About this role
Job summary Chief Nurse - Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children NHS Foundation Trust
Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children NHS Foundation Trust (GOSH) is seeking an exceptional Chief Nurse to join its Executive Team and provide visible, influential and compassionate professional leadership at one of the world's leading centres for babies, children and young people with rare, complex and difficult-to-treat conditions..
The development of the new Children's Cancer Centre, due to open in 2029, alongside opportunities in research, innovation, genomics and AI, creates a unique platform from which the next Chief Nurse can help shape the future of specialist paediatric care.
As Chief Nurse, you will be a Board-level Executive Director, the professional leader of the Trust's nursing and Allied Health Professional (AHP) workforce, responsible for ensuring that quality of clinical care, patient safety, nursing strategy and professional standards sit at the heart of GOSH's excellence. Reporting to the Chief Executive, Karl Munslow Ong, and working closely with the Chief Medical Officer, Chief Operating Officer and wider Executive Team, you will play a central role in shaping and delivering the Trust's strategic ambitions, championing outstanding care, strengthening clinical quality and governance, and ensuring the voice of children, young people and families remains central to decision-making.
Main duties of the job
We are looking for an accomplished, credible and values-led nursing leader with substantial senior leadership experience in a large, complex healthcare organisation. You will bring deep knowledge of nursing practice, professional standards, quality improvement, patient safety, clinical governance, assurance, risk management and regulatory frameworks, alongside a successful track record of leading transformation and change.
You will be a registered nurse with current NMC registration, able to operate with confidence at Board or Executive level, and capable of inspiring, influencing and uniting multidisciplinary teams around a shared commitment to exceptional care. You will be collaborative, inclusive and resilient, with excellent communication and stakeholder management skills, sound judgement, and the ability to provide constructive challenge where appropriate. Experience in a specialist, tertiary, children's healthcare, academic health science or research-intensive environment would be highly advantageous.
This is a rare opportunity to make a distinctive leadership contribution to children's health, nationally and internationally, helping GOSH continue to advance care for children and young people with rare and complex conditions so they can fulfil their potential.
About us
GOSH is committed to recruiting the best person for the job, based solely on their ability and individual merit as measured against the criteria for the role; through a process that is fair, open, consistent and free from bias and discrimination.
We are committed to being a diverse and inclusive employer and foster a culture where all staff are valued, respected and acknowledged. All applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, colour, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, age, disability status or length of time spent unemployed.
We particularly welcome applications from BAME communities, people with disabilities and/or long-term health conditions and LGBT+ community members.
We have policies and procedures in place to ensure that all applicants and employees are treated fairly and consistently. We are proud to be accredited as a Disability Confident Employer, a member of Business Disability Forum and a Stonewall Diversity Champion.
We have active and Executive supported BAME, LGBT+ and Allies, Disability and Long-Term Health Conditions and Women's staff networks. Staff networks are employee-led groups formed around interests, issues and a common bond or background. Staff network members create a positive and inclusive work environment at Great Ormond Street Hospital by actively contributing to the Trust's mission, values and efforts specific to inclusion. All of our staff networks are open to any employee.
Job description Job responsibilities
The full job description provides an overview of the key tasks and responsibilities of the role, and the person specification outlines the qualifications, skills, experience, and knowledge required. Please view the attachment/s below.
How to applyTo apply, please submit your application via email with the subject line Application for the role of Chief Nurse to [email protected] by midnight on Monday 7th September, 2026.
If you are unable to apply online, or have any accessibility requirements please contact the ProjectManager overseeing this recruitment, Tori Birkenshaw at: [email protected].
All applications should include:
A short covering letter, of no more than two A4 pages, your interest in the appointment, how youmeet the appointment criteria and what you specifically will bring to the post; Your current CV including educational and professional qualifications and full employment history.Please explain any gaps in your employment history and give details (where applicable) of budgetsand people management responsibilities, highlighting relevant achievements; A completed Diversity Monitoring Form, a link to which can be found here Key dates to diary:
Closing Date: midnight, Monday 7th September, 2026 Stakeholder Sessions (in-person, at GOSH): Monday 19th October, 2026 Selection Panel (in-person, at GOSH): Tuesday 20th October, 2026 Please note, it is unlikely we can accept any late applications nor change the date of the Selection Event;therefore, we ask that applicants take note of these key dates and diary these in the event you areshortlisted.
For further information, please refer to the attached candidate pack.
Person Specification
GOSH Culture and Values Essential
Always welcoming oAlways helpful oAlways expert oAlways one team Demonstrable commitment to, and evidence of, promoting and championing equality, diversity and inclusion, supported by tangible examples of impact Demonstrates and promotes accountability and integrity, and leads by example
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).
Employer details Employer name Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children NHS Foundation Trust
Address Great Ormond Street Hospital
London
WC1N 3JH
United Kingdom
Employer's website https://www.gosh.nhs.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)