Physiotherapist

Countess of Chester Hospital NHS Foundation Trust; Chester; On-site; GBP 40,000 - 48,000; Full time

Job summary

Countess of Chester Hospital NHS Foundation Trust is seeking a Band 6 Community Respiratory Physiotherapist to join the community respiratory team in Chester. The role involves delivering accredited pulmonary rehabilitation and high-quality care within a mixed community setting.

The post requires a physiotherapy degree, HCPC registration, and post-graduate experience in respiratory care. Autonomy, strong communication, and teamwork are essential, with weekend/bank holiday coverage possible.

Qualifications

• Registered Physiotherapist with HCPC registration.
• Experience in respiratory care is desirable.
• Experience delivering pulmonary rehabilitation within community settings is preferred.

Responsibilities

• Undertaking comprehensive physiotherapy assessments and developing individualised treatment plans.
• Delivering pulmonary rehabilitation using face-to-face and digital approaches.
• Managing a specialist caseload autonomously and prioritising workload.

Skills

Good communication

Team working

Education

Degree in Physiotherapy

HCPC Registered

Membership of professional body

Job description

Main area Therapies & Integrated Community Care Division Grade Band 6 Contract Permanent Hours Full time - 37.5 hours per week Job ref 210-2026-618

Site Countess of Chester Hospital Town Chester Salary £39,959 - £48,117 pa Salary period Yearly Closing 13/09/2026 23:59

Countess of Chester Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, staff pride themselves on not only leading through clinical excellence, but also by creating an environment where all staff are valued and appreciated. To achieve this, the Trust has embarked on an exciting new strategy focused on continuous improvement.

Our vision is to improve the lives of our community and provide excellence in healthcare, through partnership and innovation

Our High Performance Culture will support everyone to be the best version of themselves by being true to our Trust vision, values and behaviours.
We welcome applications from colleagues from our local and neighbouring communities of all backgrounds and identities, who are currently under‑represented within our region such as Black, Asian, Minority ethnic and those with disabilities.

As a region we are reviewing the way we work, and exploring how new working practices that support flexible working can create a positive work-life balance. As part of our recruitment process we will explore how our inclusive employment policies, flexible working, staff engagement forums, Trust facilities and services can be of mutual benefit.

Job overview

Working Full time: 37.5 hours per week

Do you really want to make a difference? Do you want to help provide an accredited pulmonary rehabilitation programme? Do you want to deliver high quality care within the community setting? Do you want to be part of an innovative Respiratory team? If so, we have an exciting opportunity for a dynamic registered Physiotherapist to join our community respiratory team.

We are looking for a motivated, enthusiastic, and dynamic Community Respiratory Physiotherapist to join our friendly & supportive team. An individual who can integrate quickly into a team setting and will support in driving service provisions and quality improvement.

Good communication, time management, team working skills and the ability to work under pressure, are essential requirements to this post, as well as experience of working with adults in a care setting.

The role includes working closely with our Multidisciplinary Team to ensure we achieve Safe, Kind and Effective Care.

We offer:

• Good team and staff support, health and wellbeing opportunities and other employee benefits
• Comprehensive training and a supportive & reflective learning environment
• Regular informal and formal training opportunities provided by experienced staff
• Competitive salary, with incremental pay progression

Main duties of the job

This is an exciting opportunity to help deliver accredited pulmonary rehabilitation programmes in many innovative and exciting ways to improve quality of life for people with respiratory disease. This post offers the opportunity to work within the community setting in an integrated team delivering Pulmonary rehabilitation using both face to face and digital technologies.

This is an ideal opportunity for a registered Physiotherapist, who has an interest in working within Respiratory, who is proactive, self‑motivated and keen to be at the forefront of delivering high quality care, to join our team. Recent training/experience qualification in relevant respiratory care is required for this post.

The post holder will require access to a car and a clean valid UK Driver’s licence, as this is essential to the role.

