Pre-Assessment Team Leader

Are you an experienced and motivated nurse leader with strong leadership skills and a passion for improving patient care? We are seeking a Paediatric Pre-assessment Team Leader to provide visible leadership and operational oversight within our busy pre-assessment service.

This is an exciting opportunity to lead a dedicated team in ensuring children and their families are fully supported, informed, and prepared ahead of their surgical journey. You will play a pivotal role in coordinating patient pathways, upholding high standards of safety and quality, and driving service efficiency in line with Trust priorities. In return, we offer excellent opportunities for professional growth, leadership development and the chance to influence the future of paediatric pre-assessment within the Trust.

As Team Leader, you will be responsible for workforce development, clinical governance and service improvement within the unit. Working closely with the Matron/Lead Nurse, Head of Nursing and the wider multidisciplinary team, you will champion family-centred care and provide assurance that every child receives safe, compassionate, and seamless care.

Join us and make a meaningful difference to the experiences of children and families every single day.

The candidate preferably has paediatric qualification and/or working on the paediatric pathway for adult nurses.

Closing date: Midnight 01/12/2025

Interview date: 15/12/2025

Provide visible leadership and day-to-day management of the Paediatric Pre-assessment Unit ensuring safe, effective and family-centred care.

Coordinate patient pathways, ensuring children and families are fully assessed, informed and prepared for surgery.

Manage and support the nursing team, including workforce planning, supervision, appraisals and professional development.

Work collaboratively with the wider multidisciplinary team to maintain seamless communication and high-quality service delivery.

Oversee compliance with clinical governance standards, leading on incident management, audits and service improvement initiatives.

Ensure efficient use of resources, contributing to operational planning and delivery of Trust targets.

Act as a role model and ambassador for the service, promoting best practice and continuous improvement in paediatric care.

Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust comprises five of the UK's best known hospitals – Guy's, St Thomas', Evelina London Children's Hospital, Royal Brompton and Harefield – as well as community services in Lambeth and Southwark, all with a long history of high quality care, clinical excellence, research and innovation.

We are among the UK's busiest, most successful foundation trusts. We provide specialist care for patients including heart and lung, cancer and renal services as well as a full range of local hospital and community services for people in Lambeth and Southwark.

As the only NHS Trust in London with women's and specialist children's services on one site we have unique opportunities to provide excellent,

high-quality, integrated care for mothers, babies and children.

We have around 22,700 staff, making us one of the largest NHS Trusts in the country and one of the biggest employers locally. We aim to reflect the diversity of the communities we serve and continue to develop new and existing partnerships with local people, patients, neighbouring NHS organisations, local authorities and charitable bodies and GPs.

The Pre-assessment Team Leader will provide professional leadership and operational management within the Paediatric Pre-assessment Unit. This role is pivotal in ensuring children and their families are fully supported, assessed and prepared ahead of surgery. The post-holder will be responsible for delivering safe, high-quality, family-centred care while leading and developing the nursing team to achieve excellence in clinical practice and service delivery.

Working closely with the Matron/Lead Nurse, Head of Nursing, Operational Managers and the wider multidisciplinary team, the post-holder will ensure effective pathways for patients, robust governance processes and efficient use of resources. They will act as a role model for professional nursing practice, champion continuous improvement, and provide assurance of quality and safety within the service.

Main Responsibilities

Leadership & Management

Provide visible leadership, supervision, and support to the Pre-assessment team, fostering a culture of compassion, safety, and high performance.

Manage the day-to-day running of the unit, ensuring clinics are staffed, organised, and delivered effectively.

Support workforce planning, including recruitment, induction, rotas, appraisals, and staff development.

Encourage a positive team culture that values openness, continuous learning, and professional growth.

Clinical & Professional Practice

Lead the delivery of safe, evidence-based pre-assessment care, ensuring children are optimally prepared for surgery.

Act as a clinical role model, providing expert advice and support to colleagues and junior staff.

Promote and uphold Trust policies, professional standards, and the NMC Code of Conduct.

Ensure that patient care is delivered in a way that respects dignity, privacy, and family-centred values.

Governance & Quality Improvement

Lead on clinical governance within the unit, including incident management, complaints handling, and risk assessments.

Coordinate and contribute to audits, benchmarking, and service evaluation to improve quality of care and efficiency.

Drive forward quality improvement projects aligned with Trust and directorate priorities.

Ensure systems are in place to capture, monitor, and act on patient and family feedback.

Operational & Resource Management

Manage nursing resources within budget, including rostering, monitoring use of bank/agency staff and managing sickness and all other leaves.

Work with senior colleagues to align service delivery with capacity and demand, reducing delays and backlogs.

Contribute to the delivery of Trust performance targets through efficient use of staff, time and resources.

Deputise for the Matron/Lead Nurse as required, contributing to directorate-wide leadership.

Collaboration & Communication

Build effective working relationships with surgeons, anaesthetists, play specialists, and the wider multidisciplinary team.

Ensure consistent and clear communication with children, families and carers, keeping them fully informed and involved in care planning.

Represent the Pre-assessment Unit in meetings, forums and Trust-wide initiatives, acting as an ambassador for the service.

Please see attached JD and JS for further details.