Job summary
The post holder will advise and support all specialist LAC professionals across the health community.
The role is intended to be separate from any responsibilities for individual children and aims to provide strategic and operational leadership, advanced knowledge and skills, expert advice and support on all LAC related issues to commissioners, managers, practitioners and other staff across the NHS and Local Authority. The monitoring and quality assurance aspects of the role will include the scrutiny and analysis of key data and performance indicators to ensure that the health needs of LAC are being met effectively as outlined in the 2015 statutory guidance, Promoting the Health & Well-being of Looked After Children.
There is an expectation that the post holder will be able to provide cover for the Designated Nurse for Safeguarding Children as required.
Interview Date: 12th July 2024
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Main duties of the job
The Designated Nurse Children Looked After (DNCLA) will support the ICB in fulfilling its statutory responsibilities for this particularly vulnerable group of children and young people. The role is intended to be separate from any responsibilities for individual children.
The DNCLA role should, at all times, and in relation to the roles and responsibilities listed, lead and support their local Borough in fulfilling their statutory and regulatory responsibilities to children who are looked after.
The post holder will advise and support all specialist CLA professionals across the health community, working closely with the Designated Dr CLA and Named Professionals CLA
The post holder will provide strategic leadership, advanced expert knowledge and skills, advice, and support on all CLA related issues to commissioners, managers, practitioners and other staff across the NHS and Local Authority. In addition, they will support the monitoring and quality assurance aspects of the role to include the scrutiny and analysis of key data and performance indicators to ensure that the health needs of CLA are being met effectively as outlined in the 2015 statutory guidance, Promoting the Health & Well-being of Looked After Children. This will include oversight of the quality of Health Assessments to ensure they are of a high standard and meet the health needs of CLA.
About us
NHS South West London Integrated Care Board (ICB), as part of South West London Integrated Care System (ICS), is a partnership of organisations that come together to plan and deliver joined up health and care services to improve the lives of people in our six boroughs: Croydon, Merton, Kingston, Richmond, Sutton and Wandsworth.
Each ICS consists of two statutory elements:
- an Integrated Care Board, bringing the NHS together with its partners locally to improve health and care services
- an Integrated Care Partnership (ICP): the broad alliance of organisations and representatives concerned with improving the care, health and wellbeing of the population, jointly convened by the ICB and local authorities in the area.
ICBs are statutory NHS bodies responsible for planning and allocating resources to meet the four core purposes of integrated care systems (ICSs):
- to improve outcomes in population health and healthcare;
- tackle inequalities in outcomes, experience and access;
- enhance productivity and value for money and;
- help the NHS support broader social and economic development.
NHS South West London Integrated Care Board decides how the South West London NHS budget is spent and develops plans to improve people's health, deliver higher quality care, and better value for money.
Job description
Job responsibilities
Please see the Job description and Person specification for full details
Provide advice to allocated Placed based health system and the local authority in their responsible area, on planning, strategy, commissioning, and the audit of quality standards including ensuring the appropriate performance indicators are in place in relation to health services for looked after children.
Provide advice on monitoring of elements of contracts, service level agreements and commissioned services to ensure the quality of provision for children in care including systems and records.
Provide expert advice to key stakeholders on all matters relating to the health and well- being of looked after children and young people.
Work with ICBs to ensure there are robust arrangements to meet the health needs of Children Looked After placed outside the local area and ensure close working relationships with local authorities to achieve placement decisions which match the needs of children.
Work with the local area, the provider organisation, and the local authority to ensure that robust arrangements are in place to meet the health needs of other Local Authority (OLA) CLA placed within borough. This will include liaising and communicating with health and social care from the placing Local Authority.
Work with all key stakeholders to advocate on behalf of and ensure that looked after children benefit from the implementation of wider health policies.
Ensure expert health advice on looked after children is available to childrens social care, health care organisations, residential childrens homes, foster carers, school nurses, clinicians undertaking health assessments and other health staff.
Advise colleagues in health and childrens social care on issues of medical confidentiality, consent, and information sharing.
Work with local service planners and commissioners to advocate on behalf of and ensure looked after children benefit as appropriate from the implementation of wider health policies e.g. personal health budgets.
Work with commissioners and providers to gain the best outcome for the child/young available resources, including involvement in fostering and adoption panels according to local arrangements.
Ensure expert health advice on safeguarding looked after children with special / complex health needs, is available to childrens social care, health care organisations, residential childrens homes, foster carers, school nurses, clinicians undertaking health assessments and other health staff.
Leading on ensuring transition pathways for CLA are robust and expertise is provided on the health offer for care leavers in partnership with local authority and other system agencies.
Advise commissioning bodies of training needs and the delivery of training for all health staff across the health community including those with GPs, Pediatricians and nurses undertaking health assessments and developing plans for looked after children.
Work with LSCP and Local authorities to ensure all agencies involved with health care of CLA are trained in line with current guidance.
Provide advice including case-focused support and supervision for health staff at all levels within organisations across the health community that deliver health services to looked after children.
Support the production of a supervision strategy for the ICB and health community which provides direction and options for supervision models, as appropriate to need.
Person Specification
Education / Qualifications
Essential
- Registered health care professional with extensive management and clinical experience
- Educated to Master's level or equivalent level of experience of working at a senior level in specialist area.
- Evidence of post qualifying and continuing professional development
- Member of relevant professional body
- Extensive knowledge of CLA acquired through post graduate diploma or equivalent experience or training plus further specialist knowledge or experience to Master's level equivalent
- Member of relevant professional body (NMC)
Knowledge and Experience
Essential
- Demonstrable experience of undertaking complex clinical investigations, risk management assessments and/or clinical governance.
- Highly developed specialist knowledge that is underpinned by theory and experience.
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.
UK Registration
Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see
NHS Careers website .
Employer details
Employer name
South West London Integrated Care Board
Address
120 the Broadway
London
SW19 1RH