Assistant Practitioner

NHS; Polegate; On-site; GBP 27,000 - 31,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading national healthcare service in Polegate seeks an enthusiastic Assistant Practitioner to join their dedicated team. This role emphasizes community-based care and requires sound communication skills, a relevant qualification in child development, and a driving license. Candidates must demonstrate a customer-focused approach and an ability to work under pressure. Salary range is £27,485 to £30,162 per annum, pro rata.

Qualifications

• Experience in child development through education or employment.
• Ability to travel independently.

Responsibilities

• Support NHS teams in delivering quality patient care.
• Maintain professionalism and manage workloads effectively.
• Communicate effectively across diverse teams.

Skills

Sound communication skills

Customer-focused approach

IT systems proficiency

Ability to remain professional under pressure

Good knowledge of child development

Awareness of NHS developments

Tact and sensitivity

Driving licence

Education

Level 5 foundation degree in child development

Functional Skills level 2 in Literacy and Numeracy

Job description

Assistant Practitioner

The closing date is 07 December 2025

The NHS is changing. More emphasis on community-based care means there's never been a better time to join us.

We believe in treating the whole person, not just the condition.

We are looking for enthusiastic and adaptable Assistant Practitioner to join our caring and progressive team in Polegate.

You will work as part of a close-knit team who are dedicated to the health and wellbeing of people in East Sussex.

Main duties of the job

Could you use your skills and experience to support the NHS to deliver great patient care? Great patient care needs great people to support clinical teams. That's where you come in.

We're always looking for enthusiastic, responsive, and adaptable people to join our outstanding trust. This role is an important one as you'll be using your knowledge, experience and expertise to provide support to our hard-working frontline NHS teams.

We put patients first and we expect all of our colleagues to do the same, so although NHS experience isn't a requirement for this role you'll need to share our passion for delivering excellent patient care and keep that passion at the forefront of your professional activity at all times.

The challenges come thick and fast in this role but you'll know that your input is contributing to the excellent experience our patients and service users have every day.

About us

Rated 'outstanding' by the CQC, we've got a passion for delivering high standards of patient care and excellent services to improve the health of our communities. To do this we need outstanding people who share our values compassionate Aspirational Responsive Excellent

We know a commitment to equity, diversity and inclusion leads to better patient care and a happier workforce. We pride ourselves in being diverse and welcome applications from people with varied backgrounds, perspectives and experiences.

We ask for information about your protected characteristics on our application forms. This isn't visible to anyone involved with shortlisting or interviewing you, except when you choose to be considered under the guaranteed interview scheme due to disability. Short listers will see two ticks alongside your application to ensure they apply the principles of the scheme to your submission.

The data we collect helps us to ensure we are attracting diversity in our applicants, that all our colleagues have equitable access to career opportunities and supports us on our journey to being a Great Place to Work.

As a flexible working friendly organisation, we want you to be able to work in a way that is best for us, for our patients and for you. Talk to us about a flexible working arrangement that won't involve sacrificing time for personal interests or family commitments. We'll support you to work flexibly in a way that will suits us both.

See where you can go with KCHFT career pathways.

Job responsibilities

Please note: at this stage, the role is open only to colleagues currently employed within Kent and Medway NHS Trusts and the Kent and Medway Integrated Care Board (ICB).

As a community Trust many of our roles require individuals to be able to drive to perform their duties. As such you will be asked to confirm you have a full UK driving licence where driving is a requirement of the role to be able to proceed with your application. We are committed to supporting candidates with disabilities into employment, if you are unable to drive due to a disability, please contact the Recruitment Team via [e-mail] quoting the vacancy reference number so we can support you further.

The job description and person specification gives you all the information you need about this role. Please look carefully at the criteria in the person specification and tell us what you have done that shows you meet this in your application. If you need an application form in an alternative format please let our recruitment team know. All information you supply on your application should, to the best of your knowledge, be true and accurate.

Still have questions? The recruiting manager would love to hear from you, their contact details can be found in the job advert.

We can get a lot of applications for some roles so to be in with the best chance of being shortlisted please make sure you apply as soon as possible. A vacancy may close early if there is a lot of interest in the job.

At KCHFT we strongly encourage colleagues in clinical and non-clinical roles who have direct or social contact with patients to be fully vaccinated. In this way we will be doing all we can to ensure your safety and that of your colleagues and the patients we serve.

Find out more about the community difference here.

Person Specification

Qualification and Training

• A level 5 foundation degree level of study in child development or you will be able to demonstrate the equivalent level of experience.
• Functional Skills at Level 2 Literacy and numeracy/ GCSE grade A-C/ 4-9 or equivalent in English and Maths

Experience

• recent experience of child development gained through education, work experience or previous employment.

Knowledge and Skills

• Sound communication skills (verbal and written), mindful of cultural and language differences.
• A customer focussed approach that enables positive customer experience, positive Trust representation and working with colleagues and other teams.
• Able to use IT systems and databases.
• Ability to remain professional under pressure and organise/prioritise workload.
• Good level of knowledge of child development.
• Awareness of developments in the NHS
• Tact and Sensitivity. Ability to travel independently
• Full valid UK driving licence.
• Ability to travel independently

Disclosure and Barring Service Check

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.

Kent Community Health NHS Foundation Trust

£27,485 to £30,162 a year per annum pro rata