Main area Corporate Nursing Grade NHS AfC: Band 9 Contract Fixed term: 12 months (only) Hours Full time - 37.5 hours per week (At The Dudley Group, we understand the benefits of offering a range of flexible working options from day one of employment to support both employees and the Trust. Offering flexible working opportunities is one of the ways that the Trust aims to attract and retain a diverse workforce. Further information on the options available can be found via the link in the job advert.) Job ref 253-0326-7807771
Employer The Dudley Group NHS Foundation Trust Employer type NHS Site Russells Hall Hospital Town Dudley Salary £112,782 - £129,783 per annum Salary period Yearly Closing 31/03/2026 23:59 Interview date 22/04/2026
Deputy Chief Nurse
NHS AfC: Band 9
Job overview
An exciting opportunity has arisen to work at The Dudley Group NHS Foundation Trust, in the role of Deputy Chief Nurse.
The postholder will support the Chief Nurse in the corporate and strategic leadership role, providing professional nursing expertise and advice and direct operational support and take part in the on-call rota.
t he postholder will work collaboratively p r ov i d i ng l e a d e r sh i p, v i s i o n, a d v i ce s u p er v i s i ona n dsu p p o r t t oNu r ses, M i d w i v esa n dAllied Health Professionals t hrou g h o ut t he T r us t and Group ,e n su r i ng t h a t h i g h q u ali t yc li n i cal s t a n da r ds a r e i n t egra t ed a n d e m b e d d ed i ntoa l l p a t i e n tse r v i ces.
Thep o s th ol d e r w i l l be r e q u i r e d t o de v e l ope x ce l l e n tc li n i cal a n d p r o f ess i o n a l s t a n d a r d sonb e h a l f o f t he Chief Nurse, e n sure t he d e v e l o p m e n t o f l e a d e r s h i p,p o t e n t i al ca p ac i t y w i t h i n nu r s i n ga n d m i d w i f e r y w ork f o r ce and u l t i m a t e l ydri v e co n s i s t e n t i m p r o v e ment i n q u ali t y ,s a f e t ya n d im pr o v ede x p eri e n ce f o rp a t i e n t s.
This role is a 12 months fixed term post only. - The interviews will be held on 22nd April 2026.
Main duties of the job
The post holder will be an excellent nursing or midwifery visible and accessible leader, and a role model, providing professional leadership to enable delivery of high quality, efficient and effective patient care. The post holder will work with the Chief Nurse to lead the development of the Group’s Nursing and Midwifery strategy, aligning this to national professional and clinical strategies, and h old delegated authority for the Chief Nurse, representing the Chief Nurse at Trust Board, other Committees and external meetings as required.
The post holder will set and monitor high standards of nursing practice across the Trust, producing reports to Committees and Boards as required, and e nsure that quality standards, both those agreed with commissioners and dictated by national policy, are achieved, aligning safety themes against national standards.
The post holder will contribute to the annual and strategic plans as delegated by the Chief Nurse, m anage staff and budgets within the Directorate of Nursing and Midwifery, ensuring that quality and service delivery is triangulated with financial data to demonstrate efficiency and effectiveness.
The post holder will be responsible for developing and implementing a 2-5 year workforce plan in conjunction with the Group Director of Nursing and the wider clinical teams to deliver a transformational, innovative, stable and affordable nursing workforce, and that feeds into the annual business planning process.
Working for our organisation
At The Dudley Group our patients and staff are at the heart of all that we do and that is to provide a world class service that aligns with our vision of “excellent healthcare for the people of Dudley”. We are seeking to recruit staff who share our vision and values of making The Dudley Group an incredible workplace.
We are committed to becoming a diverse and an inclusive employer and where people feel sense of belonging. Seeking to expand diversity within our teams, we positively encourage applications from under-represented groups such as ethnically diverse, disabled and LGBTQ+ groups. We are also under-represented in-terms of gender within nursing roles and we would welcome applications from people from male and non-binary backgrounds.