You may be expected to work weekends and Bank Holidays due to Therapies working towards a 7 day service.

The post is subject to a DBS Check.

Working for our organisation

The Trust’s services are provided from three locations:

• The Countess of Chester Hospital: providing 473 general and acute beds.
• Ellesmere Port Hospital: providing 60 beds as a rehabilitation, intermediate and outpatient facility.
• Tarporley War Memorial Hospital: a base for community services which serve the local rural population.

The Countess of Chester Hospital NHS Foundation Trust employs 5,964 staff (headcount) to provide care and treatment to a population of over 400,000 people living in Chester and West Cheshire which includes Ellesmere Port and Neston as well as the Deeside area of Flintshire.

The Trust works collaboratively within the wider Cheshire and Merseyside Integrated Care System. Due to its location on the border with North Wales, the Trust also works closely with the Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board.

The Trust treats patients from England and some parts of Wales. During 2024/2025, there were approximately 643,000 patient attendances (inpatient, A&E, outpatient and diagnostic) ranging from a simple outpatient appointment to major cancer surgery

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

The post holder will work as an autonomous Band 6 Community Respiratory Physiotherapist, providing specialist assessment, treatment and rehabilitation for patients with respiratory conditions across community settings. They will play a key role in delivering the accredited Pulmonary Rehabilitation Programme, ensuring high standards of patient care and positive clinical outcomes.

Key responsibilities include:

• Undertaking comprehensive physiotherapy assessments and developing individualised treatment plans for patients with complex respiratory needs.
• Delivering pulmonary rehabilitation interventions using both face‑to‑face and digital approaches to support patients in managing their respiratory conditions.
• Managing a specialist caseload autonomously, prioritising workload effectively and adapting treatment plans in response to changing patient needs.
• Monitoring, evaluating and reviewing treatment outcomes to ensure effective and evidence-based care.
• Working collaboratively within a multidisciplinary team and liaising with healthcare professionals, social care teams, carers and external agencies to ensure coordinated patient care.
• Supporting and supervising junior physiotherapists, therapy assistants and students, contributing to their learning and development.
• Participating in service development, clinical audit, quality improvement activities and implementation of best practice guidelines
• Maintaining accurate and timely clinical records in accordance with Trust policies, professional standards and information governance requirements.
• Providing clinical cover during periods of staff absence and contributing to weekend, bank holiday or extended service provision where required.
• Maintaining professional registration, participating in continuing professional development and contributing to departmental training activities.

Person specification

Qualifications

• Degree in Physiotherapy or equivalent
• HCPC Registered
• Membership of professional body

Knowledge and Experience

• Between 24 and 36 months post graduate experience
• Evidence of post graduate short courses
• Evidence of CPD and reflective practice.
• Evidence of group working and team working.
• Evidence of audit and/or research work.
• Knowledge of current best practice in specialist PT area.
• Understanding of professional ethics and their application in practice
• Knowledge of the principles of clinical governance.

Disclosure and Barring Service Check
If the role is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 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.

Enhanced DBS check applications that are submitted with omitted or incorrect information will be withdrawn. In the event errors are identified on your original application, a new application will need to be submitted and you will be required to pay the DBS application fee again.

The cost of the DBS application will be deducted from your salary over the first three months of employment.

Certificate of Sponsorship

Applications from job seekers who require current skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. Applicants requiring sponsorship may wish to determine the likelihood of obtaining sponsorship for this position by assessing themselves against the criteria on the gov.uk website - Check if you need a UK visa - GOV.UK

The Trust will not sponsor where the starting salary does not meet these immigration rules

For further details on skilled worker sponsorship, please consult the UK Home Office guidance: Skilled Worker visa: Overview - GOV.UK. Additionally, the New guidance for overseas applicants | NHS Employers provides helpful information on the recruitment process for candidates applying for roles in the UK.

Overseas candidates are responsible for their travel expenses.

From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependent's (over 18 years old) will also be subject to this requirement.

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.