Palliative Care Nurse

North Cumbria Integrated Care NHS Foundation Trust; Whitehaven; On-site; GBP 38,000 - 47,000; Full time

Job summary

A NHS healthcare organization in Whitehaven seeks a Band 6 Palliative Care Nurse to join their Specialist Palliative Care Team on a fixed-term contract covering maternity leave. The role involves providing compassionate care to patients and their families during critical times, alongside a dedicated team committed to improving end-of-life experiences. Ideal candidates will have experience in palliative care, excellent communication skills, and a degree-level education or equivalent. Offer includes a competitive salary between £38,682 to £46,580 annually.

Benefits

Opportunity for professional development

Supportive multidisciplinary team

Satisfaction from impactful work

Qualifications

• Evidence of sustained personal and professional development.
• Enhanced knowledge of Specialist Palliative Care issues.
• Ability to apply research into practice.

Responsibilities

• Assess and plan care for patients in community and hospital settings.
• Deliver specialist palliative and end-of-life care.
• Coordinate care across services ensuring continuity and safety.

Skills

Post-basic experience

Experience in multidisciplinary clinical teams

Clinical competence in Palliative Care

Expert communication skills

Education

Degree level education or equivalent

Teaching qualification

Advanced communication skills training

Job description

Go back North Cumbria Integrated Care NHS Foundation Trust

Palliative Care Nurse

The closing date is 04 January 2026

Vacancy: Band 6 Palliative Care Nurse (Fixed-Term - Maternity Cover)

Are you passionate about making a real difference in people’s lives at a critically important time? We have an exciting opportunity for a Band 6 nurse to join our Specialist Palliative Care Team on a fixed-term contract covering maternity leave.

This role is ideal for someone who wants to specialise in palliative care, an area of nursing that profoundly impacts patients and their families. You will have the opportunity to work alongside a team of dedicated, passionate colleagues who strive every day to improve the end-of-life experience for our patients.

The role is based at West Cumberland Hospital, with occasional support required at Cumberland Infirmary, Carlisle, ensuring continuity of care across our services.

What we offer:

• The chance to develop expertise in a highly specialist area of nursing
• Working within a supportive, multidisciplinary team
• The satisfaction of making a tangible difference to patients and families

Main duties of the job

• Assess and plan care for patients with life-limiting conditions in community and hospital settings.
• Deliver specialist palliative and end-of-life care, managing complex symptoms.
• Coordinate patient care across services, ensuring continuity and safety.
• Provide guidance, mentoring, and education to colleagues, patients, and families.
• Maintain accurate records and communicate effectively with the multidisciplinary team.
• Contribute to service development, quality improvement, and implementation of best practice.
• Flexibility to work primarily at West Cumberland Hospital, with occasional support at Cumberland Infirmary, Carlisle, or other service areas as needed.

About us

At NCIC, we have an ambition to deliver outstanding healthcare services to the population of North Cumbria. The Trust is committed to creating a centre of excellence in providing rural and remote healthcare and provides a wide range of community and acute services throughout our county.

Our 5 key principles demonstrate our belief in the delivery of ‘safe, high quality care every time’:

• Being a clinically led organisation
• Quality and safety at the heart of our Trust
• A positive patient experience every time
• A great place to work
• Managing our money well

As an organisation we are serious about supporting a diverse workforce that reflects our local community and are very much focused on being an inclusive and compassionate place to work.

Across the North East and North Cumbria we are working together to deliver our ambition to be the greenest region in England by 2030. All staff are expected to support sustainability.

Qualifications

• Evidence of sustained personal & professional development
• Educated to degree level or equivalent
• Advanced communication skills training/qualification from a recognised body
• Evidence of recent study at Masters/post graduate/Highly specialist level in relevant area.
• Teaching qualification

Knowledge and Experience

• Enhanced, comprehensive knowledge of issues related to Specialist Palliative Care
• Demonstrate ability to obtain and evaluate information to aid decision making
• Knowledge of clinical governance and its application
• Committed to Continued Professional Development of self
• Ability to concentrate in an unpredictable work environment
• Understanding of current NHS issues and initiatives
• Ability to apply research into practice
• Organisation and time management skills
• Intermediate IT skills in word processing, email, spreadsheets, Powerpoint and desktop publishing
• Highly developed expert communication skills both verbal and written
• Ensure that own actions support equality, diversity, rights and maintain quality
• Demonstrate people management skills including: - Motivation of staff and team building - Negotiation - Decision Making - Leadership - Staff development - Conflict and problem solving

Skills and Aptitudes

• Post-basic experience include experience in relevant field
• Evidence of clinical competence in Palliative Care
• Recognition of own limitations
• Experience of and ability to work as a member of the multidisciplinary clinical team
• Experience of undertaking audit
• Management and leadership experience
• Evidence of teaching and developing staff

Other Requirements

• Adaptable to the changing needs of the service
• Self motivated, enthusiastic, innovative, flexible
• Approachable
• Able to deal with difficult and sensitive situations with tact and diplomacy
• Satisfactory health screening, current driving licence.

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 Bar Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.

North Cumbria Integrated Care NHS Foundation Trust

£38,682 to £46,580 a year (pro rata)