Community Healthcare Assistant

Transformationunitgm; Cheltenham; On-site; GBP 24,000 - 26,000; Full time

Job summary

Join Gloucestershire Health and Care NHS Foundation Trust as a Community Healthcare Assistant. You will deliver essential nursing care in various community settings, ensuring high-quality patient support and contributing to integrated care teams. The role requires relevant qualifications and offers a supportive environment with ongoing training opportunities.

Benefits

27 days annual leave plus bank holidays

Free car parking at many sites

Generous NHS pension and enhanced pay for unsocial hours

Training and development opportunities

Flexible working opportunities

Qualifications

• Experience of direct adult patient care in health/social care setting.
• Ability to work unsupervised and as part of a team.
• Relevant clinical competencies like Venepuncture and catheter care.

Responsibilities

• Deliver nursing care in community settings as directed by a registered nurse.
• Administer routine medications and clinical tasks including monitoring blood pressure.
• Support and communicate with patients and colleagues effectively during care delivery.

Skills

Team working

Communication

Clinical competencies

Education

Level 1 / GCES English and Maths

Minimum of 5 GCSEs including English, Mathematics, and a Science

NVQ Level 3 Care certificate

Job description

Employer Gloucestershire Health and Care NHS Foundation Trust Employer type NHS Site Independent Living Centre Town Cheltenham Salary £24,625 - £25,674 per annum Salary period Yearly Closing 16/07/2025 23:59

Community Healthcare Assistant

Band 3

We love what we do and we think you will, too!

At Gloucestershire Health and Care NHS Foundation Trust (GHC), we provide joined-up mental health, physical health and learning disability services to people of all ages across Gloucestershire. We run community hospitals and provide care and support in people’s own homes and in a range of other locations across the county .

We are on a mission to enable people to live the best life they can and we have a vision to work together to provide outstanding care . We put people at the heart of our services, focusing on personalised care by asking ‘what matters to you ’.

We’re passionate about making sure that everyone can contribute to achieving our mission and w e are continually working to support healthy and happy high-quality team s in all areas of the Trust .

Our application process aims to understand each candidates knowledge, skills and experience. We have found that candidates that use AI to generate their answers can lack specificity and fail to address key criteria outlined in the job description.

It is really important to personalise your application to convey your individual skills, knowledge, and experiences effectively and for us to understand why you are applying for this role with GHC. We discourage over reliance on AI-generated applications as it will lessen your chances of success in securing an interview with us .

Job overview

An exciting opportunity has arisen for a Health Care Assistant to work as part of the Cheltenham Locality Community Nursing Team.

The successful candidate will be working within the community nursing service delivering a range of clinical care for people within their own homes.

The community nursing teams form an integral part of the Integrated Community Teams (ICTs) and are key to the exciting and dynamic developments underway to strengthen ICTs in delivering timely, high intensity acute and routine patient centred clinical interventions to support people in their own homes and prevent unnecessary admissions to hospital.

To work as part of the team you will need to have a good general standard of education with at least two years’ work experience in a relevant health or social care setting. NVQ level 3 in a Health or Social Care related subject or equivalent level of knowledge acquired through work experience is also required along with a proven ability to work efficiently and effectively. Good written and oral communication skills are essential as is an ability to work without direct supervision. Additional training and development will be provided within a work-based competency framework.

Main duties of the job

As a Health Care Assistant/ Support Worker you will be responsible for participating and assisting in the delivery of care / services to patients and service users as part of a Mental Health and Social Care Health Service. Health Care Assistant, Social Care Workers and other Healthcare Support Workers employed by the Trust are required to follow the guidance set out in Code of Conduct for Health Care Assistants/ Health Care Support Workers to provide safe and compassionate care of a high standard, and to challenge others who are not.

You will receive direct supervision and partake in reflective practice / training on a regular basis and be required to meet the Care Certificate standards. All successful applicants will also have the opportunity to discuss the prospect of undertaking a Level 3 Healthcare Support Worker Apprenticeship alongside their substantive post. This apprenticeship would include the Level 3 Diploma in Clinical Healthcare.

The qualification, training & experience requirements for the role are underlined in the Job Description/Person Specification.

Working for our organisation

We have a skilled and dedicated workforce of over 5000 colleagues working in a diverse range of services over 55 sites and within people’s homes. We strive to enable a welcoming workplace culture that builds and celebrates civility, inclusivity and diversity, while providing a sense of belonging and trust.

