Devon Partnership NHS Trust

Nursing & Professions Lead

The closing date is 20 November 2025

Job summary

Join Us in Shaping the Future of Mental Health Care

We have a fantastic fixed term / secondment opportunity for aLead Nurse for Quality and Professional Standards until 8th September 2026.

As Lead Nurse for Quality and Professional Standards, you will have overall responsibility, alongside the Deputy Director of Nursing, for ensuring the highest quality of patient care is delivered by all inpatient and community clinical teams. You will guide and present complex information across all directorates, oversee policy review and co-ordinate working groups, strengthening staff knowledge in mental health and learning disability services. Key elements include devising audit programmes, reviewing research, and leading collaborative work with other organisations.

The role demands visible leadership across the Trust, championing best practice and implementing actions to meet clinical strategy ambitions, audit standards, and regulatory compliance, all while driving outstanding patient experience in line with Care Quality Commission Fundamentals of care. You will also lead on the development and implementation of training competencies for all grades and professions, ensuring a regular presence and expert guidance across all Trust areas.

We are committed to creating an environment that supports professional growth, innovation, and the delivery of excellent mental health and learning disability services. If you share our vision and are ready to lead and inspire, apply today.

Main duties of the job

This role is offered at Band 8b subject to Job Matching

Maintain a highly visible presence, role modelling best practice and conducting guiding and observational sessions with frontline staff and patients.
Remain clinically skilled and competent, enhancing expertise in mental health, learning disability, and non-medical prescribing.
Devise and deliver with the Deputy Director of Nursing a Trust Implementation Plan for nursing quality and professional standards.
Lead and establish clinical links with stakeholders and providers, promoting and assuring clinical quality as outlined in national guidance.
Lead on NICE Guidance, developing and implementing Trust-wide policies, guidelines, and protocols.
Identify healthcare issues, develop actions and provide high-quality reports on recommended changes.
Advise and lead on strategy for all patient needs, maintaining a high profile at organisational forums.
Work collaboratively with managers and clinical leaders to ensure and monitor high-quality care.
Work independently day-to-day, consistently role modelling professional, supportive interactions.
Support audits, patient safety initiatives, and the embedding of Care Quality Commission Nursing Fundamentals.
Use intelligence to assess care quality, identify risks, ensure mitigation, and monitor implementation.
Provide expert support to the Risk Team and Patient Safety Lead.
Oversee FIT Testing in inpatient areas, ensuring robust systems for Health, Safety and Security Committee reporting.

About us

About Devon Partnership Trust

We provide mental health, learning disability and neurodiversity services, as well as a range of specialist & secure services for the wider south west region & nationally. We are passionate about promoting good mental health & wellbeing. We strive to use the expertise & resources within our organisation, and through our partnerships, to deliver high quality services that are safe & focused on people's recovery.

We are committed to developing a culture of coproduction, involving patients, families & carers in everything we do

Our values

We not only recruit based on qualifications & experience - we recruit individuals who possess & demonstrate the behaviours which underpin our Trusts core values. These include such attributes as showing a commitment to quality of care, improving lives of others, giving respect, dignity & compassion. We can bring those values to life in our everyday tasks by giving a smile; making time for people; challenging ourselves & others, & being open to new ideas.

We are committed to being an inclusive employer & applications are encouraged & welcomed from all sections of the community, regardless of any protected characteristics as governed by the Equality Act 2010. Part time & flexible working applications will be considered & supported, where possible. We particularly encourage applicants with lived experience of mental health conditions, neurodiversity or learning disabilities. We are a Disability Confident Leader.

Date posted

06 November 2025

Pay scheme

Agenda for change

Band

Band 8b

Salary

£64,455 to £74,896 a year Subject to Job Evaluation

Contract

Fixed term

Duration

10 months

Working pattern

Full-time, Flexible working

Reference number

C9369-25-0817

Job locations

Wonford House

Dryden Road

Exeter

Devon

EX2 5AF

Job description

Job responsibilities

Please see the attached Job Description and Person Specification which will provide further information on this role.

Job description

Job responsibilities

Please see the attached Job Description and Person Specification which will provide further information on this role.

Person Specification

Qualifications

Essential

Registered nurse (Part 1 or Part 3) with significant relevant experience in specialism:
Educated to Masters level in relevant specialism, or equivalent level of experience
Skills and competence in complex health care for patients with mental health and learning disability conditions
Clinical leadership and management experience
Teaching qualification or equivalent experience

Desirable

Non medical Prescriber and currently practicing

Knowledge & Skills

Essential

Knowledge on mental health conditions, their identification, diagnoses and treatment.
Good self-awareness of competence and when to escalate mental health concerns.
Knowledge in nursing quality and professional standards, i.e. Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC), Care Quality Commission (CQC), Health and Safety Executive (HSE), Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC), NHS England (NHSE), National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) and Professional Standards Authority (PSA).
High level of competent communication skills to implement and influence all health related clinical practice across the organisation.
Ability to read and interpret clinical guidance (NICE) and research studies and apply findings to trust policies and clinical practice
The ability to travel around the trust locations on a regular basis to meet the requirements of the role.

Desirable

Knowledge of the application and maintenance of medical equipment

Experience

Essential

Experience of computer packages: Microsoft windows (word, excel, e-mail)
Demonstrate strong clinical leadership and people management
Abilities to implement change & lead on innovation and service improvement
Understand a performance management approach with skills in interpreting data, producing reports based on data and relevant actions plans.

Person Specification

Qualifications

Essential

Registered nurse (Part 1 or Part 3) with significant relevant experience in specialism:
Educated to Masters level in relevant specialism, or equivalent level of experience
Skills and competence in complex health care for patients with mental health and learning disability conditions
Clinical leadership and management experience
Teaching qualification or equivalent experience

Desirable

Non medical Prescriber and currently practicing

Knowledge & Skills

Essential

Knowledge on mental health conditions, their identification, diagnoses and treatment.
Good self-awareness of competence and when to escalate mental health concerns.
Knowledge in nursing quality and professional standards, i.e. Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC), Care Quality Commission (CQC), Health and Safety Executive (HSE), Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC), NHS England (NHSE), National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) and Professional Standards Authority (PSA).
High level of competent communication skills to implement and influence all health related clinical practice across the organisation.
Ability to read and interpret clinical guidance (NICE) and research studies and apply findings to trust policies and clinical practice
The ability to travel around the trust locations on a regular basis to meet the requirements of the role.

Desirable

Knowledge of the application and maintenance of medical equipment

Experience

Essential

Experience of computer packages: Microsoft windows (word, excel, e-mail)
Demonstrate strong clinical leadership and people management
Abilities to implement change & lead on innovation and service improvement
Understand a performance management approach with skills in interpreting data, producing reports based on data and relevant actions plans.

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.