Job summary
An exciting opportunity has arisen for an experienced critical care leader to take up the role of Peninsula Base Lead Nurse for a 12 month fixed term period.

Retrieve is the South West's dedicated Adult Critical Care Transfer Service (ACCTS) and is one of a network of operationally similar services which have been commissioned by NHS England. We are looking for an Band 8a nurse leader who can drive the continued development and operational delivery of the Peninsula base, working in close partnership with the Severn Base Lead Nurse to manage and deliver the service across the South West.

The service has two operational bases located in Peninsula (Launceston, Cornwall) and Severn (Bristol) and from these we operate 24/7/365 managing referrals and undertaking transfers of critically ill and injured patients.The service is identical in each base to ensure we provide equitable access to our care across the region.

The Band 8a Lead Nurse is responsible for the continuous service development, quality improvement implementation, maintenance of the team infrastructure and operational delivery.

Main duties of the job
The Base Lead Nurse will:

• Lead and be a role model for the multi-professional team, ensuring that the clinical care delivered is of the highest quality and standardised in accordance with national guidance, policies and the NHS England Service Specification.
• In partnership with the Clinical Director, Base Lead Consultants and key stakeholders develop and maintain up to date, evidence-based transfer protocols and guidelines.
• Provide specialised knowledge and skilled nursing care for critically ill adults requiring transfer
• Oversee the Training and Education team to support the delivery of a high-quality in-house education programme that develops and maintains the skills of the team. This team is also tasked with the development and delivery of regional transfer courses.
• Manage and maintain effective control of the service budget.
• Monitor the effectiveness of the service working with the Lead Consultant for Audit and Research by means of audit and statistical data collection, benchmarking against NHS England Quality Indicators as well as locally and regionally defined standards.
• Ensure operational, clinical and performance data is submitted to national databases reliably, efficiently and effectively.

About us
Bristol NHS Foundation Trust brings together more than 28,000 staff to deliver over 160 clinical services across thirteen hospital locations,operatingfrom three main sites at Southmead, Bristol citycentreand Weston.

With an annual turnover of £2.3 billion, we are now one of the largest NHS trusts in the United Kingdom. Our hospitals are spread across Bristol and Weston, join us and you can enjoy the very best of both worlds; city living within a stone's throw of the countryside or beside the seaside, both with easy access to all that theSouth Westhas to offer.

Bristol NHS Foundation Trust values all people as individuals. As an equal opportunities employer actively working towards a diverse workforce we aim to recruit and retain a workforce which represents the rich diversity of the local population at all levels and are committed to designing our services around the needs of individual patients and those around them. Anonymous information will be used from your application in order to ensure we're meeting our pledge.

Details
Date posted: 18 September 2026
Pay scheme: Agenda for change
Band: Band 8a
Salary: £57,528 to £64,750 a year
per annum, pro rata
Contract: Fixed term
Duration: 12 months
Working pattern: Full-time
Reference number: 387-S9761-ALX
Job locations: Retrieve - Peninsula Base
Launceston Community Hospital
Launceston, Cornwall
PL15 9JD
United Kingdom

Job responsibilities
(Continuation of main duties)

• Co-lead with the Clinical Director, Base Lead Consultants and Lead Consultant for Governance, the clinical governance agenda for the service, ensuring the service continues to meet the needs of its service users (patients, relatives, referring clinicians, specialties and Networks).
• Contribute to national adult transfer service development.
• Be an active member of the South West Critical Care Network Transfer Group.

Please see the attached job description.

Person Specification
Knowledge and Experience
Essential

• Significant recent leadership experience in speciality of critical care (E)
• Ability to demonstrate significant and recent critical care experience (E)
• ALS provider (E)
• Ability to lead and manage a team (E)
• Understanding of the principles and application of effective staff and HR management/appraisals (E)
• Understanding the theory and application of clinical governance (E)
• Understanding and evidence of the use of audit in clinical practice (E)
• Ability to act as a role model, providing excellent patient care and promoting a culture where staff feel valued (E)
• Previous experience of change management and problem solving (E)
• Previous experience of ensuring a safe environment (E)

Desirable

• Leadership Program or equivalent (D)

Skills and Abilities
Essential

• Attention to detail in the development, production and dissemination of documents and information (E)
• Ability to work in a highly demanding specialist environment and use of reflective practice (E)
• Strong organisational skills - prioritising complex situations (E)
• Excellent advanced critical care clinical skills (E)
• Able to work across professional team and organisational boundaries (E)
• Demonstrates ability to implement and utilise audit data to improve quality (E)
• Able to advise on and implement improvements to the quality and efficiency of care for patients in the service (E)
• Ability to analyse, interpret and compare complex facts or situations and act appropriately (E)
• Ability to work with advanced technologies (E)
• Flexibility, adaptability to meet needs of a changing service (E)
• Self-motivated and able to motivate others (E)
• Evidence of continued leadership / management development (E)
• Knowledge of national and local specialty specific issues (E)
• Previous experience of research and audit (E)

Desirable

• Experience of presentations at local and regional level (D)

IM & T
Essential

• Competent in the use of IT packages such as Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint (E)
• Competent in videoconferencing using Microsoft Teams (E)

Desirable

• Good knowledge of, and experience of the management of, Electronic Patient Record systems (D)

Qualifications and Training
Essential

• Current NMC Registration (E)
• Degree or equivalent qualification in nursing (E)
• Relevant accredited post registration - (E)
• Qualification in Teaching, Assessing and mentoring (E)
• Evidence of Masters level academic study or willingness to work towards Masters (in relevant health related subject) (E)
• Completion of Step 1-3 competencies or equivalent experience in critical care. (E)

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.

Certificate of Sponsorship
Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).

From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).

UK Registration
Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).

Bristol NHS Foundation Trust is an equal opportunities employer.