Health & Wellbeing Coach - Chronic Pain

NHS; England; On-site; GBP 25,000 - 35,000; Full time

Job summary

A healthcare organization is seeking a Health & Wellbeing Coach to support patients with chronic pain. The ideal candidate will have a background in exercise and physical activity, providing coaching and motivation to help patients achieve their health goals. This exciting position offers the opportunity to work within a multidisciplinary team and deliver evidence-based programs that enhance patient wellbeing.

Qualifications

• Previous experience in managing caseloads effectively.
• Knowledge of exercise prescription for chronic pain.
• Must hold a driving licence and have access to transport.

Responsibilities

• Support patients in managing their chronic pain.
• Deliver the Escape Pain Programme.
• Coach patients to achieve their health goals.

Skills

Coaching patients

Understanding pain management

Interpersonal skills

Organizational skills

Motivational interviewing

Education

Recognised clinical qualification

Level 2/3 gym instructor

Level 4 qualification in exercise referral

Job description

Candidates are strongly encouraged to apply early as applications will be considered upon submission. Closing date 9/12/2025 but may close earlier if adequate applications are received.

We are looking for a Health &Wellbeing Coach with a background in exercise/ physical activity to work at The Bay Medical Practice (Sandown and Shanklin branches) supporting patients with chronic pain.

This role would be suitable for an individual that meets the below criteria:

Are you an exercise professional or do you have a clinical background in helping people with managing pain?

Are you passionate about helping people overcome barriers to achieve their goals?

Do you want to work in a multi-disciplinary team who share the same vision?

If so, then this is likely to be the role for you!

This role has evidence based emphasis on exercise and will include delivery of the Escape Pain programme. Offers of employment are subject to meeting the requirements for the Escape Pain training.

We'll need your qualifications and experience of supporting people into exercise and in return you can expect an exciting and challenging role that has a vast scope for improving peoples lives.

Local knowledge, a full current driving licence and the use of a car is essential.

Main duties of the job

The role is varied, and will include supporting self‑management education, peer support, case management and facilitating group consultations, as well as the delivery of Escape Pain programme and facilitation of other exercise approaches.

You will support personal choice and positive risk taking, while ensuring that patients understand the accountability of their own actions and decisions.

This exciting role is to support patients with chronic pain to develop evidence based strategies to live fulfilling and enriching lives. The evidence is overwhelming that the right type of exercise and lifestyle approach is key to improving patients situations.

One of the core components of this role will be the delivery of the Escape Pain Programme for which specific qualifications are required. Training will be provided in the programme delivery.

Details can be found here: https://escape-pain.org/facilitator-training.

Therefore this position is suitable for qualified exercise professionals or clinical staff with a basic clinical knowledge of osteoarthritis and its management, ideally including familiarity with delivering education and exercise to patients.

This role will be wholly employed by One Wight Health Ltd - GP Federation and will be supporting patients at The Bay Medical Practice.

About us

One Wight Health supports our member GP practices to help them deliver the best possible care to patients on the Island. We host a team including Social Prescribers & Health and Wellbeing Coaches under a Primary Care Contract that support our Island practices.

Our Approach

We aim to do that by providing centralised services that enable GPs to enhance their offer of support to patients.

We also provide direct support to GPs and practice staff to enable them to develop, lead and manage their practices more effectively and efficiently on a day‑day basis. For example, providing training and education, mentoring, recruitment support, resources, access to specialist roles and sharing best practice.

We also help bid for and secure additional funding from NHS England, where it becomes available, to help support new initiatives that help practices to meet their patients care needs and we work to support general practice/primary care, to make sure it has a voice within the wider healthcare system as it develops plans for the future care for our population.