The Dudley Group offer many opportunities for our staff to develop and grow within their roles through our Learning & OD department. These include topics such as communication, wellbeing, team development, cultural competency, and values, plus much more. For those in a Leadership role, there are additional programmes to support you to develop the skills you need. These include our Managers Essentials Programme and a Leadership Programme that all managers will attend as part of your Dudley Managers Induction. Our Learning Prospectus is a great way to discover the details behind what’s available for you here at The Dudley Group.
We are committed to home life balance through flexible working and making reasonable adjustments where possible
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
Please refer to the attached job description for full details of the main duties and responsibilities that the post holder is required to undertake.
Person specification
Qualifications
* Registered Nurse/Midwife
* Leadership Course
* Evidence of continuous Professional Development relevant to post
Knowledge
* Track record of leading individuals and teams to achieve challenging targets
* Evidence of ability to motivate and develop clinical and managerial staff to their potential
* Develop and deliver strategic vision for services
* Ability to translate the national agenda into local action
* Utilise systematic evidence based approach to project management
* Ensure clear accountability for project leads
* Ability to meet challenging deadlines
* Highly developed motivational skills and strong commitment to staff empowerment/involvement
* Demonstrate success in working in collaboration and partnership with other organisations
* Committed to working in partnership with the Local HEIs and NHS organisations
* Ability to deal with highly sensitive situations
* Ability to present complex reports and recommendations to senior forums and large staff meetings
* Expert knowledge of current issues in the NHS and the changing nature of healthcare policy
* Understanding of the environment in which the Trust and Group operates both inside and outside the NHS, consistent with our aim to work collaboratively with other agencies and to provide high quality patient care, teaching and research
* Strong analytical skills
* Ability to have difficult conversations
* Ability to deal effectively with conflict
* Ability to deal with highly sensitive situations
Experience
* Significant experience as a Nurse/Midwife working in a senior role to include challenging the status quo and managing conflict
* Demonstrable success in leading and effectively managing change
* Evidence of engaging stakeholders in developing service improvements
* Ability to manage/influence challenging and complex clinical and personnel issues
* Track record of developing and implementing framework for ensuring Clinical Governance
* Experience of implementing an effective performance management framework
* Experience of workforce planning and development
* Experience of successful budget management at senior level
* Evidence of up-to-date knowledge of issues likely to impact on nursing and midwifery services
* Experience of working with multi-agency committees and establishing relationships with external organisations
* Successful achievement of projects through working closely with multidisciplinary teams
* Evidence of networking with local, regional and national committees
* Strategic awareness of the NHS and commissioning
* In-depth knowledge and understanding of safeguarding, complaints processes and patient experience engagement and pathways in an Acute Trust and Group setting
Personal Qualities
* Ability to lead on Governance issues at strategic level
* A leader with personal and professional credibility and authority, with potential to achieve a Board level post
* Confident and able to inspire confidence in others
* A change agent who constantly challenges the status quo
* Resilience to work in a pressurised environment
* Strong patient/carer focus
* Utilise feedback to improve own leadership style
* Evidence of ability to influence outcomes at a senior level
* Ability to lead on initiatives at strategic level for corporate nursing
* Evidence of negotiating skills
* Ability to plan, co-ordinate and monitor the delivery of services
* Evidence of innovative and creative thinking in relation to service development
* Demonstrate advanced investigative, report writing and presentation skills
* Provide expert advice to executive team, medical colleagues, general managers, matrons and senior nursing and midwifery and all other stakeholders on professional nursing and midwifery issues
* Ability to champion nursing and midwifery at a strategic level and deputise for the Chief Nurse
* Articulate, assertive and able to communicate at all levels
* Recognition and credibility outside the Trust and Group for a contribution to the development of health and health care and/or nursing/midwifery
Using AI for jobs applications:
Whilst we encourage the use of technology to help manage time and support innovation. However, it is your responsibility to ensure your application is personalised and clearly reflects your own skills and experiences. While AI can assist with drafting, it should only be used as a support tool. The content must be your own work and accurately represent your knowledge, abilities, and values. Over-reliance on AI-generated content may result in your application being rejected. A common issue arises when we receive multiple applications with identical or overly generic language.
