A&E/General Porter

Bedfordshire Hospitals; Bedford; On-site; GBP 23,000 - 28,000; Full time

Job summary

Bedfordshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust is seeking a General Portering team member for a full-time Band 2 role at Bedford Hospital, primarily based in the A&E. The post includes transporting patients, records, equipment and specimens, with shifts across 10:00–18:00 and 18:00–02:00.

Core duties include moving pathology samples, medical gases, and supplies, and assisting in security and fire safety as required.

Qualifications

• GCSE English or equivalent.
• Fluent English communication is required.
• Experience working as part of a team.
• Experience interacting with the public is essential.
• Knowledge of medical gas handling is desirable.

Responsibilities

• Transport patients, records, equipment, specimens and supplies as directed.
• Collect and transport pathology specimens.
• Collect medical gases and other supplies and deliver to wards/departments.
• Change medical gas cylinders in manifold rooms.
• Assist in responding to general enquiries from staff, patients, visitors and the public.
• Transport patients to and from wards and departments including A&E.
• Transfer deceased patients to the mortuary and assist with viewings as directed.

Skills

Teamwork

Customer service

Communication skills

Public interaction

Hospital porter experience

Education

GCSE English

Job description

Main area Estates Grade NHS AfC: Band 2 Contract Permanent Hours Full time - 37.5 hours per week (working Monday to Sunday from 10.00am to 18.00p.m. and from 18.00p.m. to 2.00a.m.) Job ref 418-POR0654-SSJ

Site Bedford Hospital South Wing Town Bedford Salary £25,272 per annum Salary period Yearly Closing 20/11/2026 23:59 Interview date 23/11/2026

Job overview

The post holder will be a member of the General Portering Team and will provide a comprehensive portering service to all wards and departments, as directed by the Portering Services Manager, Head Porter, or Duty Chargehand Porter.

Core duties will include the transportation of patients, records, equipment, specimens, and supplies, together with other tasks as detailed in this job description.

The post holder will be based primarily within the Accident and Emergency Department.

Main duties of the job

• Collect and transport pathology specimens.
• Collect medical gases and other supplies from stores, transport them to wards and departments, and assemble equipment where necessary.
• Change medical gas cylinders in manifold rooms.
• Deal with general enquiries from staff, patients, visitors, and members of the public in a helpful, professional, and courteous manner.
• Transport patients to and from wards and departments, including the Accident and Emergency Department, as required.
• Transfer deceased patients to the mortuary and assist with viewings as directed.
• Carry the appropriate bleep and undertake departmental duties as directed, including within A&E, X-Ray, Outpatients, and Pharmacy.
• Undertake general portering duties, including furniture and equipment removals.
• Deal with general enquiries from staff, patients, visitors, and members of the public in a helpful, professional, and courteous manner.
• Collect blood products from the Blood Bank as requested and maintain accurate records in the appropriate ledger before delivering them to wards and departments.
• Carry the appropriate general or departmental bleep and mobile handset, as directed.
• Assist in the event of a fire, major incident, or security alert in accordance with Trust policies and procedures.
• Undertake planned and ad hoc security duties as directed.
• Challenge and verify the identity of any individual arousing suspicion and report any incidents in accordance with Trust procedures.

Working for our organisation

Bedfordshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust provides hospital services to a growing population of around 700,000 people living across Bedfordshire and surrounding areas, across two busy hospital sites in Bedford and Luton. Both hospital sites offer key services, including Accident & Emergency (A&E), Obstetrics-led Maternity, and Paediatrics. You will be joining a friendly, high-performing Trust committed to supporting staff health and wellbeing. As one of the largest NHS Trusts in the region, you will have access to high-quality training and development opportunities to support your career progression. The Trust remains committed to delivering outstanding patient care through the latest clinical knowledge and technology available.

Our Values

We recruit not only on qualifications and experience, but also on the behaviours that underpin our Trust's core values. We achieve this through a values-based recruitment approach. We are dedicated to making our recruitment practices as inclusive as possible and are committed to promoting equality, diversity, and inclusion while creating a culture that values and celebrates differences. Please note that vacancies may close before the advertised closing date if a sufficient number of applications are received. All new staff will be subject to a probationary period during their first six months in post. Travel between hospital sites may be required. Please review attached documents to familiarise yourself with the requirements of the role.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

The Job Description and Person Specification are attached to this vacancy. Please review these documents for full details of the role and its responsibilities.

• Distribute clean linen to all wards and departments as part of the emergency out-of-hours service.
• Collect and transport pathology specimens.
• Collect medical gases and other supplies from stores, transport them to wards and departments, and assemble equipment where necessary.
• Change medical gas cylinders in manifold rooms.
• Deal with general enquiries from staff, patients, visitors, and members of the public in a helpful and courteous manner.
• Be prepared to transport patients to, from, and between wards and departments as required.

Person specification

Qualifications

• Ability to communicate effectively in English, both verbally and in writing.
• GCSE English or equivalent
• GCSE or equivalent English Grade C or above

Experience

• Previous experience of working as part of a team
• Previous experience of working with the public
• Previous experience of working as a Hospital Porter

Knowledge

• Ability to prioritise workload
• Demonstrates an open, reflective, and warm approach
• Customer care skills
• Knowledge of medical gas handling

Personal Skills

• Ability to work effectively as part of a team
• Enthusiastic, self-aware, and flexible approach to work
• Reliable, adaptable, and dependable

It is an exciting time to join Bedfordshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. We run two busy hospital sites in Bedford and Luton. Our 7,500 staff provide high quality care for a growing population of around 700,000 across Bedfordshire and the surrounding areas.

You will be joining a friendly, high performing Trust committed to ensuring the health and wellbeing of staff. As one of the largest NHS Trusts in our region you will have access to a programme of high quality training and development to help you grow your career. Travel between hospital sites may be required. We have state-of-the art facilities placing us at the heart of cutting edge health care. The Trust continues to be committed to delivering the best patient care using the best clinical knowledge and technology available.

All new staff will be subject to a probationary period covering their first six months in post.

Employer certification / accreditation badges

The postholder will have access to vulnerable people in the course of their normal duties and as such this post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service to check for any previous criminal convictions.