Play Assistant Band 3 - Children's Ward

NHS; Macclesfield; On-site; GBP 21,000 - 30,000; Full time

Job summary

The NHS is seeking a Hospital Play Specialist to join the Children's Services team at East Cheshire NHS Trust. You will play a crucial role in supporting the emotional and social well-being of children and their families by organizing and supervising play activities within a safe environment. This position requires a professional childcare qualification and an understanding of the developmental needs of children. If you are passionate about enhancing the hospital experience for young patients, we encourage you to apply.

Benefits

Supportive working environment

Development opportunities

Qualifications

• Professional childcare qualifications (e.g., NVQ Level 3).
• Understanding of children's developmental and social needs.
• Knowledge of public health initiatives.

Responsibilities

• Organize and supervise play activities tailored to children's needs.
• Maintain a safe and child-focused environment for care.
• Meet and greet families attending the hospital.

Skills

Organisational skills

Enthusiastic

Ability to work independently

Ability to work in a team

Documentation and report writing

Education

Professional qualification in childcare (NVQ Level 3 or above)

BTEC Diploma in Childcare and Development

Additional qualifications in play work or youth work

Job description

The post holder is part of the hospital play specialist team within Children's Services contributing to the care of children and their families.

The Post holder will be required to organise play and suitableactivities to meet the needs of individual children / groups of children and young people within the Paediatric Unit and / or other departments as appropriate, maintaining a safe, child-focused environment where play occurs naturally.

Main duties of the job

To meet and greet child/ family attending hospital department, maintaining goodcommunication with children, families and other visitors to the hospital.

To promote and develop an environment in which the play / recreation needs of children are met.

To organize, supervise and maintain play activities for individual / groups of children and young people in hospital, according to their individual needs and as part of the overall care plan.

Please refer to Job Description and Person Specification.

About us

It is all about the people at East Cheshire NHS Trust. We have a real sense of community, and our values are truly embedded into everything we do, ensuring we are a great and inclusive place to work. You will be supported, developed and empowered throughout your career with us. Come and join us, where you can play your part in helping us deliver outstanding care and improving the health of all the people we serve.

COVID-19 vaccination remains the best way to protect yourself, your family, your colleagues and of course our patients from the virus when working in our healthcare settings. Whilst COVID-19 vaccination is not a condition of employment, we do encourage our staff to get vaccinated. We will be checking the vaccination status of all new starters as part of ongoing monitoring.

Please be aware that this post requires an Enhanced with Barred list Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check, the cost of which is payable by the successful candidate. If you have lived or worked abroad for 6 months or more in the last 5 years you will need to obtain an overseas police clearance. Further information can be found on the additional information links at the bottom of the advert.

Job responsibilities

Please read the attached Applicant Pack prior to completing your application form to find out more information.

Please download a copy of the Job Description and Person Specification located under the Supporting documents heading to read more about the advertised role.

As part of making your application we encourage you to review the Trusts Careers webpage Careers :: East Cheshire NHS Trust for more information about working for East Cheshire NHS Trust.

We are an equal opportunities employer and welcome all applications irrespective of age, disability, gender, sexual orientation, race or religion. The Trust is a Disability Confident Leader and as such, applicants with disabilities will be offered an interview providing they meet the minimum criteria for the post (outlined in the Person Specification).

Applicants are advised to apply early as we reserve the right to close the advert prior to the advertised closing date should we receive a large number of applications.

We look forward to receiving your application.

Overseas candidates wishing to apply who would require sponsorship can determine the likelihood of obtaining a CoS for the post by assessing their circumstances against criteria specified on theVisas and immigration - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

Person Specification

Qualification

• Professional qualification in childcare (NVQ Level3 or above for example -NNEB/Tec Diploma in Nursery nursing)
• BTEC Diploma in Childcare and Development
• Additional qualifications - For example play work Special needs Youth work Art/music therapy

Knowledge

• Understanding of developmental and social needs of children from 0-16 years and their families
• Understanding health and safety issues and confidentiality/data protection.
• Awareness of literature and government legislation relating to children and young people
• Knowledge of special needs and cultures
• Knowledge of public health initiatives

Skills

• Organisational skills
• Enthusiastic and forward thinking
• Show willingness to learn and develop
• Ability to work independently and within a team
• Ability to work under direction from a qualified and registered play specialist
• Documentation and report writing

Other Role Requirements

• Please refer to the job description and person specification for further details regarding the role requirements

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.