Lead Nurse & Emergency Care

Lead Nurse - Urgent & Emergency Care

The closing date is 03 February 2026

A rare and exciting opportunity to join the WHH urgent and emergency care clinical business unit. We are looking for an experienced nurse to form part of the senior triumvirate in the clinical business unit. This consists of Lead Nurse, Business Manager and Clinical Director.

Our Urgent and Emergency Care CBU is responsible for:

• Adult Emergency Department
• Minor Injuries Unit
• Paediatric Emergency Department
• Ambulatory Care
• Same Day Emergency Care
• Runcorn Urgent Treatment Centre
• Acute medical ward AMU

We are looking for an exceptional nurse leader who puts patient safety and nursing standards at the forefront of their practice and who has demonstrated a track record in leading significant change through collaboration with clinical teams.

The Lead Nurse will demonstrate a full understanding of the current issues within nursing and urgent and emergency care, and will be capable of supporting the CBU in continuing to shape and transform the patient experience and service provision. The successful candidate must demonstrate a knowledge of the quality standards we strive to deliver and support the delivery of these. The role requires significant managerial experience leading teams and the ability to competently handle complex issues.

The lead nurse for this role needs to be adaptive, possess an engaging leadership style, and be capable of engendering the trust and confidence of clinical teams. A creative individual with exceptional commercial skills, you will have the resilience to balance the pace of day-to-day operational management of key patient services with a drive and vision to achieve long-term sustainability through the delivery of improved acute hospital pathways.

Warrington and Halton Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust is a caring and compassionate organisation that is both ambitious and innovative. We are committed to delivering the best outcomes for our patients and providing a positive experience of our staff. We aspire to be outstanding for our patients, our communities and our staff and are committed to being a great place to receive healthcare, work and learn.

Straddling the neighbouring boroughs of Warrington and Halton we are part of the Cheshire and Merseyside Integrated Care system. Our hospitals are ideally situated to meet the growing healthcare needs of the 330,000 population of these boroughs.

Warrington Hospital is home to our emergency, critical care and maternity services, Halton Hospital is focused on elective procedures and the Runcorn Urgent Treatment Centre, although many services are offered at both sites and in community hubs.

A CQC-rated 'good' organisation with 'outstanding' features, we are working towards university hospital status, having achieved teaching hospital status in 2019.

We employ nearly 5,000 people from over 80 nationalities, striving to be a diverse, inclusive employer and recognised leader in equality. We support flexible working, welcoming flexible applications. Proud of our many accreditations, we are embedding an anti-racist approach in all we do.

We require an experienced, motivated and independently minded leader who can act on their own initiative, achieving outstanding performance as a role model of the trusts values and behaviours. With a can-do leadership style, the Lead Nurse will thrive within a climate of constant change, managing the strategic direction and performance with a strong focus on productivity and improved patient experience for the Urgent and Emergency Care Clinical Business Unit within the Unplanned Care Group of the Trust.

Reporting to the Associate Director of Nursing, the post holder is expected to function at a senior level within the CBU senior leadership team, proactively leading and providing solutions to resolve complex operational issues, in accordance with agreed Trust objectives, targets, quality standards and resource constraints. The Lead Nurse will have managerial experience in leading teams and will possess leadership skills to deal competently with complex issues arising within Urgent and Emergency Care, and ensure that policy is implemented and performance managed within the CBU.

Working closely with the Clinical Director, and CBU Manager, the Lead Nurse will lead the implementation of patient centered clinical operational strategy and plans, ensuring that systems and processes are in place to comply with relevant legislation and governance requirements, linking with external bodies such as commissioners about service developments, contracts and clinical care pathways whilst utilising the expertise and skills of the wider Care Group team.

As a member of the Urgent and Emergency CBU senior leadership team and Care Group structure, the Lead Nurse contributes to strategic direction and policy setting for the Care Groups, forming an essential communications link between the Care Groups, CBU and relevant external…