Job responsibilities

Health and Wellbeing Coaches support people to take pro‑active steps to improve the way they manage their physical and mental health conditions, based on what matters to them. They support people to develop their knowledge, skills and confidence or to build their patient activation - in managing their health and care, to improve their health outcomes and quality of life. Health coaches do this by coaching and motivating patients through multiple sessions to identify their needs, set goals, and supporting patients to achieve their personalised health and care plan objectives and providing interventions such as self‑management education and peer support.

Health and Wellbeing Coaches manage and prioritise a caseload, according to the needs, priorities and support required by individuals in the caseload. They identify when a person's needs are beyond the scope of the health and wellbeing coach role and refer them back to other health professionals or organisations.

Key responsibilities

1. Under the clinical governance of the GP, take referrals from the wider practice team including GPs, Practice Nurses, Social Prescribers, Clinical Pharmacists and Physiotherapists who will have identified patients that meet the criteria for Health and Wellbeing coaches.
2. Deliver the Escape Pain Programme and support patients with ongoing exercise/activity plans.
3. Coach and motivate patients through multiple sessions to identify their needs, set goals, and support them to implement and achieve their personalised health and wellbeing objectives. This will include sitting in consultation with a patient and providing them with advice, guidance and a management plan, personalised to their individual needs. It could include dietetics and healthy eating, lifestyle medicine and getting active, safe activities and personal coaching and motivation.
4. Ensure all interventions and coaching are designed to empower patients to be active participants in their own healthcare, empower them to manage their own health and wellbeing, and live independently.
5. Support and deliver group consultations, with clinical and non‑clinical colleagues, implementing new approaches to health across primary care and supporting individuals to access peer support.
6. Work with the broader MDT to maximise the support available to patients, including the social prescribing team to connect patients to community‑based activities which support them to take increased control of their health and wellbeing, and working with clinical colleagues to provide enhanced support to patients being supported through, identifying those who would benefit the most from health coaching.
7. The role will require managing and prioritising your own caseload, in accordance with the needs, priorities and any urgent support required by individuals.
8. It is vital that you have a strong awareness and understanding of when it is appropriate or necessary to refer people back to other health professionals/agencies, when what the person needs is beyond the scope of the coach role e.g. when there is a mental health need requiring a qualified practitioner.
9. Work with social prescribing colleagues to draw on and increase the strengths and capacities of local communities, enabling local VCSE organisations and community groups to receive social prescribing referrals. Ensure they are supported, have basic safeguarding processes for vulnerable individuals and can provide opportunities for the person to develop friendships, a sense of belonging, and build knowledge, skills and confidence.
10. Work together with all local partners to collectively ensure that local VCSE organisations and community groups are sustainable and that community assets are nurtured, by making them aware of small grants or micro‑commissioning if available, including providing support to set up new community groups and services, where gaps are identified in local provision.

Key tasks

1. Meet people on a one‑to‑one or group consultation basis, by phone, videoconference, or face‑to‑face.
2. Give people time to tell their stories and focus on what matters to them.
3. Build trust and respect with the person, providing non‑judgemental and non‑discriminatory support, respecting diversity and lifestyle choices.
4. Work from a strength‑based approach focusing on a person's assets.
5. Use a structured framework/model approach to coach individuals across a series of sessions to: identify what's important to them; set personal goals and appropriate steps; build skills and confidence to achieve goals; and use problem‑solving to work through challenges.

Referrals

Promote health coaching, its role in self‑management as a part of personalised care, in addressing health inequalities and the wider determinants of health.

Be proactive in developing strong links with all local organisations to encourage referrals, recognising what they need to be confident in the service to make appropriate referrals.

Work in partnership with local agencies to raise awareness of health coaching and how improving people's knowledge, confidence and skills (patient activation) can enable them to improve their ability to manage their long‑term conditions and reduce reliance on clinical services.

Provide referral organisations with regular updates about health coaching, including information on how to encourage appropriate referrals.

Seek regular feedback about the quality of service and impact of health coaching on referral agencies.