Annual staff surveys, regular Pulse surveys and other engagement opportunities provide our people with lots of opportunity to tell us about their experiences of working with us. In the latest staff survey, 61% of colleagues gave us their views. It was great to hear that:

• 72% of colleagues would recommend the Trust as a place to work, ranking us 1st for Provider Trusts in the South West region on this question.
• 76% would recommend the standard of care provided in our services if a friend or relative needed treatment, also ranking us 1st in the South West region.
• 81% said that care of patients and service users is the Trust’s priority, compared with an average in comparable NHS Trusts in England of 64%.

This high-level overview shows we are in a healthy position, with higher scores than average for comparable organisations, alongside a great response rate, indicating good staff engagement. However, we also know we have plenty of room for improvement in many areas. To that end, we continue to prioritise and invest in our commitment to genuinely becoming a Great Place to Work with consistent top-quartile performance in the annual staff survey and Pulse surveys.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

· Deliver essential nursing care in a flexible manner, in a variety of community settings as directed by the registered nurse, using evidenced based practice and according to training, experience and proven competence to meet the demands of the service.

· Communicate and liaise with all members of the Primary Health and Social Care Team and other professionals both in the community and the hospitals.

· Support the daily planning and operation of patient clinics where appropriate.

· Undertake specific clinical tasks which include administration of routine medications, monitoring blood pressure, pressure area care as appropriate, which includes application of compression hosiery and topical cream application, venepuncture, continence reassessments and bladder scanning, catheter care - including bladder Instillation, stoma care - changing stoma bags, capillary blood testing- undertaking and recording, routine drawing up and administration of Insulin as prescribed, urinalysis using dipstick testing, & wound care.

· Provide reassurance and support to patients and carers by listening to their concerns explaining to them any procedures that may be undertaken by the post holder or registered nursing staff after gaining informed consent.

· Refer patients appropriately to other members of our Multi-Disciplinary Teams where appropriate.

· Contribute to patient assessments by registered nurse and the development and ongoing evaluation of care plans, including recording of pathology results and liaising with appropriate professionals.

· Undertake direct patient contact for above clinical activities without direct supervision of registered nurse.

· Complete accurate record keeping of patient’s notes and computer systems in line with Trust Policy.

· Instigate emergency procedures such as CPR as necessary.

· Assist in keeping accurate patient records for the monitoring and continuity of patient care by recording tasks performed, on paper and computer, both Care Services and General Practice Information systems, in accordance with Trust Policy.

· Provide service users with Community equipment as directed.

· Promote health, well-being and independence using supportive health education interventions.

· Identify potential vulnerable adults and report per the trust’s safeguarding Policy.

· Participate in and support research projects / clinical trials as appropriate.

· Maintain and order clinical supplies and/or equipment as directed and ensure that they are appropriately managed and kept secure.

· Attend Team & Development meetings, contributing to enhancing nursing practice in line with service demands

Person specification

Qualifications

• Level 1 /GCSE English and Maths (or equivalent Adult Literacy and Numeracy)
• Minimum of 5 GSCE’s (or equivalent) including English, Mathematics and a Science or Health and social care-based subject
• NVA Level 3 Care certificate

Experience

• Experience of direct adult patient care in Health/social care setting
• Evidence of Team working abilities
• Proven ability to work unsupervised
• Relevant clinical competencies e.g. Venepuncture, catheter care, personal care

When joining us, as well as becoming part of a team that makes a difference, we also offer:

• Free car parking at many of our sites
• 27 days leave plus bank holidays, increasing up to 33 days with long service
• A broad range of training and development opportunities, including apprenticeships up to Level 7 qualification.
• A multi-professional preceptorship programme for all Newly Qualified; Nurses, Nursing Associates, Internationally Educated Practitioners, Allied Health Professionals and Return to Practice Practitioners.
• Generous NHS pension and enhanced pay when if you work unsocial hours
• Flexible, family friendly and agile working opportunities
• Recognition and long service awards
• Fast Track physiotherapy
• Access to discounts and salary sacrifice schemes; including Cycle to Work, Car scheme and discounts on travel, leisure and retailers.

Applicants are advised to apply early as if a large number of applications are received for this post, we reserve the right to close the vacancy prior to the advertised date. Good luck with your application.

For more information please see the attached 'Additional Information for Applicants' document.

Employer certification / accreditation badges

You must have appropriate UK professional registration.

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service.