Flow and Capacity Lead

NHS; Lancaster; On-site; GBP 40,000 - 50,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading health services provider seeks a Flow and Capacity Lead to support patient admissions and discharges. This full-time role requires strong communication and leadership skills to work with multidisciplinary teams. Ideal candidates will have relevant professional registration and experience in mental health clinical practice. The role is crucial for ensuring patients receive timely care within appropriate settings.

Benefits

Flexible working options

Qualifications

• Relevant professional registration such as RMN, Social Worker or OT.
• In-depth knowledge of clinical practices and national policies regarding patient flow.
• Experience in frontline clinical service.

Responsibilities

• Provide specialist advisory resource for matters pertaining to patient flow.
• Act as a clinical role model and lead by example.
• Support patients to be admitted close to home.

Skills

Great communication skills

Leadership

Knowledge of mental health clinical practice

Operational management experience

Education

Educated to Degree Level in appropriate subject

Job description

Flow and Capacity Lead

The closing date is 13 October 2025

An exciting opportunity has arisen for a Band 7 Flow Lead in The Bay.

The job supports safe flow for patients requiring inpatient admission to a mental health ward. The Flow Lead will work closely with the inpatient wards and the community teams to support patients to be admitted and safely discharged following a period of assessment and treatment.

The Flow Lead will have a relationship with the bed hub and support patients to be admitted as close to home as possible.

They will also work with mental health services as well as third sector providers, so great communication skills are essential.

The post is a full-time, permanent post covering the service over 5 days per week. The flow lead will support patients from The Bay in wards across the footprint and in OAP beds.

The post holder will be dynamic and motivated to support safe flow. As a member of the team you would be working with a multi-disciplinary team consisting of Mental Health Nurses; Support Workers; Social Workers, Occupational Therapist; Psychologist and Consultant Psychiatrist.

Main duties of the job

The Post Holder will provide a specialist advisory resource for Bay Locality for matters pertaining to, or linked to patient flow and capacity. They will act as a positive clinical role model through the provision of support and expert clinical advice to staff and Lead by example through visible leadership to motivate and empower others.

The Post Holder will play an active role in working in to the locality and also supporting across the Trust system to ensure that patients in all parts of the mental health pathway from community to inpatient receives care in the most appropriate place at the most appropriate time.

About us

Lancashire & South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust provides a range of services including secondary mental health care across this area. Specialist provision comprises inpatient child and adolescent mental health services, perinatal mental health and forensic services including low and medium secure care.

The Trust also provides a range of physical health and well-being services in the community alongside a range of partners in the Lancashire, Cumbria and Sefton area.

Lancashire & South Cumbria Foundation Trust encourages 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, flexi-time and career breaks. We encourage applicants to state clearly on their application forms this request and discuss these options at interview.

For more information please visit our website via Lancashire & South Cumbria NHS FT

Job responsibilities

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

Person Specification

Qualifications

• Relevant professional registration for example; RMN, Social Worker or OT.
• Educated to Degree Level in appropriate subject or equivalent.

Knowledge

• In depth knowledge of mental health clinical practice and procedures.
• In depth knowledge of Out of Area Placements Policy including definition and management.
• Detailed knowledge of national policies and strategies relating to patient flow and the skills to lead and implement these.

Experience

• Experience of operational management at Deputy Team Leader/or clinical lead/practitioner role Band 6.
• Demonstrable experience of working in front line clinical service and understanding of pressures and ways of working.
• Community Experience also essential

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.

Lancashire & South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust