Professional Perinatal Advocate Lead

Job summary

University Hospitals Sussex is the subject of an important Independent Maternity Review (IMR), commissioned by the Department of Health on behalf of the Secretary of State. This is due to commence in October 2026 and is expected to last at least 3 years. The review will examine approximately 1,000 cases of stillbirths, neonatal deaths, maternal deaths, neonatal harm due to severe brain injury and severe maternal harm dating back to at least 2018. The purpose is to understand what happened, reach conclusions on the care provided, provide answers for families and identify learning for the organisation and wider NHS. The review is, by its' very nature, extremely sensitive and politically charged. The impact is expected to be significant for the families at the heart of the review, current and past staff and the wider organisation. In parallel, the Trust is the subject of an active police investigation - Operation Bramber.

The programme of work required to ensure the Trust can meet the needs of families, the IMR team, Sussex Police, staff and other bodies is complex and diverse. It will span quality and corporate governance, information management, information governance, analytics, communications, wellbeing, recruitment, training, inclusion and professional standards. Working effectively with teams across Women and Children's services and critical corporate teams will be essential.

Main duties of the job

The Professional Perinatal Advocate (PPA) Lead provides strategic leadership for Professional Midwifery Advocacy (PMA), Professional Nurse Advocacy (PNA), restorative practice, workforce wellbeing and patient experience across maternity and neonatal services. The postholder will lead the development of an integrated Professional Perinatal Advocacy Service that brings together staff experience, family experience, governance learning, quality improvement and workforce intelligence to support a compassionate, psychologically safe, inclusive and culturally safe environment and a continuously improving culture.

The post ensures clinical safety and psychological wellbeing are supported equally for all perinatal staff groups, fostering a culture where professionals feel safe, valued, heard and able to learn. The role will champion equity, diversity and inclusion, ensuring all staff have equitable access to support, development and advocacy services, and promoting an anti-discriminatory culture where difference is respected and everyone can thrive.

The role translates learning from all services, including staff wellbeing and family experience, into:

• Governance
• Education and training
• Quality improvement
• Workforce culture and leadership development
• Equity, diversity, inclusion and cultural safety improvement initiatives

About us

Working for our organisation

At UHSussex, diversity is our strength, and we want you to feel included to help us always deliver Excellent Care Everywhere, as shown in our Outstanding for Caring CQC rating. Your uniqueness and experiences will be part of our creative and innovative community where everyone is encouraged to succeed. We have a range of staff networks to help break down barriers, and can offer abuddy to help new members settle in. We're proud to be a Disability Confident Employer (Level 3) and a Veteran Aware Trust.

Candidate Pack

Why join us?

You will have a unique opportunity to influence workforce culture at a pivotal time for maternity and neonatal services, leading initiatives that strengthen psychological safety, restorative practice, cultural safety, staff wellbeing and inclusion, while helping to shape a service where every member of staff feels valued, respected and empowered to deliver excellent care.

Job responsibilities

Please see attached the detailed job description and person specification for further details on this role.

This vacancy is advertised as a time-limited opportunity is expected to be undertaken on a secondment basis for internal applicants.

Before applying, internal colleagues must discuss the opportunity with their current line manager to confirm whether they can be released from their substantive role if successful.Release to undertake a secondment is not automatic and must be agreed between the colleague, their current line manager, and the recruiting line manager.

Person specification

Professional Registration

Essential

• Registered Midwife or Registered Nurse Professional Midwifery/Nursing Advocate

Desirable

• Registered Midwife or Registered Nurse Professional Midwifery/Nursing Advocate
• oLeadership qualification or equivalent experience
• oSignificant experience of senior leadership within maternity services.
• oExperience of leading change across organisational boundaries.
• oExperience of workforce wellbeing, restorative practice and psychological safety programmes.
• oExperience of governance, incident learning and quality improvement.
• oExperience of managing services and staff across multiple sites.

Experience/ Qualifications

Essential

• Significant post-registration experience in nursing or midwifery, clinical leadership, professional supervision; knowledge of A-EQUIP principles
• Experience in line management, mentoring, education facilitation, or quality improvement initiatives

Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion

Essential

• Evidence of having championed diversity in previous roles (as appropriate to role).
• Evidence of having undertaken own development to improve understanding of equalities issues