Main Trust Switchboard Telephonist / Emergency Call Handler

Mid Cheshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust; Crewe; On-site; GBP 25,000; Part time

Job summary

A National Health Service provider is seeking a Main Trust Switchboard Telephonist / Emergency Call Handler in Crewe. The role involves managing hundreds of calls daily, handling emergency situations, and providing support across multiple departments. Applicants should have experience in telephony and customer service, be flexible with scheduling, and possess a confident demeanor. Pro rata salary is £24,169 with additional pay for unsocial hours.

Qualifications

• Experience in telephony, call handling, or customer service.
• Ability to handle calls efficiently and manage emergencies.
• Must be reliable and confident in lone working.

Responsibilities

• Answer a high volume of calls efficiently.
• Action emergency calls and manage alarms.
• Program pagers and assist various departments.

Skills

Telephonist experience

Call handling

Customer service

Reliability

Confidence

Job description

Go back Mid Cheshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

Main Trust Switchboard Telephonist / Emergency Call Handler

The closing date is 15 October 2025

A 17.5 hour vacancy has become available within the trusts Main Switchboard department.

This position is required to help cover our 24 hour rota including night shifts, bank holidays and weekends.

An essential part of this position is the ability to be flexible in order to cover your colleagues absence when needed.

Our Telephonists lone work therefore, we are looking for someone with a confident personality with the ability to Multi-task.

Main duties of the job

We are an extremely busy department and the first main point of contact to the Trust.

You need to have the ability to manage calls swiftly and efficiently, ensuring callers are directed to the right person or department without unnecessary delays, whilst still providing accurate assistance.

During a busy day you could answer 800+ calls during your shift, along with -

• Actioning all emergency calls received
• Programming pagers as and when requested
• Drawer up rotas for departments within the Trust both online and hardcopies
• Complete online forms
• Handle all the Trusts Estate alarms
• Contact emergencies services when required

About us

Mid Cheshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (MCHFT) provides good quality, safe and effective healthcare to the people of Cheshire and beyond. The Trust, which manages Leighton Hospital in Crewe, Victoria Infirmary in Northwich, and Elmhurst Intermediate Care Centre in Winsford, was established as an NHS Trust in April 1991 and became a Foundation Trust in April 2008.

We employ almost 5,000 members of staff, provide around 540 hospital beds, with a range of services including accident and emergency, maternity, outpatients, therapies, and children's health.

The Trust is also part of Central Cheshire Integrated Care Partnership (CCICP), a unique local health partnership that provides a range of community services for people across South Cheshire and Vale Royal.

During the Coronavirus pandemic, the Trust was recognised nationally for its 'Be Safe Be EquiPPEd' campaign, which aimed to make the Trust as safe as possible for staff and patients, through supporting the correct use of PPE.

The results in the 2020 national NHS Staff Survey showed improvements in all elements of the safety culture theme, with 92% of respondents feeling their role made a difference to our patients. We were also recognised nationally for our workforce health and wellbeing initiatives.

At Mid Cheshire, we value our staff and appreciate that in order to give our patients the best quality, compassionate care, we also need to look after our colleagues.

Job responsibilities

Answering calls on the Switchboard is just a part of what a Telephonists daily duties involve. Please read the job description for more information on what the position entails.

The successful applicant will

• Remain calm and efficient when handling emergencies
• Have a flexible approach to work
• Have an Out of the Box attitude
• Have a confident and enthusiastic personality
• Have a natural enthusiasm to help people
• Have a positive attitude and have the confidence to lone work
• Be able to work at short notice [to cover unplanned absence]
• Be able to cover our 24/7 rota without issue

This is an interesting, rewarding and sometimes challenging position where no two days are the same.

Person Specification

Experience

• Telephonist, Call handling, Customer Service

Reliability

• Reliability

Confidence

• Confidence

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.

Mid Cheshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

£24,169 a year pro rata. Additional enhancements paid for unsocial hours worked