Be proactive in encouraging equality and inclusion and case‑finding, through self‑referrals and connecting with all diverse local communities, particularly those communities that statutory bodies may find hard to reach.

Work sensitively with people, to capture key information, enabling tracking of the impact of coaching on their health and wellbeing.

Encourage people, their families and carers to provide feedback and to share their stories about the impact of health coaching on their lives.

Work with your line manager to undertake continual personal and professional development, taking an active part in reviewing and developing the roles and responsibilities. Adhere to organisational policies and procedures, including confidentiality, safeguarding, lone working, information governance, and health and safety. Work with your line manager to access regular clinical supervision, to enable you to deal effectively with the difficult issues that people present.

You will be assigned a Line manager (OWH Ltd) and an onsite supervisor at the practice where you are based. There will also be OWH Ltd GP Supervision as identified to enable service review and enhancements.

Annual Appraisals and 1‑2‑1s will be scheduled with your line Manager/Supervisor (OWH Ltd).

Work as part of the team to seek feedback, continually improve the service and contribute to business planning.

To undertake all mandatory training and induction programmes.

To maintain a safe and effective working area at all times.

Undertake any tasks consistent with the level of the post and the scope of the role, ensuring that work is delivered in a timely and effective manner.

Duties may vary from time to time, without changing the general character of the post or the level of responsibility.

Person Specification

Experience

• Ability to demonstrate management of own caseload and prioritisation of case work.
• Able to interpret, translate and deliver key messages to patient groups.
• Good practical and conceptual knowledge of healthcare improvement methods and community level services for referral purposes.
• Experience of successfully establishing working relationships within teams across multiple locations.
• An understanding or previous experience of working within a Primary Care organisation or a comparable not for profit agency.
• Previous experience or providing an advisory service assisting with complex patient situations which require multi‑agency working.

Personal Qualities

• Ability to follow legal, ethical, professional and organisational policies/procedures and codes of conduct.
• Ability to use own initiative, discretion and sensitivity.
• Able to get along with people from all backgrounds and communities, respecting lifestyles and diversity.
• Flexible and cooperative.
• Ability to identify risk and assess/manage risk when working with individuals and lone working.
• Sensitive and empathetic in distressing situations.
• Able to provide leadership and to finish work tasks.
• Problem solving and analytical skills.
• Ability to maintain confidentiality.
• Professional calm and efficient manner.
• Effective organiser, influencer and networker.
• Knowledge of and ability to work to policies and procedures, including confidentiality, safeguarding, lone working, information governance and health and safety.

Qualifications

• Hold a recognised clinical qualification with basic clinical knowledge of osteoarthritis and its management, including familiarity with delivering education and exercise to patients/OR Level 2/3 gym instructor/ personal trainer or equivalent (demonstrating underpinning anatomy and physiology knowledge) and Level 3 exercise referral OR a level 4 qualification and at least 150 hours of working with specialist populations (eg exercise referral, cardiac, back pain, falls etc).
• Holds a recognised healthcare or coaching qualification (or equivalent relevant experience in motivational interviewing).
• Good standard of education with excellent literacy and numeracy skills.

Skills

• Ability to communicate complex and sensitive information effectively with people at all levels by telephone, email and face to face.
• Excellent interpersonal, influencing and negotiation skills organisation skills with the ability to constructively challenge the view and practices of managers and clinicians.
• Ability to develop business cases.
• Knowledge of IT systems, including ability to use word processing skills, emails and the internet to create simple plans and reports.
• Be flexible and able to manage sudden and unexpected demands.
• Effective time management (planning and organising).
• To be a strategic thinker and planner with the ability to consider and act upon complex issues.
• To be able to prioritise own work effectively and to direct activities of others.
• Demonstrate personal accountability, emotional resilience and work well under pressure.

Other requirements

• Evidence of continuing professional development.
• Access to own transport and ability to travel across the locality on a regular basis, including to visit people in their own home.
• Flexibility to work outside of core office hours.

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.