Highly Specialist Physiotherapist – Integrated Discharge Team

ESHT; St Leonards; Remote; GBP 49,000 - 57,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

NHS pension

Onsite parking £50/year

Staff restaurants

Accommodation

Job summary

East Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust is seeking a Highly Specialist Physiotherapist (Band 7) for the Integrated Discharge Team at Conquest Hospital, St Leonards on Sea. The role involves advanced assessments, discharge planning and close collaboration with ACPs, nursing and medical colleagues.

You will help shape the IDT and oversee pathways across East Sussex. The post offers permanent, full-time hours (37.5 per week) with NHS benefits, including pension and staff facilities.

Qualifications

• BSc in Physiotherapy and HCPC registration are essential.
• Postgraduate cpd to Masters level or equivalent is desirable.
• Experience in Band 6 or senior physiotherapist roles with service development is expected.

Responsibilities

• Undertake highly specialist physiotherapy assessments and treatments for Band 7 grade.
• Jointly deliver with IDT Leads the Acute Assessment and Discharge Services.
• Manage delivery of acute discharge services at Conquest Hospital and oversee discharge pathways.
• Collaborate with ACPs, nursing, medical and managerial leads to develop the IDT team.
• Support junior PT/PTA staff and provide training sessions.
• Drive service improvements and pathway developments with operational focus.

Skills

Clinical assessment

Team leadership

ACPs collaboration

Discharge planning

Education

BSc in Physiotherapy

HCPC Registered

CPD to Masters level

Job description

We do not charge fees for job applications, recruitment processes, sponsorship arrangements or employment offers. All current vacancies can be found below, with the published contact details being the only authorised routes for recruitment communications, applications and verification of job offers.

Highly Specialist Physiotherapist – Integrated Discharge Team

NHS AfC: Band 7

Main area . Grade NHS AfC: Band 7 Contract Permanent Hours Full time - 37.5 hours per week Job ref 374-KN365-A

Site Conquest Hospital Town St Leonards on Sea Salary £49,387 - £56,515 per annum, pro rata Salary period Yearly Closing 13/10/2026 23:59

We are proud to provide ‘Outstanding’ care and be a great place to work.

East Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust provides safe, compassionate and high quality hospital and community care to the half a million people living in East Sussex and those who visit our local area.

We are one of the largest organisations in East Sussex with an annual income of £700 million and we are the only integrated provider of acute and community care in Sussex.

Our extensive health services are provided by over 8,000+ dedicated members of staff working from two acute hospitals in Hastings and Eastbourne, three community hospitals in Bexhill, Rye and Uckfield, over 100 community sites across East Sussex, and in people’s own homes.

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) rated us as ‘Good’ overall, and ‘Outstanding’ for being Caring and Effective. The Conquest Hospital in Hastings and our Community Services were rated ‘Outstanding’ and Eastbourne DGH was rated ‘Good’ Our two acute hospitals have Emergency Departments and provide 24 hour a day care, offering a comprehensive range of surgical, medical, outpatient and maternity services, supported by a full range of diagnostic and therapy services.

Job overview

***Band 6-7 Developer may be considered for this position***

To undertake highly specialist clinical physiotherapy assessments and treatments appropriate to Band 7 grade including work requiring particular expertise or ability.

To be jointly responsible with the IDT Team Leads for the delivery of Acute Assessment and Discharge Services

You will be working closely with ACPs, nursing, medical and managerial team leads / managers, in the operational and strategic development of the IDT team.

Supervision team of junior PT and PTA colleagues and support staff providing training and joint sessions as required.

Deliver a high standard of clinical care and maintain
service delivery by flexible, effective and efficient prioritisation
based on sound clinical and professional judgement.

We are looking for a motivated and forward-thinking individual to join our team in a pivotal role that blends service development with operational delivery.

We are excited at the opportunity to deliver this service differently. This role provides an opportunity to shape how we provide services with a stronger operational focus, supporting our expanding workforce while helping to effectively drive service improvements.

Main duties of the job

To undertake highly specialist clinical physiotherapy assessments and treatments appropriate to Band 7 grade including work requiring particular expertise or ability.

To be jointly responsible with the IDT Team Leads for the delivery of Acute Assessment and Discharge Services

To be responsible for the delivery of acute discharge services at Conquest Hospital, and ensure the management of patients along the discharge pathways is efficient and clinically effective.

To fully integrate within the wider network of therapy Services, working in collaboration with other Team Leads to ensure there is consistency and assurance across the services within East Sussex

To work with the Service Manager to continually review, develop and refine pathways of care; facilitating the delivery of a robust, innovative and expert service.

To support the Physiotherapy Professional Leads with the development of professional standards associated with Physiotherapy

Working for our organisation

A wide range of staff benefits are available to our staff including staff development, enrolment in the NHS pension scheme, auto-enrolment to our Temporary Workforce Service, access to onsite nurseries. staff restaurants and accommodation.

In addition to an internal Occupational Health department, all staff also have access to free psychological support through our confidential Employee Assistance Programme. Onsite parking is available from only £50 a year.

There has never been a better time to join East Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust, submit your application today.

Statement on the Use of AI

We value the individuality that each candidate brings to the application process. While we understand that AI tools are widely available, we strongly discourage applicants from using AI-generated content when applying for jobs with us. We believe that your application should reflect your true skills, experiences, and motivations, which are best conveyed through your own words and unique perspective.

Using AI for your application may not accurately represent your knowledge, skills, and experience and may result in a disconnect between your qualifications and our assessment of your application.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Please refer to the job description attached.

Person specification

Qualifications

• BSc in Physiotherapy/post grad MSc Physiotherapy
• Health Professions Council Registered
• Evidence of relevant postgraduate development
• Evidence of comprehensive CPD to Masters level or equivalent experience, knowledge and skills.
• Postgraduate: higher level learning. MSc modules/PG certs/diplomas in clinically relevant specialist area

Experience

• 3 years as a Band 6 Physiotherapist or equivalent experience
• Experience of developing and appraising staff
• Delivering services along evidence based guidelines
• Experience leading student placements, and scoring performance
• Previous Experience as a Senior Physiotherapist
• Experience of Service Development
• Experience of performance management
• Experience within acute and community settings

Knowledge

• Expert clinical skills within area of speciality
• Full understanding of the national agenda for relevant clinical pathways
• Understanding of the strategic direction of East Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust
• The ability to highlight development needs of self and staff and provide appropriate plan of action to facilitate the development
• Able to operationally lead on the delivery of services within a high pressure service, and during times of variable demand
• Flexibility in working on other sites and outside of key area of work as the service requires.
• Experience of reviewing and reporting on services/ activity
• Good understanding of the local agenda for relevant clinical groups
• Comprehensive understanding of the future direction of the NHS
• Understanding of the unique demographic within East Sussex and the impact of service demand
• Experience of inputting into business case development/ service plans
• Participation in local/ regional/ national clinical networks

Patients come first at East Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust.

Our vision is to be:

• The healthcare provider of first choice for the people of East Sussex.

Our mission is to:

• Deliver better health outcomes and an excellent experience for everyone we provide with healthcare services.

Our strategic objectives are to:

• Improve quality and clinical outcomes by ensuring that safe patient care is our highest priority.
• Play a leading role in local partnerships to meet the needs of our local population and improve and enhance patients’ experiences.
• Use our resources efficiently and effectively for the benefit of our patients and their care to ensure our services are clinically, operationally and financially sustainable.

Our aims are that all services delivered by the Trust are:

• Safe
• Effective
• Caring
• Responsive and
• Well led

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.