General Porter

Transformation Unit; Kettering; Hybrid; GBP 23,000 - 28,000; Full time

Job summary

Kettering General Hospital NHS Foundation Trust is recruiting for a Portering team member to support our hospital across the Trust, delivering a caring and efficient service to patients.

The role involves collecting and delivering equipment, post, medical gases, linen and waste, as well as driving a transit van, lifting heavy loads and working shifts including nights. A good English language qualification and a valid driving licence are essential.

Qualifications

• Full Driving Licence
• English Language Qualification or Equivalent

Responsibilities

• Collection and delivery of equipment, post, medical gases, linen and waste across the Trust.
• Drive a transit type van and assist with lifting, pulling and pushing of loads.
• Interact with patients and staff, maintaining caring, courteous and confidential service.

Education

Full Driving Licence

English Language Qualification or Equivalent

Job description

Employer Kettering General Hospital NHS Foundation Trust Employer type NHS Site University Hospitals of Northamptonshire Town Kettering Salary £25,272 per annum pro rata Salary period Yearly Closing 04/11/2026 08:00 Interview date 13/11/2026

Band 2

Job overview

Kettering General Hospital Foundation NHS Trust is looking to recruit enthusiastic people to join our Portering team.

The successful applicants will work as part of a team that provides a caring, safe and efficient Portering service to our patients

Main duties of the job

The post will include other duties such as collection and delivery of equipment, post, medical gasses, linen, and waste movements across all areas of the Trust.

Duties will involve driving a transit type van and will include lifting, pulling, and pushing of medium to heavy loads.

The ability to communicate effectively is essential as the role involves interaction with patients and all other users of the hospital and will require the post holder to be aware of the need to be caring, courteous, respectful, confidential, and customer focused in the delivery of their duties.

Applicants must be able to communicate technical information using the English language and have basic literacy, and numeracy skills.

Previous experience of working in Portering or a similar role and a clean current UK driving license is desirable.

Applicants will be able to work any 5 out of 7 days and work a variety of shifts including night work on a rostered shift pattern

Working for our organisation

We recognise that AI tools can be helpful when drafting job applications; however, we ask candidates to keep their use to a minimum. Your responses should reflect your own experiences, skills and knowledge. Over-reliance on AI-generated content may result in responses that are generic or do not accurately represent your abilities.

University Hospitals of Northamptonshire (UHN) was formed through the grouping of Kettering General Hospital NHS Foundation Trust and Northampton General Hospital NHS Trust. As one group, we are on a journey to improve services for our communities by working collaboratively, modernising the way we deliver care and continually striving for excellence.

Working together allows us to share expertise, strengthen services and create greater opportunities . There may be a requirement to work across our hospital sites depending on service needs.

Our Excellence Values: Compassion, Accountability, Respect, Integrity and Courage.

UHN welcomes applications from people from all protected groups and is committed to creating an inclusive working environment. We are proud signatories of the Armed Forces Covenant and have achieved the Gold Award under the Armed Forces Employer Recognition Scheme. Our active staff networks support colleagues from all backgrounds and help ensure everyone feels valued here at UHN

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Person specification

Qualifications

• Full Driving Licence
• English Language Qualification or Equivalent

Knowledge / experience

• Understanding of workplace health and Safety
• Understanding of the importance of hygiene standards
• Working as part of a team
• Working in a similar environment
• Prioritising own workload
• Driving of transit vehicles

Skills

• Able to use lifts
• Able to push, pull heavy loads
• Normal colour perception
• Reliability

Key Competencies/Personal Qualities and Attributes

• Reliability
• Able to work within a shift pattern, including night work

We are an equal opportunities employer, which aims to employ a workforce that reflects the diverse communities we serve. We welcome applications from all suitably qualified persons from all backgrounds.

We welcome applications from members of our black and minority ethnic (BME) communities, especially in relation to senior posts within at KGH.

Applicants who have a disability and meet the essential criteria for the job will be interviewed if you indicate you wish to be considered under the Guaranteed Interview Scheme. If you require a reasonable adjustment at any stage of the recruitment process please make the recruitment services team aware as soon as possible.

Appointments will be made on merit.

In submitting an application form, you authorise Kettering General Hospital (KGH) NHS Foundation Trust to confirm any previous NHS service details via the Electronic Staff Record (ESR) Inter Authority Transfer (IAT) process. Including factual reference, occupational health clearance and statutory and mandatory training record.

If you need to have a Disclosure Barring Service (DBS) check, as a requirement of the role, you will be required to repay the cost of obtaining a DBS check (£49.50) and this amount will be reclaimed from your first salary. From 1st February 2019 all new starters to the Trust are required to join the DBS update service as per Trust DBS Re-checking Policy which has an annual cost of £16. New employees who do not join the update service will be required to pay £49.50 for a new DBS check in 3 years time.

Please note that news starters with KGH are subject to a six month probationary period.

Please ensure that the information you provide on your application form is correct, accurate and that nothing has been omitted. Any information that is stated in your application form in relation to qualifications/training courses/work/education experience/references must be able to be evidenced. Failure to do so may result if your offer being withdrawn.

"Safeguarding is everyone's business. KGH considers Safeguarding a priority amongst its citizen's and a key value for all employed to the service."

We want to recruit the best people to deliver our services across the University Hospitals of Northamptonshire and help to unleash everyone’s full potential. As an organisation, we value how we communicate and promote our vacancies to all communities. The Hospital Group encourages applications from people who identify from all protected groups, especially those from BAME, Disabled and LGBTQ+ backgrounds as these are underrepresented in our hospitals. We understand that we need to work with colleagues from diverse backgrounds and make sure the environment they work in is inclusive and collaborative. We have active Networks that promote and support colleagues from all backgrounds. This ensures everyone feels supported and has a sense of belonging working for Kettering and Northampton General Hospitals.

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.