Nursing

Clinical Lead (Deputy)

Clinical Leader (Theatres)

Tunbridge Wells Hospital | Nursing | Permanent | Full time |

Up to £52,000 per annum depending on experience

37.5 hours per week

At Nuffield Health the UKs largest healthcare charity, everything we give our patients, members and customers would not be possible without you. Your passion, your warmth, your drive to make a difference. Whether it’s driving connected health, helping the nation, transforming experiences, or building the career you want – we give you the support to do it all. Join our journey. It starts with you.

We are looking for a Clinical Leader for our hospital to help us build a healthier nation. you’re registered with the appropriate governing body, and you have the relevant qualifications and post registration in surgery/anaesthetics and Recovery experience, including as a Registered Nurse or HCPC Registered Operating Department Practitioner. With strong clinical leadership, you will guide your team a shared vision promoting innovation and sustainability. As a clinical leader, you will have good communication and organisational skills and the ability to work as part of a team, knowledge and understanding of running a smooth & effective department equipment is also essential.

As our Clinical Leader, you will:

• Deputise for the Theatre Manager when required, providing leadership, operational oversight, and decision‑making to maintain safe and efficient departmental function.

• Lead, coordinate, and support the clinical team across the theatre environment, ensuring the smooth running of operating lists, accurate management of booking forms, and effective assistance within theatre sessions.

• Work collaboratively and flexibly across all theatre suites, adapting to service demands and supporting the full range of surgical specialities.

• Champion robust clinical governance and risk management by promoting safety, quality improvement, and adherence to departmental policies and procedures to enhance patient care and service delivery.

• Maintain comprehensive knowledge of audit processes and theatre equipment, ensuring compliance, accuracy, and safe operational standards.

• Demonstrate a strong understanding of surgical techniques, instrumentation, and specialist theatre equipment to support high‑quality surgical practice.

• Engage in continuous professional development, with opportunities for further training and career progression, including potential Surgical First Assistant (SFA) development.

• Oversee staff coordination, daily allocation, and team support to ensure appropriate skill mix and effective workflow.

Helping you feel good.

We want you to love coming to work, feeling healthy, happy and valued. That’s why we’ve developed a benefits package with you in mind. Here, you can choose from a range of fitness, lifestyle, health and fitness wellbeing rewards, such as free gym membership, health assessments, retail discounts and pension options. At Nuffield Health, we take care of what’s important to you.

Nuffield Health Tunbridge Wells Hospital.

The Nuffield Health Tunbridge Wells Hospital are recognised for their friendly atmosphere, clinical expertise, and high standards of care. Our purpose-built hospital has been established since 1968. With 40 en-suite bedrooms, a busy outpatients and pre-assessment departments. We also provide a diagnostic imaging service (MRI, CT, Ultrasound, Mammography and X-ray), pathology, paediatric unit, surgical recovery ward, cancer care unit, 3 state of the art operating theatres and physiotherapy services.

Join Nuffield Health and create the future you want, today.

If you like what you see, why not start your application now? We consider applications as we receive them and reserve the right to close adverts early (for example, where we have received an unprecedented high volume of applications). So, it’s a good idea to apply right away to ensure you’re considered for this role.

It starts with you. 

Rewards & Benefits

Helping you be and feel your best.

Annual Leave

25 days + Bank Holidays, increasing to 27 days after 5 years and to 30 days after 10 years of service.

Nuffield Health Healthcare Plan

Membership is free for employees and you can add partner and dependants at your own cost.

*eligibility criteria applies.

Financial Wellbeing

A range of employee benefits through a Financial Wellbeing provider – including affordable loans repaid through salary, access to your pay when you need it, simple savings, a government Help to Save scheme and money insights.

Cycle to Work Scheme

Save money, get fit and reduce your carbon footprint by taking advantage of this tax-efficient scheme to get a new bike.

Gym Membership

Free membership to any Nuffield Health gym, plus discounted memberships for family members.

Online GP

Discounted access to secure video and telephone GP consultations and a suite of healthcare management tools, provided by digital healthcare company Doctor Care Anywhere.

Emotional Wellbeing Support

Access to our Emotional Wellbeing services and discounted virtual, telephone, and face-to-face treatment.

Healthcare Scheme

Provides you with access to treatment in our own hospitals (or other Nuffield Health approved facilities).

Overtime

For clinical roles grade 9 and below, the overtime is at a standard rate of pay. For unsocial hours, you’ll be paid an additional enhancement to your salary at the following rates: Nights Hours worked between 7pm and 7am on any day of the week, 30% of basic hourly rate. Weekends Hours worked between 7am and 7pm on a Saturday or Sunday, 20% of basic hourly rate. Bank Holidays Hours worked between midnight and midnight of a bank holiday, 100% of basic hourly rate.

Relevant Stories

Sharing memorable experiences.

Hints & Tips

Help with your application.

Once you’ve found the right role for you, you can apply online. All you need to do at this stage is submit your CV, a covering email, and a few personal details.

Our recruitment team screens all of the applications we receive. So, if they see that you’ve got the right sort of skills and experience needed for the role, your details will be passed on to the relevant hiring manager. Then, if you fit all the criteria at this stage, you’ll be invited to take part in a video, telephone or face-to-face interview.

CV

Think about the skills and qualities asked for in the job description and show how you’ve applied those same skills and qualities in other roles. Focus on the things that will make us want to see more of you.

Covering email

Your CV will contain details about why you’d be a good fit for the role, but it’s well worth adding a short, snappy paragraph pulling out the two or three most compelling reasons as to why you’d be perfect for the job in your covering email..

Video interview

The video interview lasts 15-20 minutes if you get to this stage. On the day, look the part, be aware of your surroundings and practice your answers to feel prepared. Most of all, relax and be yourself.

DBS Checks

Some of our roles require a DBS check and they are processed through the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) as part of the recruitment process. These checks are to assist employers in making safer recruitment decisions. However, a check is just one part of robust recruitment practice.

Documents

You could be asked to provide proof of vaccinations as part of our Occupational Health pre-employment screening. We know it can be time consuming to get this information if you don’t already have it to hand, so we encourage you to start preparing this information to avoid any delays to the onboarding process.

Your current studies

If you are currently undertaking any strudies, education or apprenticeships, its worth noting there are some training provider we're not partnered with, and therefore potentially unable to support your continued learning. Ensure you share this at interview and for queries contact psc@nuffieldhealth.com

Feedback on applications

Due to the volume of applications we receive we are unable to provide individual feedback from an inital application.