* Are you a qualified nurse or midwife looking to specialise or further your career?
* Beginning your training in-house in early 2026, our dedicated development programme will give you in-depth experience of what it is like to work in a Public Health Nursing team. We'll support you to gain the skills and knowledge needed to interview for and undertake the Specialist Public Health Community Nurse (SCPHN) qualification. Along the way, you'll have the chance to take in our team culture and gain a full understanding of the role before joining the academic course.
* You'll be completely supported in post with a comprehensive induction programme, additional training, buddy system and guidance from practice educators and health visitors. And you wont be doing this alone either. You will be part of a cohort of nurses and midwives undertaking the same training and qualification. Many of our health visitors have completed the course themselves and built lasting friendships within the team.
* Subject to a satisfactory interview with the University of the West of England in September, you will then start your 12-month postgraduate qualification (Level 7) in September 2026 or September 2027. The course will be delivered through a mix of university-based attendance, remote learning, and practice, with 2 days protected study time and three days on the job gaining real world experience. Upon qualification, you will be well placed to apply for a permanent Health Visitor role in Somerset Council.
Main duties of the job
* Gaining practical experience in our award-winning Health Visiting service, you will go into the course having lived and breathed the job.
* Delivering the Healthy child programme for children aged 0-5 years and their families, your day-to-day work will involve:Providing evidence-based interventions and motivational interviewing.
* Assessing child development and undertaking holistic assessments
* Providing advice and promoting health and wellbeing to children and families.
* Promoting health protection and keeping children safe.
* Working closely with other local services, including Social Care, the voluntary sector, GPs, education, and pre-schools.
* You will join a skill-mix team based within the community. Managing your own workload, you will be given the time and space to really get to know the families you support. Our work is preventative, empowering people to make healthier choices and addressing issues before they happen.
* Your work will not just make a difference in families lives. It will play a part in reducing health inequalities across Somerset, influencing positive outcomes for all children in our community.
About us
We are proud to offer an environment that is supportive and rewarding, working as part of a team who are passionate about the work they do to improve the lives of people in Somerset.
We offer great training and development opportunities, with supportive management. As well as this, we have some fantastic employee benefits available.
We offer the following benefits to reward and thank our School Nurses:
* Flexible, family friendly working patterns, working between 9:00 - 5:00 Monday to Friday
* Prioritised superb Safeguarding, Clinical, and Restorative supervision
* The opportunity to fulfil your leadership role within the team
* Continuing Professional Development opportunities
* 30 days annual leave allowance (plus bank holidays), with the opportunity to purchase up to 2 weeks additional leave
* Staff discounts in gyms
* Employee Assistance for the times you may need some support and a variety of employee wellbeing services
* Auto enrolment onto our generous Pension Scheme and optional pension enhancement through our Additional Voluntary Contribution scheme
* A Flexible Benefits Scheme via salary sacrifice to obtain a cycle for work and health screenings
* My Staff Shop offering discounts in shops, online shopping, restaurants, cinema tickets, insurance benefits and more
Job responsibilities
JobSummary
1.Workas a member of the School Nursing service within a designated localitysupporting the School Nurse Team to deliver on public health priorities inSomerset to school age children in line current national Public HealthAgendas, working to National and Local objectives as defined by ServiceSpecifications under the supervision and guidance of the Qualified SchoolNurse.
2.Workwith vulnerable children and families in line with national and localpolicies relating to safeguarding children and to provide specialist supportand advice to children, families and schools regarding the health and wellbeingneeds of children.
3.Workin partnership with other agencies, particularly the Local Authority,including Youth Workers. Support thedelivery of programmes of intervention for a caseload made up of schools andindividual children and families.
4.DeliverNational and local programmes on an individual, group and community level.Supervise and guide the School Nurse team assistant practitioners andadministrator.
Key Responsibilities under supervision and guidance ofthe Qualified School Nurse
5.Participatein the delivery of the National Child Measurement Programme.
6. Participate in the promotion and deliveryof young peoples clinics in partnership with the educational and communityestablishments to promote general health and wellbeing of children and youngpeople.
7.Workcollaboratively as a member of a multi-disciplinary team with other agenciesto maximise the School Nursing service contribution to health improvements inthe local community.
8.Facilitateand deliver targeted groups in a variety of settings.
9.Contribute to the delivery of health andsocial learning programmes for young people with identified needs.
10. Contribute to the delivery of careprogrammes for vulnerable children in conjunction with the school nursingteam, families, school and other professionals.
