Director: The Harry Crossley Children's Nursing Development Unit

The Harry Crossley Children’s Nursing Development Unit, is a nurse-led, donor-funded teaching and scholarship unit within the Department of Paediatrics and Child Health at the University of Cape Town (UCT). The Unit is dedicated to strengthening children’s nursing and leadership capacity across Africa to improve outcomes for children and their families, through contextually appropriate, evidence-informed practice and an unwavering commitment to unapologetic African nursing excellence. The Unit’s work aligns with WHO Sustainable Development Goals 3.2 and 3.c, global workforce priorities and the UCT 2030 Vision. It’s integrated portfolio spans three core areas:

1. Teaching and training nurses working with children.
2. Supporting educators and institutions as they build sustainable contextually appropriate and high-quality educational training programmes.
3. Working with children’s nursing leaders and teams to articulate and establish best practice in local and regional clinical facilities and services.

Integral to these activities are the use of participative, engaged, asset-based approaches and a deep understanding of African health systems.

Following the planned retirement of its founding Director, the Unit invites applications for a new Director. This is a senior and unusual academic leadership role, providing intellectual, strategic, and organisational leadership, integrating academic excellence with programme leadership, partnership development, and fundraising to ensure sustainability and impact. The Director will lead the complex, multi-faceted activities of the unit, and must be equally credible in research and postgraduate teaching as in their ability to build strategic partnerships and develop the Unit’s position as sectoral lead for children’s nursing in Africa’s health systems.

For detailed information on this post, please view the job description on the following link: (view)

To view and apply for this position, please visit the UCT Jobs site. Please click Apply button above to access. Please create a profile and to submit your application.

Closing date: 24 May 2026                             Reference:                 ID 1325 

UCT is a designated employer and is committed to the pursuit of excellence, diversity and redress in achieving its equity targets in accordance with the Employment Equity Plan of the University and its Employment Equity goals and targets. Preference will be given to candidates from the under-represented designated groups. Our Employment Equity Policy is available at here. 

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The University reserves the right to extend the closing date for applications if deemed necessary and reserves the right to make no appointment.

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