Job overview

University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust is delighted to offer a fantastic opportunity to work with us. 

Job Title: Senior Midwifery Practitioner - Recruitment and Retention Lead

Contract Type: Fixed Term 

Purpose for Fixed Term: Short term funding 

This is an exciting opportunity to join our team as a Senior Midwifery Practitioner - Recruitment and Retention Lead Midwife.  This role offers the opportunity to lead and influence initiatives that attract, develop and retain a skilled, compassionate and diverse maternity workforce.

At UHS we know that excellent care for women, birthing people, babies and families starts with excellent staff experience. We are committed to creating an environment where our colleagues feel valued, supported and empowered to achieve their full potential. As our Recruitment & Retention Midwife, you will play a key role in making this vision a reality.

This is a highly visible role where you will engage with staff at all stages of their careers, helping to ensure that maternity remains a great place to work, learn and develop.

You will use staff feedback, workforce data and organisational priorities to develop innovative approaches that improve retention, enhance staff wellbeing and strengthen workforce sustainability.

This is a fixed term opportunity for a 12 month period of 30 hours per week. 

Working for our organisation

As one of the largest acute teaching Trusts in England, we offer learning and development opportunities to help you achieve the career you aspire to. UHS is rated ‘Good’ by the CQC and in the latest national NHS Staff Survey, we were in the top 10 acute trusts for staff engagement and for staff recommending the hospital as a place to work or receive care. 

 We support flexible working and will consider requests taking into account the needs of the service. UHS employees are able to access a range of NHS discounts, are entitled to a minimum of 35 days paid holiday (pro rata), and we offer a generous pension scheme.

 Southampton is an attractive place to live and work situated on the south coast, with an international airport and direct trains to London. The New Forest National Park and beaches of the Jurassic coast are also right on our doorstep. The city offers living costs 30% lower than London and 17 schools rated outstanding by Ofsted.

 We believe that using technology wisely shows strong time management and commitment to innovation. However, personalising your recruitment application to highlight your unique skills and experiences is crucial. Relying too heavily on generic, AI-generated content instead of drawing from your own strengths and accomplishments may lead to your application being rejected if multiple candidates present identical or similar information.

The successful candidate will be responsible for;

•    Ensuring that midwives provide a high standard of practice based on current guidelines, policies, protocols and standards and are involved in the development and review of these.

•    Actively support junior staff and students and be a resource for research-based information on midwifery practice.

•    Assisting the Midwifery leadership team in building a dynamic workforce, contributing new and practical ideas to improve efficiency and make effective use of resources.

•    Maintaining  effective working relationships with all staff including medical staff, general practitioners, health visitors, independent midwives and staff from other Trusts.

•    Promoting a positive ‘team spirit’ across all areas of the midwifery service.

We are looking for:

•    An excellent communicator who can adapt their communication skills according to the audience.

•    Ability to be flexible, adaptable and able to work flexible hours and fulfil service requirements including on-call commitments.

•    Relevant and recent clinical experience or with the ability to demonstrate significant experience in midwifery practice and responsibility for managing a clinical team.

•    A positive role model with a good level of self-awareness and personal resilience. 

•    Able to demonstrate behaviours that meet the Trust Values.