational policy, supporting multidisciplinary teams to deliver person-centred care and positive patient outcomes. Maintain clinical credibility through direct involvement in care where required and ensure robust assessment, care planning, documentation and evaluation processes are in place.

Oversee performance, governance and risk management, proactively identifying areas for improvement and implementing action plans to enhance safety, experience and clinical effectiveness. Champion a culture of learning, safeguarding and continuous quality improvement across the service.

About us

We are one of the largest hospital trusts in England, with five hospitals and community clinics serving a local population of around 800,000 people. Our vision is 'great healthcare from great people'. Everything we do is guided by our values: 'People feel cared for, safe, respected and confident that we are making a difference'. We have a new way of working at East Kent Hospitals, called 'We care'. It's about empowering frontline staff to lead improvements day-to-day. We're looking for compassionate people to be part of our improvement journey for the patients, families and carers we care for every day.

Please note that if you require a Certificate of Sponsorship to work in the UK you must declare this on your application form, even if you currently have a certificate of sponsorship or a work permit for another role and are already working in the country. Please note we are only able to sponsor candidates for a Skilled Worker Visa for roles that are eligible at the time of application.

Details

Date posted

16 February 2026

Pay scheme

Agenda for change

Band

Band 8c

Salary

£76,965 to £88,682 a year per annum

Contract

Permanent

Working pattern

Full-time, Flexible working

Reference number

344-2624COR

Job locations

Trust Wide

Kent and Canterbury Hospital

Ethelbert Road

CT1 3NG


Job description

Job responsibilities

Please scroll down to access the full Job Description and Person Specification located in Documents to download. If you have further queries please dont hesitate to contact the line manager using the contact details below.

Applications for this role should be written by the applicant. If artificial intelligence (AI) programmes are used then the application may be rejected due to this document being an important part of the assessment process. This does not prevent applicants seeking appropriate support with applications should they need to for the purposes of any declared disability.

Job description

Job responsibilities

Please scroll down to access the full Job Description and Person Specification located in Documents to download. If you have further queries please dont hesitate to contact the line manager using the contact details below.

Applications for this role should be written by the applicant. If artificial intelligence (AI) programmes are used then the application may be rejected due to this document being an important part of the assessment process. This does not prevent applicants seeking appropriate support with applications should they need to for the purposes of any declared disability.

Person Specification

Qualifications & Training

Essential

  • Holds professional registration as applicable to role
  • Master's Degree; supplemented by specialist training, experience, short courses, CPD
  • Leadership course/qualification

Desirable

  • Teaching qualification
  • Recognised management qualification

Skills & Experience

Essential

  • Clinical skills knowledge & acquisition
  • In-depth understanding of Good Clinical Practice, Governance and legislation
  • Proven track record in leading and developing clinical care and audit within nursing, midwifery and Allied Health Professionals
  • Excellent professional and leadership skills with evidence of successfully managing effective teams
  • Compassionate & caring
  • Effective communication skills
  • Supports & teach others
  • IT literate with ability to use NHS IT systems including patient records
  • Excellent documentation skills
  • Time management skills and ability to prioritise workload

Governance

Essential

  • Adheres to all Local and national policies & processes
  • Ability to identify and manage risk to patients, visitors and colleagues
  • Ability to apply evidenced based research and data driven evidence into practice
  • Leads in quality improvement projects

Personal Attributes

Essential

  • Evidence of contributing to service development, delivery and successful change management
  • Uphold the Trust Values
  • Ability to problem solve, anticipate and forward plan as an, individual and as a member of the MDT
  • Act as a role model to the wider workforce
  • Supports equality and values diversity and inclusion
  • Be a team player who supports your colleagues
  • Ability to apply emotional intelligence and resilience

Other Requirements

Essential

  • Flexibility in working patterns to meet the needs of the service
  • Self-motivated, positive, adaptable and flexible approach
Person Specification

Qualifications & Training

Essential

  • Holds professional registration as applicable to role
  • Master's Degree; supplemented by specialist training, experience, short courses, CPD
  • Leadership course/qualification

Desirable

  • Teaching qualification
  • Recognised management qualification

Skills & Experience

Essential

  • Clinical skills knowledge & acquisition
  • In-depth understanding of Good Clinical Practice, Governance and legislation
  • Proven track record in leading and developing clinical care and audit within nursing, midwifery and Allied Health Professionals
  • Excellent professional and leadership skills with evidence of successfully managing effective teams
  • Compassionate & caring
  • Effective communication skills
  • Supports & teach others
  • IT literate with ability to use NHS IT systems including patient records
  • Excellent documentation skills
  • Time management skills and ability to prioritise workload

Governance

Essential

  • Adheres to all Local and national policies & processes
  • Ability to identify and manage risk to patients, visitors and colleagues
  • Ability to apply evidenced based research and data driven evidence into practice
  • Leads in quality improvement projects

Personal Attributes

Essential

  • Evidence of contributing to service development, delivery and successful change management
  • Uphold the Trust Values
  • Ability to problem solve, anticipate and forward plan as an, individual and as a member of the MDT
  • Act as a role model to the wider workforce
  • Supports equality and values diversity and inclusion
  • Be a team player who supports your colleagues
  • Ability to apply emotional intelligence and resilience

Other Requirements

Essential

  • Flexibility in working patterns to meet the needs of the service
  • Self-motivated, positive, adaptable and flexible approach

Disclosure and Barring Service Check

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.

Certificate of Sponsorship

Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).

From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).

UK Registration

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

Additional information

Disclosure and Barring Service Check

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.

Certificate of Sponsorship

Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).

From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).

UK Registration

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

Employer details

Employer name

East Kent Hospitals University NHS Foundation Trust

Address

Trust Wide

Kent and Canterbury Hospital

Ethelbert Road

CT1 3NG


Employer's website

https://www.ekhuft.nhs.uk/patients-and-visitors/ (Opens in a new tab)

Employer details

Employer name

East Kent Hospitals University NHS Foundation Trust

Address

Trust Wide

Kent and Canterbury Hospital

Ethelbert Road

CT1 3NG


Employer's website

https://www.ekhuft.nhs.uk/patients-and-visitors/ (Opens in a new tab)

Employer contact details

For questions about the job, contact:

Deputy Chief Nurse

Kim Perry

kim.perry@nhs.net

Details

Date posted

16 February 2026

Pay scheme

Agenda for change

Band

Band 8c

Salary

£76,965 to £88,682 a year per annum

Contract

Permanent

Working pattern

Full-time, Flexible working

Reference number

344-2624COR

Job locations

Trust Wide

Kent and Canterbury Hospital

Ethelbert Road

CT1 3NG


Supporting documents

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