Secretary/Administrator for Child Development Service | Sussex Community NHS Foundation Trust

Sussex Community NHS Foundation Trust; Crawley; On-site; GBP 80,000 - 100,000; Full time

Job summary

A regional healthcare provider is looking for an experienced secretary to join the administrative team at Crawley Child Development Centre. The role involves managing patient records, providing comprehensive support to clinical staff, and interacting with various stakeholders. Ideal candidates are professional, organised, and have excellent communication skills. The post offers flexible working options, excellent training opportunities, and a supportive environment focused on diversity and inclusion.

Benefits

Flexible working options

Cost-effective workplace nurseries

Excellent training and development opportunities

Supportive diversity and inclusion initiatives

Qualifications

• Experience in a secretarial or administrative role, particularly within healthcare.
• Ability to manage and prioritize workload effectively.
• Skills in audio typing and generating correspondence.

Responsibilities

• Perform general office duties including managing correspondence and patient records.
• Use task management systems to assist in patient care and administration.
• Provide secretarial support for medical staff and assist in booking appointments.

Skills

Professional

Communication

Flexibility

Organisation

Tools

SystmOne

Microsoft Office

Job description

Position Summary

We are looking for an enthusiastic and experienced secretary to join our friendly and dynamic administrative team at Crawley Child Development Centre, based in Crawley Hospital. The successful candidate must be professional, flexible, motivated, organised, a great communicator and work well in a team environment.

You will act as a key point of contact for patients, external stakeholders and colleagues and will provide a supportive response to a range of queries and requests for information.

You will also play a key role in supporting clinician’s caseloads ensuring that patient records are kept up to date and secure and respond to queries and requests.

Due to recent changes in UK immigration and visa rules, this role is unlikely to be eligible for Skilled Worker visa sponsorship. Applicants who do not currently have the right to work in the UK may not be considered. Candidates requiring sponsorship should review the eligibility criteria on thegov.uk website before applying to assess their eligibility for a Certificate of Sponsorship for this role.

Key Attributes

Professional, flexible, motivated, organised, a great communicator and able to work well in a team environment.

Responsibilities

• Take general office duties including photocopying, faxing and distribution of documents as required and opening and distributing of post.
• Deal effectively, sensitively and diplomatically with incoming calls from NHS staff and external public and outside professionals, taking accurate information.
• Work unsupervised and prioritise workload on a day‑to‑day basis, liaising with other team members to ensure continuity of service at all times.
• Undertake any other duties necessary in the interests of the service and raise concerns where necessary that may affect efficient provision of service.
• Use SystmOne – patient electronic system to manage tasks and ensure accurate electronic patient records are maintained. This includes scanning documents and booking patients onto clinical rotas – training will be given and the level of using SystmOne will be commensurate to your role.
• Be aware in the CDC environment of volatile situations and how to manage in the confines of your role and how to elevate.
• Provide a comprehensive and efficient secretarial/administration service for Child Development Centre medical/clinical staff. This involves using appropriate software to complete audio typing of medical letters, statutory medical and clinical reports, documents, forms, witness statements and other correspondence as required which includes using medical terminology.
• Produce confidential child protection reports within required timescales, with accuracy and ensure timely dispatch of outgoing post.
• Produce and check correspondence and medical reports that are visually attractive and of a high standard of readability using Microsoft Office.
• Book clinics for new referrals, follow‑up appointments and joint multi‑disciplinary assessments, and ensure that complete and up‑to‑date medical notes are available for each patient if required.
• Ensure follow‑up appointments are recorded via patient electronic system (SystmOne) within the timeframes dictated by statutory guidelines.
• Deal with correspondence and telephone queries for medical/clinical staff as required, maintaining efficient records appropriately via patient electronic system (SystmOne).
• Receive emails, telephone enquiries and visitors regarding appointments, meetings and queries, taking any necessary action by passing on accurate messages or resolving issues appropriate to your role.
• Undertake task management on the patient electronic system (SystmOne) as required.
• Liaise with the Centre Coordinator and Deputy Head of Service regarding complaints and queries received by phone or electronically.
• Take notes/minutes at local team meetings and transcribe them.
• Collate and present data/information as requested, using agreed systems and formats.
• Participate in supporting service development for the Child Development Centre Service.

Benefits

• Positive 2023 NHS Staff Survey results, highlighting compassionate leadership and wellbeing.
• Varied environments: community hospitals, patients' homes, and bases across Sussex.
• Flexible working options: part‑time, flexi‑time, annualised hours, and flexi‑retirement.
• Excellent training, development, and research opportunities.
• Cost‑effective workplace nurseries in Crawley, Hove, and Brighton.
• Active EMBRACE, Disability & Wellbeing, LGBTQIA+, and Religion & Belief networks.
• Level 3 Disability Confident Leader and Veteran Aware Trust.
• Beautiful Sussex location near the South Downs and coast.

Diversity and Inclusion

We embrace diversity and encourage applications from all backgrounds, particularly from ethnically diverse, disabled, and LGBTQIA+ individuals. We aim to create an inclusive environment and support reasonable adjustments during recruitment.

Additional Information

This post may close early if sufficient applications are received.

The advert closes on Sunday 4 Jan 2026.