Retrieve ACCTS Base Lead Nurse – Severn region
University Hospitals Bristol and Weston NHS Foundation Trust (UHBW).
The closing date is 06 July 2026
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. 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. The Base Lead Nurse role is mirrored across the two operational bases, and it is essential that the Lead Nurses in both Peninsula and Severn work closely together to manage and deliver the service.
Retrieve Severn are looking for an enthusiastic and organised individual with a background in critical care, for this one-year, fixed term, maternity cover contract.
Main duties of the job
- 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
University Hospitals Bristol and Weston NHS Foundation Trust (UHBW) is one of the largest acute Trusts in the country, bringing together a combined workforce of over 13,000 staff and over 100 different clinical services across 10 different sites, serving a core population of more than 500,000 people across South West England. UHBW has been rated by the CQC as ‘Good’ overall and our staff are proud to deliver excellent care to the people of Bristol, Weston and beyond. As a forward-thinking multi-award winning Trust and a digital exemplar committed to improving patient care, our world-leading research and innovations are having a positive local and global impact. 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 the South West has to offer. UHBW is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults. 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.
Job responsibilities
- 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.
Person Specification
Knowledge and Experience
- Significant recent leadership experience in speciality of critical care.
- Ability to demonstrate significant and recent critical care experience.
- Evidence of post graduate specialist training to Masters level or equivalent.
- ALS provider.
- Recent relevant experience with intra-hospital and inter-hospital transfer.
- Ability to lead and manage a team.
- Understanding of the principles and application of effective budgetary management.
- Understanding of the principles and application of effective staff and HR management/appraisals.
- Understanding the theory and application of clinical governance.
- Understanding and evidence of the use of audit in clinical practice.
- Ability to act as a role model, providing excellent patient care and promoting a culture where staff feel valued.
- Previous experience of change management and problem solving.
- Previous experience of ensuring a safe environment.
- Portfolio of evidence showing achievements in practice / speciality.
- Leadership Program or equivalent.
- Evidence of presentations at local and regional level.
Skills and Abilities
- Attention to detail in the development, production and dissemination of documents and information.
- Ability to work in a highly demanding specialist environment and use of reflective practice.
- Strong organisational skills – prioritising complex situations.
- Able to gain credibility with and influence colleagues effectively implementing clinical changes where appropriate.
- Excellent advanced critical care clinical skills.
- Able to work across professional team and organisational boundaries.
- Demonstrates ability to implement and utilise audit data to improve quality.
- Able to advise on and implement improvements to the quality and efficiency of care for patients in the service.
- Ability to analyse, interpret and compare complex facts or situations and act appropriately.
- Ability to work with advanced technologies.
- Flexibility, adaptability to meet needs of a changing service.
- Flexibility in working practices (unsocial hours).
- Self-motivated and able to motivate others.
- Delivery of evidence-based practice.
- Evidence of continued leadership / management development.
- Knowledge of national and local specialty specific issues.
- Previous experience of research and audit.
IM & T
- Competent in the use of IT packages such as Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint.
- Competent in videoconferencing using Microsoft Teams.
- Competent to utilise medical databases and search engines to access current evidence and literature.
- Good knowledge of, and experience of the management of, Electronic Patient Record systems.
Qualifications and Training
- Current NMC Registration.
- Degree or equivalent qualification in nursing.
- Qualification in Teaching, Assessing and mentoring.
- Evidence of Masters level academic study or willingness to work towards Masters (in relevant health related subject).
- Completion of Step 1-3 competencies or equivalent experience in critical care.
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.
University Hospitals Bristol and Weston NHS Foundation Trust (UHBW)
£57,528 to £64,750 a year per annum pro rata for part time roles.
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