Consultant in Palliative Medicine

Transformation Unit; Thatcham; Hybrid; GBP 114,000 - 151,000; Full time

Job summary

Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust seeks a Consultant in Palliative Medicine to lead a 5.33 programmed activity post across inpatient, outpatient and community settings. The post includes second on-call coverage on a 1 in 7 rota, with Category A on-call and a 5% intensity supplement.

The post holder will share clinical and managerial leadership within Palliative Medicine, supported by an office base, laptop, and secretarial support.

Qualifications

• Fully trained in Palliative Medicine and eligible for GMC registration.
• Experience in clinical governance and leadership within a medical service.
• Demonstrated ability to deliver patient-centred palliative care across settings.

Responsibilities

• Provide Palliative Medicine service in inpatient, outpatient and community settings.
• Provide second on-call cover on a 1 in 7 rota; on-call Category A with a 5% intensity supplement.
• Engage in monthly governance meetings and service business activities.

Skills

Palliative Medicine

Clinical governance

Team leadership

Teaching & supervision

Education

GMC registration

Royal College of Physicians membership

Full driving licence

Higher degree (PhD/MD)

Job description

Main area Palliative Care Grade NHS Medical & Dental: Consultant Contract Permanent Hours Part time - 5.33 sessions per week (2nd On Call cover. 1 in 7 rota) Job ref 193-CON259NCG

Employer Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust Employer type NHS Site Royal Berkshire Foundation Trust Town Reading Salary £113,565 - £150,569 pro rata Salary period Yearly Closing 13/10/2026 23:59

Consultant in Palliative Medicine

NHS Medical & Dental: Consultant

At the Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust we put our patients at the heart of every element of health and care that we provide. The Trust works together as a community to deliver its vision which is “Working together to provide outstanding care for our community.”

Royal Berkshire Hospital are pleased to announce that following our CQC inspection we have been rated ‘Good’ with inspectors reporting that we have made significant improvements. The Trust’s overall rating has also improved to ‘good’.

We areCompassionate in our thoughts, words and actions

We areAspirational and have a true desire to be dynamic and to innovate

We areResourceful and responsible in the way we work and live

We areExcellent in our development, fairness and sharing best practice

At the Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust, we value candidates who bring their unique personalities, skills, and experiences to the Trust. When completing your application, we encourage you to highlight your individual achievements and strengths, showing us how they align with the requirements outlined in the job description and person specification. While we recognise that some applicants may use AI tools during the process, please be mindful that AI-generated responses can often lack the personal detail and relevance needed to demonstrate your suitability for the role. AI generated content is discouraged by the Trust and may diminish the candidates chances of success.

Amazing things happen at the Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust; delivered by amazing people so why don’t you come and join us. We offer a range of learning and development for all employees may you be clinical or non-clinical.

Please note: all vacancies automatically close when 50 applications have been received.

Job overview

This is 5.33PA post for a Consultant in Palliative Medicine at the Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust.

The Palliative Medicine department provides specialist medical input across a broad range of settings, including acute and community hospitals (Royal Berkshire Hospital, West Berkshire Community Hospital and Wallingford Community Hospital), the specialist inpatient unit based at Duchess of Kent Hospice, and community services in Berkshire West and South Oxfordshire. The post holder will share clinical and managerial leadership within the Palliative Medicine service with the present consultants. An office base with a laptop computer, smartphone, and secretarial and administrative support will be provided.

Please note the simulation date will be 28th October 2026 and the Interview date will be 3rd November 2026

Main duties of the job

Clinical Responsibilities :

1. To provide, with colleagues, a Palliative Medicine service in inpatient, outpatient and community settings.

2. To provide second on-call cover for the Palliative Medicine service on a 1 in 7 rota. On-call is Category A with a 5% on-call intensity supplement.

Management Responsibilities:

1. Active participation in monthly clinical governance meetings within the department.

2. Participation and involvement in meetings and other business in the Palliative Medicine service.

Working for our organisation

Diversity makes us interesting… Inclusion is what will make us outstanding.

Inequality exists and the journey to eliminate it is not easy. Every step we take will be a purposeful step forward to deliver a truly inclusive culture where all our people are enabled to deliver outstanding care, where background is no barrier, and where everyone can be their authentic self and we truly represent our patient community.

We are committed to equal opportunities and welcome applications from all sections of the community, regardless of any protected characteristics. Reasonable adjustments will be made for disabled applicants where possible. All applicants who have a disability and meet the minimum criteria for the post can opt for a guaranteed interview.

Our primary method of communication will be via email. However, if you would prefer to be contacted through a different method, please inform the recruitment team.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

For further details please refer to the attached Job Description and Personal Specification. If you would like to discuss this role or arrange a visit, please kindly contact Dr Hannah western as below

Person specification

Education and Qualifications

• Full registration with the GMC/eligible for registration Within 6 months of CCST in (Speciality) at interview date
• Membership of the Royal College of Physicians of the United Kingdom or equivalent
• Full driving licence
• Higher degree e.g. PhD/ MD submitted/awarded

Clinical Experience, Knowledge & Skills

• Fully trained in Palliative Medicine
• Previous responsibility for clinical governance and GMC Good Medical Practice
• All aspects of palliative medicine and patient care

Audit Management & IT

• Ability to work within clinical governance guidelines
• Undertake audits and present data as required
• Good IT skills, use of patient and hospital database
• Evidence of clinical leadership role demonstrating accountability for quality of care, financial controls and efficient management of workforce

Research, Teaching Skill & Experience

• Evidence or providing good teaching and supervision to trainees
• Track record of publications in peer reviewed journals
• Contributes to improving patients experience
• See patients as individuals and involve them in decisions about their care
• Ability to work in partnership to deliver a patient centred service
• Demonstrate an understanding and willingness to embrace user involvement

We are NOTable to carry out telephone interviews thus applicants must be prepared to travel for an interview.

All new appointments to the Trust, with the exception of executive positions, are subject to a probationary period.

No unsolicited recruitment agency telephone calls or emails.

All applicants must be able to speak fluent English to an appropriate standard which will be assessed at Interview. This is in order to comply with Part 7 of the Immigration Act 2016.

IMPORTANT:

1.Please ensure you check the email account (including junk/spam boxes) from which you apply regularly as we willuse this to contact you regarding your application.
2. Due to the high volumes of applications we receive for certain posts, we reserve the right to close any adverts before the published closing date once we have received a sufficient number of applications.

3. All vacancies followed by INTERNAL APPLICANTS ONLY have been classified as an internal role and only internal candidates will be considered.

4. All staff identified as AT-RISK who meets the requirements of the post will be prioritised accordingly. Priority will initially be given to Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust employees.

5. All applicants who have a disability and meet the minimum criteria for the post can opt for a guaranteed interview.

Applications from Tier 2 candidates who require Tier 2 immigration status to work in the UK are welcome but such candidates will not be appointed to the post if there are a sufficient number of other suitable and available candidates, as the employing body will in those circumstances be unable to satisfy the Resident Market Labour Test as required by the Border Immigration Authority.

*The Trust operates a smoke‑free policy*

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.