Senior Healthcare Assistant

Gloucestershire Health and Care NHS Foundation Trust; Gloucester; On-site; GBP 20,000 - 25,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading company in mental health services seeks a dedicated Health Care Assistant to join their acute psychiatric ward team. You will be involved in providing compassionate care to patients with severe mental health needs, participating in their recovery and rehabilitation. This role offers development opportunities, including an NVQ Level 3 Health Care Support Worker Apprenticeship, making it ideal for passionate individuals keen to make a difference.

Benefits

27 days leave plus bank holidays

Free car parking

Flexible working opportunities

Access to training and development

Generous NHS pension scheme

Qualifications

• Basic education in maths and English is required.
• Relevant NVQ Level 3 qualification in health.
• Experience in mental health care settings.

Responsibilities

• Assist in delivering care as part of the mental health service.
• Participate in reflective practice and training.
• Meet the Care Certificate standards.

Skills

Teamwork

Compassionate care

Knowledge of Trauma Informed Care

Education

GCSEs in maths and English

NVQ 3 in health-related subject

Job description

We love what we do and we think you will, too!

At Gloucestershire Health and Care NHS Foundation Trust (GHC), we provide joined-up mental health, physical health and learning disability services to people of all ages across Gloucestershire. We run community hospitals and provide care and support in people’s own homes and in a range of other locations across the county .

We are on a mission to enable people to live the best life they can and we have a vision to work together to provide outstanding care . We put people at the heart of our services, focusing on personalised care by asking ‘what matters to you ’.

We’re passionate about making sure that everyone can contribute to achieving our mission and w e are continually working to support healthy and happy high-quality team s in all areas of the Trust .

Our application process aims to understand each candidates knowledge, skills and experience. We have found that candidates that use AI to generate their answers can lack specificity and fail to address key criteria outlined in the job description.

It is really important to personalise your application to convey your individual skills, knowledge, and experiences effectively and for us to understand why you are applying for this role with GHC. We discourage over reliance on AI-generated applications as it will lessen your chances of success in securing an interview with us .

Job overview

Dean Ward is a 15 bedded Adult female acute psychiatric ward which provides care for those who have severe and enduring mental health needs and require hospital admission for treatment and assessment of their mental health.

Wotton Lawn is an 88 bed Acute Mental Health Hospital situated in the centre of the historic city of Gloucester and provides inpatient services to the population of Gloucestershire. It offers a vital service to the citizens of Gloucestershire in supporting and rehabilitating those suffering from mild to severe mental health problems. All wards are serviced by an enthusiastic, multi-professional team of people, including Doctors, Nurses, Allied Healthcare Professionals and Therapists who are supported by Ward Secretaries and Hotel Services Staff. At Gloucestershire Health and Care NHS Foundation Trust we pride ourselves on providing care and support to those experiencing mental health and learning disabilities.

Main duties of the job

We are looking for highly motivated people who are willing to become involved in our team continuing to move our acute services forward.

As a Health Care Assistant you will be responsible for participating and assisting in the delivery of care as part of a Mental Health and Social Care Health Service. Health Care Assistants and other Healthcare Support Workers employed by the Trust are required to follow the guidance set out in Code of Conduct for Health Care Assistants to provide safe and compassionate care of a high standard, and to challenge others who are not.

You will receive direct supervision and partake in reflective practice / training on a regular basis and be required to meet the Care Certificate standards. All successful applicants will also have the opportunity to discuss the prospect of undertaking a Level 3 Healthcare Support Worker Apprenticeship alongside their substantive post. This apprenticeship would include the Level 3 Diploma in Clinical Healthcare.

The post requires working shifts across the seven day period including weekends and nights.

This post requires the post holder to be able to undertake all mandatory training including PARRI/Breakaway (subject to Occupational Health clearance).

Working for our organisation

We have a skilled and dedicated workforce of over 5000 colleagues working in a diverse range of services over 55 sites and within people’s homes. We strive to enable a welcoming workplace culture that builds and celebrates civility, inclusivity and diversity, while providing a sense of belonging and trust.

Annual staff surveys, regular Pulse surveys and other engagement opportunities provide our people with lots of opportunity to tell us about their experiences of working with us. In the latest staff survey, 61% of colleagues gave us their views. It was great to hear that:

• 72% of colleagues would recommend the Trust as a place to work, ranking us 1st for Provider Trusts in the South West region on this question.
• 76% would recommend the standard of care provided in our services if a friend or relative needed treatment, also ranking us 1st in the South West region.
• 81% said that care of patients and service users is the Trust’s priority, compared with an average in comparable NHS Trusts in England of 64%.

This high-level overview shows we are in a healthy position, with higher scores than average for comparable organisations, alongside a great response rate, indicating good staff engagement. However, we also know we have plenty of room for improvement in many areas. To that end, we continue to prioritise and invest in our commitment to genuinely becoming a Great Place to Work with consistent top-quartile performance in the annual staff survey and Pulse surveys.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

If you think that you would like to be involved in this rewarding service and would like to find out further information about this opportunity please contact Claire Holloway, Ward Manager on 0300 421 4786

Person specification

Qualifications

• A good basic education e.g. GCSEs, or equivalent, in maths and English
• NVQ 3 in relevant health related subject

Experience

• Working with patients with serious and enduring MH needs
• Has worked within an inpatient setting
• Knowledge of Trauma Informed Care

Experience

• Experience of working in a team and independently
• Experience working with allied health professionals

When joining us, as well as becoming part of a team that makes a difference, we also offer:

• Free car parking at many of our sites
• 27 days leave plus bank holidays, increasing up to 33 days with long service
• A broad range of training and development opportunities, including apprenticeships up to Level 7 qualification.
• A multi-professional preceptorship programme for all Newly Qualified; Nurses, Nursing Associates, Internationally Educated Practitioners, Allied Health Professionals and Return to Practice Practitioners.
• Generous NHS pension and enhanced pay when if you work unsocial hours
• Flexible, family friendly and agile working opportunities
• Recognition and long service awards
• Fast Track physiotherapy
• Access to discounts and salary sacrifice schemes; including Cycle to Work, Car scheme and discounts on travel, leisure and retailers.

Applicants are advised to apply early as if a large number of applications are received for this post, we reserve the right to close the vacancy prior to the advertised date. Good luck with your application.

For more information please see the attached 'Additional Information for Applicants' document.

Employer certification / accreditation badges

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.