11. Liaise with Health Visiting teamsregarding children who may have additional needs relating to transitionbetween pre-school and school and support the transition.
12. Understand,uphold and promote the aims of the councils equality, diversity andinclusion policies; health, safety and wellbeing of self and others; andOrganisational values in everything you do. Equality and Diversity practice covers both interaction with staff,service users and communities and includes challenging discrimination andpromoting equality of opportunity for all.
13. The postholder will complete a period ofinduction to achieve the competences required to undertake the role.
Contacts& Relationships
SchoolNurse teams across Somerset.
Children,young people and families.
EducationProviders, Head Teachers and Schools.
CommunityServices, Fire and Police.
PublicHealth Directorate, Somerset CCG.
Headsof Service, Children and Young People Provider Services and Locality Leads.
PrimaryCare GP practices.
MidwiferyServices, Paediatric Services, Integrated Therapy Services.
VoluntarySector.
Externalrelationships with other agencies and Acute NHS Trusts.
Alliedpartnerships, e.g. Drug & Alcohol Action Team.
Communicatein person, face to face, in writing and, where appropriate, electronicallywith all the above contacts
Establishclear lines of communication between all members of multi-agency andprofessional teams, working collaboratively with all relevant health careprofessionals and agencies.
Varythe style and level of communication with individuals, families and carers tomeet the differing levels of understanding.
Activelyinvolve young people (where appropriate) in decisions about their ownhealthcare.
Attend and contribute to Area team meeting monthly to facilitateeffective communication within children and young peoples services.
Resources
Participatein the supervision, teaching and provision of experiential learningopportunities for nursing students and other personnel as appropriate.
Participatein the appraisal programme and undertake appraisals with skill mix staff asrequired.
Furtherinformation specific to this job
Thesuccessful candidate has a responsibility for promoting and safeguarding thewelfare of the vulnerable people they are responsible for or come intocontact with.
Somerset Council is subject to Part 7 of the Immigration Act (2016) andtherefore the ability to speak fluent English will be an essentialrequirement for customer-facing roles.
This job requiresa criminal background check (DBS) via the disclosure procedure.
Person Specification
Qualifications
* Registered Nurse/RSCN
* Registered Nursing Degree grade 2:2 or above.
* Evidence of continued professional development.
Experience
* Excellent interpersonal skills influencing, negotiating and communication (written and verbal) skills.
* Aptitude and confidence for working with a rapidly changing environment.
* Experienced in the use of IT applications, specifically experience of Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Email.
* Supportive and able to foster an open and learning culture.
* Proven organisational and time management skills.
* Working knowledge of Safeguarding policies and procedures.
* Community experience and/or experience in working with children.
* Experience of working across organisational boundaries in a health care setting.
* Experience of delivering programmes in a community setting and providing a range of diverse services.
* Compassionate - Exceptional interpersonal skills with the ability to communicate effectively with patients, carers and relatives remaining sensitive and empathetic.
* Listens to others views respecting and valuing individual patient needs.
* Professional and patient focussed approach with inspirational skills, acting as a role model to colleagues and junior staff members.
* Excellent organisational skills, ability to manage own time and plan timed activities for staff and service users.
* Ability to recognise and manage challenging situations in a calm and professional manner.
* Able to take instruction and direction and work effectively as part of a team.
* Ability to record and retrieve information on charts/paper and electronic patient records.
* High standards of written communication skills with the ability to use email and internet.
* Ability to undertake PMVA training to required level for role.
* Ability to speak fluent English as stated in Part 7 of the Immigration Act (2016).
* Able to work as part of a multi professional team.
* Understanding of quality standards and audit.
* Knowledge of key national and local public health priorities.
* Understanding of school health issues.
* Working knowledge of using the RIO records system.
* Experience of working with children and families with additional special needs.
* Experience and knowledge of child protection procedures.
* Experience of working with and or knowledge of child health issues e.g. contraceptive and sexual health, emotional health and wellbeing, smoking cessation, substance misuse.
Personal Attributes
* Develop & maintain good working relationships both within the team & the organisation.
* Compassionate and caring, sensitive to others needs.
* Able to contribute appropriately to workload allocation and identify and raise concerns as required.
* Flexible with working hours to suit the needs of the service.
* Able to work on own initiative and relate to a wide range of people.
* Work under pressure, dealing with a complex range of competing priorities and agendas.
* Compassionate - Open minded, treats colleagues, patients, carers and relatives with dignity and respect.
* Act in a way that support equality and diversity.
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.
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