The use of AI during assessments, including interviews, is not permitted unless it has been pre-approved as part of a reasonable adjustment. For digital interviews, you may be asked to provide a 360-degree view of your surroundings on camera and confirm that no additional devices are present. If we suspect AI is being used during an interview, we may pause the process to clarify or adjust our approach to questioning.
Caring for patients demands integrity, honesty, and accountability. We expect your application and participation to be authentic and a genuine reflection of your own experiences and values.
In line with UK Home Office rules, Band 2 clinical and non‑clinical roles, and Band 3 non‑clinical roles, are not eligible for visa sponsorship.
Non‑clinical roles at Agenda for Change Bands 7–9 that meet the required skill level (RQF 6) and salary threshold are eligible for sponsorship.
The Trust will also accept applications from candidates who can evidence their existing right to work in the UK or who hold an alternative eligible visa.
RECRUITMENT EQUALITY STATEMENT
We are committed to equal opportunities and want to ensure our workforce is representative of the population we serve. We welcome applications from all sections of the community and diverse groups. It is essential we understand our demographics, in order that we can monitor our performance as an equal opportunity employer, as well as continuing to embed a culture of inclusivity across the organisation, which supports the active participation and contribution of our diverse staff groups in the Trusts decision making processes. On application the shortlisting manager will not see this criterion and therefore it cannot be part of their decision making. Please ensure you complete your equal opportunities questions for us and help us to make sure everyone is welcome.
We are committed to hiring and supporting people with disabilities. It is the Trust’s policy to interview all candidates with a disability who meet the minimum ‘essential’ criteria as identified on the person specification. To ensure we know you have a disability, please inform us under the appropriate section on the application form. We welcome applications from the LGBTQ+ community and openly encourage people with different sexual orientation, gender identity and expression to apply to join our team. We promise to respect and encourage the use of all pronouns and will not purposefully mis-gender anyone.
We are governed by the public sector equality duties and by our values of Care, Respect and Responsibility to ensure we eliminate discrimination, harassment, victimisation and any other behaviour that is unlawful, undermines our core values and/or falls short of our Behaviour Framework. We want all of our staff to ‘call out’ any behaviour from colleagues, patients or visitors that constitutes the above and appropriate action be taken.
We will, at every opportunity, advance equality and inclusivity for all staff, at all levels within the organisation, by removing or minimising disadvantage, encouraging participation and taking all relevant steps to meet the needs of anyone who shares a protected characteristic. We will also foster good relations between persons who share a protected characteristic by tackling prejudice and promoting understanding at every opportunity.
We have staff Networks in place to help support staff experience of diverse staff groups and inform us on the actions, interventions and support what we need to put in place to improve the working lives and daily experiences of all colleagues and all teams. Anyone can join the networks and we take pride in having Allies as part of every network within the organisation.
By submitting an application for a position with this organisation, you are declaring that the information given is true and complete, any deliberate omission, falsification or misrepresentation will be grounds for rejecting the application or subsequent dismissal, and where applicable, for positions that requires registration with a professional body, you authorise us to make the required employer checks on your professional registration status.
Applicants are advised to apply early as if a large number of applications are received for this post we reserve the right to close the vacancy prior to the advertised date. Please note, preference will be given to at risk employees.
Applicants MUST ensure that they provide details of their referees and their referee email addresses on their application form otherwise their application may not be considered.
By applying for this post you are agreeing to the Dudley Group NHS Foundation Trust transferring the information contained in your application to its preferred applicant management system. All subsequent information regarding your application will be generated from apps.trac.jobs. If you are offered a job, information will also be transferred into the NHS Electronic Staff Record system.
Employer certification / accreditation badges
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.
Name Martina Morris Job title Chief Nurse Email address m.morris16@nhs.net Telephone number 01384 456111 Additional information
MS Teams call can be arranged:m.morris16@nhs.net
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