Head and Neck Clinical Nurse Specialist

Job overview

Full time 37.5 hours per week. Permanent post.

The Head and Neck Clinical Nurse Specialist (CNS) is a highly skilled specialist nurse who provides expert care, support and care coordination for patients undergoing investigation, treatment and follow-up for Head and Neck cancer. Acting as a key worker throughout the patient pathway, the post holder delivers holistic assessment, symptom management, psychological support and patient education, ensuring that patients and their families receive timely, personalised and compassionate care. The CNS works collaboratively within the multidisciplinary team, coordinating investigations, treatment plans and MDT outcomes across local and regional cancer services, whilst supporting service development, governance and quality improvement activities. The role is integral to maintaining national cancer standards, improving patient experience and delivering excellent outcomes for patients across the Head and Neck cancer pathway.

Interviews will be held on 2nd October 2026.

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The Head and Neck Clinical Nurse Specialist (CNS) provides expert nursing care and acts as the key worker for patients undergoing investigation, treatment and follow-up for Head and Neck cancer across both the ENT and Maxillofacial cancer pathways. The post holder will coordinate care throughout the patient journey, ensuring patients and their families receive high-quality, personalised and compassionate care from diagnosis through treatment, rehabilitation, survivorship and, where appropriate, end-of-life care.

The CNS will undertake Holistic Needs Assessments (HNAs), develop personalised care and support plans, provide specialist assessment, advice and symptom management, and coordinate complex cancer pathways to ensure timely access to investigations, treatment and follow-up in line with national standards. The post holder will attend and contribute to Head and Neck and Maxillofacial MDT meetings, coordinate MDT outcomes, provide nurse-led clinics and telephone consultations, support patients with tracheostomies, laryngectomies and other complex Head and Neck care needs, and act as an advocate for patients and families throughout their cancer journey. In addition, the role includes leading and contributing to education, service development, audit, research, governance and quality improvement activities to continually enhance patient experience, clinical outcomes and the delivery of high-quality Head and Neck cancer services

Working for our organisation

We have a long and proud history of caring for generations of local people and can trace our roots all the way back to 1814 with the first hospital in Bolton – the Bolton Dispensary in the town centre.

Bolton NHS Foundation Trust was formed in 2008 and, in 2011, we became an integrated provider with community health services joining the trust. Covering a catchment area that also incorporates parts of Bury, Wigan and Salford, we deliver hospital and community based services from the Royal Bolton Hospital in Farnworth and from 20 health centres across Bolton, to a catchment population of 310,000+ people.

The Royal Bolton Hospital is a major hub within Greater Manchester for women’s and children’s services and is the busiest single ambulance-receiving site in Greater Manchester. We’re structured in four clinical divisions – Community Services, Families and Diagnostics, Medicine, and Surgery and are led by a Board of Directors. As an NHS Foundation Trust we’re accountable to our members and have a Council of Governors to represent the views of patients, public, staff and partners.

Buildings, names and models of care have changed over the centuries, but one thing has remained constant and is prevalent among our 6,718 staff members: the enduring commitment to providing the best health and care for the people of Bolton.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

The Head and Neck Oncology Clinical Nurse Specialist (CNS) is a senior specialist nurse who provides expert clinical care, support and care coordination for patients undergoing investigation, treatment and follow-up for Head and Neck cancer across both the ENT and Maxillofacial cancer pathways. Acting as the patient's key worker, the post holder will coordinate care throughout the cancer journey, ensuring patients and their families receive high-quality, personalised and compassionate care from diagnosis through treatment, rehabilitation and survivorship. The CNS will work across organisational boundaries with Bolton NHS Foundation Trust, Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust and East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust, attending regional Head and Neck and Maxillofacial Multidisciplinary Team (MDT) meetings and facilitating seamless, timely and effective patient care. The role encompasses expert clinical practice, leadership, education, service development, audit and research, supporting the delivery of national cancer standards and improving patient outcomes and experience.

Main Responsibilities

• Act as the designated Key Worker for patients diagnosed with, or undergoing investigation for, Head and Neck cancer.
• Provide advanced specialist assessment, advice, support and care coordination across the entire cancer pathway.
• Undertake Holistic Needs Assessments (HNA) and develop personalised care and support plans.
• Deliver nurse-led clinics, telephone consultations and follow-up reviews where appropriate.
• Provide specialist psychological support and information to patients and their families, enabling informed decision-making.
• Coordinate and monitor complex cancer pathways to ensure patients receive timely investigations, treatment and follow-up in line with national standards.
• Attend and contribute to regional Head and Neck and Maxillofacial MDT meetings, representing Bolton patients and ensuring MDT decisions are implemented effectively.
• Work collaboratively with ENT surgeons, Maxillofacial consultants, oncologists, radiologists, pathologists, speech and language therapists, dietitians, restorative dentistry teams, palliative care teams and allied health professionals.
• Provide specialist support for patients with tracheostomies, laryngectomies, voice prostheses and treatment-related complications.
• Act as an expert clinical resource for nursing and multidisciplinary colleagues.
• Lead and contribute to the development of patient information, care pathways, clinical guidelines and policies.
• Support service development, quality improvement initiatives, audit, research and cancer peer review processes.
• Deliver education, teaching and mentorship to nursing staff, students and the wider multidisciplinary team.
• Participate in regional and national Head and Neck cancer networks and professional forums.
• Monitor patient outcomes and patient experience measures, contributing to continuous service improvement.
• Maintain professional accountability in accordance with the NMC Code and Bolton NHS Foundation Trust policies and procedures.

This role is integral to ensuring the delivery of safe, effective and compassionate specialist cancer care across the Head and Neck service, whilst supporting Bolton NHS Foundation Trust's ambition to provide outstanding patient-centred care and maintain compliance with national cancer standards.

The vision of this Trust is to be recognised by the people of Bolton and beyond as an excellent provider of health and care services and a great place to work. We are striving to attract, recruit and retain high calibre skilled staff which reflect our communities. We are an inclusive employer who trains and develops our staff in a positive learning environment.

We thrive on cultivating cultural architecture, if you have the right skills, attitudes and behaviours, in line with our Trust values, we welcome and appreciate the diversity you bring to our organisation.

We offer a wide range of staff benefits please click on the link below to see what current benefits we have.

Staff benefits - Bolton NHS FT (boltonft.nhs.uk)

From time to time we may need to close a vacancy early when in receipt of a sufficient number of applications. If you are interested in this post and wish to be considered, we strongly advise you to complete and submit your application as soon as possible.