Call Handler

LSCft; Accrington; On-site; GBP 26,000 - 27,000; Full time

Job summary

Lancashire and South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust (LSCFT) is seeking patient-focused Call Handlers to support the Initial Response Service (IRS) in Accrington. You will take calls from professionals and service users, clarifying details and recording information to aid onward referral.

The role requires resilience, IT proficiency, and a compassionate approach. You will work in a fast-paced mental health crisis pathway with training provided.

Qualifications

• Experience in a mental health setting preferred.
• Person-centred care approach expected.
• Strong interpersonal and communication skills essential.

Responsibilities

• Answer calls from professionals and service users for IRS guidance.
• Clarify appointment times and general enquiries; document details accurately.
• Act as liaison between patient and clinical team to ensure timely support.
• Handle calls that may be distressing and escalate as required within training.

Skills

Interpersonal skills

Communication skills

Prioritisation

Literacy

Education

NVQ 3 in Care/Customer Care/Business Admin

Job description

Site The Mount Town Accrington Salary £25,760 - £27,476 per annum (subject to confirmation) Salary period Yearly Closing 12/10/2026 23:59

Our Vision is to provide the best mental health, learning disability, autism, community, and physical health services for the populations we serve.

As an integrated Trust, Lancashire and South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust (LSCFT) delivers a comprehensive range of services, including:

• Primary and secondary mental health care for children and adults, including specialist inpatient child and adolescent mental health provision, perinatal mental health, and forensic services with low and medium secure care.
• Specialist mental health inpatient care for individuals with learning disabilities, alongside specialist community support for children and adults with learning disabilities and autism, including intensive support.
• Extensive community physical health and well-being services for children and adults, covering prevention, treatment, rehabilitation, and long-term condition management.

The Trust was first established in 2002 and employs approximately 7,500 staff who provide care from more than 400 sites. The organisation offers opportunities for medics, mental health, general nurses, children’s nurses, allied health professionals, psychology, administration and clerical staff, apprentices and volunteers, as well as those specialising in learning disabilities and community physical health services.

An exciting opportunity has arisen for patient focused Call Handlers to support the Initial Response Service (IRS)

IRS offers a single point of access into mental health services. This is an exciting time to be part of the crisis pathway and support people with mental health to ensure they access the most appropriate support at the right time. Call handlers will be expected to accept calls from both professionals and services users, and will be required to complete administrative tasks such as clarification of appointment times or general enquiries. The calls will be from callers across the trust footprint and processes will need to be followed to ensure the activity is recorded in the IRS Network stack for the callers location.

Excellent IT skills are an essential component due to the fast pace of this role and the accurate recording of information to aid onward referral.

Main duties of the job

The role involves assisting clients who may be experiencing a range of mental health conditions. You will act as a liaison between the patient and the clinical team, to support all patients in receiving a positive, high quality and seamless experience throughout.

This role also requires the post holder to manage calls from service users who may be in crisis and you will supported through a training package to determine the immediacy of the situation and needs of the individual caller at that time.

The post holder will be resilient, resourceful, and be able to manage calls that may at times be distressing or require an emergency response. A robust supervision structure is in place to support staff due to the challenges of the role.

We are excited to receive applications from people who have the drive and passion to make a difference and have the resilience to work in a high-pressured environment.

Working for our organisation

LSCFT values diversity and inclusion, recognising that talent from varied backgrounds creates a flexible, creative, and effective workforce. We actively challenge discrimination and welcome applications from all, regardless of age, disability (including those with experience of accessing or caring for someone who has accessed mental health or learning disability services), ethnicity, gender, religion, belief, or sexual orientation.

Our aim is to reflect the communities we serve, so we particularly encourage applications from under-represented groups. If you’d like to discuss your application, please ask.

We also welcome individuals with lived experience relevant to the role or service area, as your insight brings authenticity to our services.

LSCFT support flexible working, we believe that a positive work/life balance benefits NHS employees through improved health and wellbeing. We would consider working patterns such as term time, part time, compressed hours and flexi-time.

The wellbeing of our people is at the heart of everything we do. We offer a wide range of resources, tools and support to help you thrive both in and out of work.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Please see the attached job description and person specification for more information about this role.

Person specification

Qualifications

• NVQ 3 in Care, Customer Care or Business Administration or commitment to work towards

Experience

• Experience of working within a mental health setting
• Person centred care

Skills

• Good interpersonal and communication skills
• Ability to prioritise and manage own workload
• Enhanced Literacy skills

Personal

• Flexible
• Open to change
• Open and honest
• Motivated
• Demonstrates respect, dignity and integrity

For all posts which require a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check please be aware of the Disclosure and Barring Service Code of Practice, a copy of which is available by logging on to the DBS website. If the post is subject to DBS disclosure, a charge will be made to the successful candidate(s).

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.