Exercise Therapist

Cumbria, Northumberland, Tyne And Wear Nhs Foundation Trust; Carlisle; On-site; GBP 32,000 - 39,000; Full time

Job summary

Cumbria, Northumberland, Tyne and Wear (CNTW) NHS Foundation Trust is seeking an Exercise Therapist for Carleton Clinic, Carlisle. You will work with in-patient wards, delivering prescribed exercise therapies to adults with mental health conditions under a multidisciplinary team.

You will conduct health screens, tailor exercise plans, document progress, and contribute to ward-based care while ensuring safety and quality of care in a dynamic NHS environment.

Qualifications

• A degree in sports science or exercise science.
• Professional BASES membership.
• REPs level 2 fitness instructor.
• REPs level 3 Exercise Referral (REPs level 4 preferred).
• BASES CEP registration (applied for on offer).
• Coaching/exercise group qualifications.
• Significant experience delivering and developing exercise programmes for clinical populations.
• Experience administering health screens, fitness testing and gym inductions.
• Experience developing groups and health promotion activities.
• Experience with adults, children, learning disability, and older persons.

Responsibilities

• Develop therapeutic relationships and promote physical activity.
• Prescribe and facilitate exercise plans tailored to patient needs.
• Conduct health screens and baseline measurements.
• Document care plans and progress notes in the EMR.
• Liaise with MDT and attend ward meetings as required.
• Ensure safety and day-to-day running of the department.

Skills

Mobility

Organisation

Caseload management

Teamwork

Communication

IT skills

Education

Degree in sports science or exercise science

BASES professional membership

REPs level 2 fitness instructor

REPs level 3 Exercise Referral

REPS level 4 (preferred)

BASES CEP registration

Coaching/exercise group qualifications

Tools

Word

Excel

Job description

Job summary

An exciting opportunity has arisen within our Exercise Therapy Team at Carleton Clinic, Carlisle. Exercise Therapy support a number of wards across the Trust providing prescribed exercise interventions to support the physical and mental health of our patients. The role involves working into in-patient admission wards for patients over the age of 18 with a mental health illness who require assessment and treatment by a multi-disciplinary team.

Main duties of the job

The role involves developing therapeutic relationships with our service users to promote the benefits of physical activity and supporting them to make positive lifestyle changes. Experience of prescribing evidence based exercise interventions to support patient health and exercise outcomes is essential. The post holder will be required to conduct pre-activity health screen and review appointments, including taking various baseline physical health measurements, discussing health and exercise related goals and prescribing and facilitating exercise plans specific to their needs. Experience of working with clinical populations within clinical settings would be beneficial, however, in-house training will be provided and the post holder will be working with an experienced and skilled MDT. Exercise Therapy work as part of a multi-disciplinary team and the post holder will be required to liaise with the other professionals within the MDT with regards to exercise treatment plans, physical health triggers, patient progress and discharge planning, they will attend ward meetings as required. The post holder will be required to document detailed care plans and progress notes for service users within their electronic medical record. The post holder will be responsible for the day to day running of the department, ensuring the safety of service users whilst exercising and should be comfortable working in challenge situations.

About us

We aim to attract and retain a diverse, talented and committed workforce, who are caring and compassionate, and therefore able to meet the demands of the modern NHS now and in the future. In return we can offer a dynamic working environment in which to build a career. NHS Employees identified as at risk of compulsory redundancy and those eligible for the NENC Re-Deployment careers hub will receive prior consideration.

Details

Date posted: 20 October 2026
Pay scheme: Agenda for change
Band: Band 5
Salary: £32,073 to £39,043 a year per annum
Contract: Permanent
Working pattern: Full-time
Reference number: 263-ICG26-067-JW
Closing date: 3 November 2026

Person Specification

Education and Qualification

• Essential: A degree in sports science or exercise science
• Essential: Professional membership of BASES
• Essential: Reps level 2 fitness instructor
• Essential: Reps level 3 Exercise Referral, Reps level 4 (preferably Exercise and Mental Health, Diabetes and Obesity)
• Essential: Registered with BASES as Certified Exercise Practitioner (CEP) (Registration could be applied for once post has been offered but offer would be subject to successful application for CEP)
• Essential: Relevant Coaching/exercise group qualifications

Knowledge and Experience

• Essential: Significant experience of delivering and developing exercise programmes for clinical populations
• Essential: Significant experience of administering health screens, fitness testing and gym inductions
• Essential: Experience of developing groups
• Essential: Experience of delivering health promotion eg healthy eating, smoking cessation, weight management
• Essential: Experience of working with the relevant client group for the post (Adults, children, learning disability, older persons)
• Desirable: Experience of working in a mental health/learning disability setting
• Desirable: Experience of working in a hospital environment

Skills and Competencies

• Essential: Must be able to meet the mobility requirements of the post
• Essential: Good organisational and time management skills
• Essential: Be able to manage own caseload
• Essential: Be able to work individually and as part of a team
• Essential: Excellent communication skills
• Essential: Good IT skills, competent with Word, Excel etc, be able to produce reports as required
• Desirable: Experience of carrying out audits

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.

UK Registration

Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website.

Employer details

Employer name: Cumbria, Northumberland, Tyne and Wear (CNTW) NHS Foundation Trust
Address: Carleton Clinic, Carlisle, CA1 3SX, United Kingdom
Employer's website: https://www.cntw.nhs.uk/careers/

For questions about the job, contact:
Team Manager, Craig Herron, [e-mail], 07545444364

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