Senior Healthcare Assistant Apprentice

Lancashire Teaching Hospitals; Preston; On-site; GBP 11,000 - 18,000; Full time

Job summary

Lancashire Teaching Hospitals is offering a Senior Healthcare Apprentice role at Royal Preston Hospital/Chorley & South Ribble Hospital. You will train under a nurse in charge while delivering essential patient care and learning a range of clinical duties alongside your studies.

You will perform personal care tasks, assist with clinical procedures under supervision, and support ward operations to maintain a safe, clean environment and effective administrative processes.

Qualifications

• Previous experience of working in a health care setting.
• Understanding of concept and application of confidentiality.
• Understanding of health and safety issues within healthcare.

Responsibilities

• Provide good quality personalised care in accordance with local and national standards.
• Take samples from patients for testing or dispatching (e.g., urine, sputum, faeces, MRSA swabs, blood sugars).
• Assist patients to meet nutritional needs in line with their care plan.
• Undertake clinical duties relevant to the area following achievement of competencies.
• Maintain patient safety and comply with health, safety and security policies.

Skills

Previous experience in healthcare

Confidentiality

Health and safety awareness

Education

Numeracy and literacy Level 1/Grade D/Grade 3

Willingness to progress to Level 2 numeracy/literacy

Numeracy and literacy Level 2/Grade A*-C/Grade 4-9

Job description

We hope to be welcoming you to the Lancashire Teaching Hospitals team soon; we've shown you exactly why we're 'a great place to work', now it's time to see for yourself! Have a look at our current vacancies down below and make the first step to starting a fantastic new career. Need help with your NHS application? We've got you covered! Our brand-new step-by-step NHS Application Help Video will guide you through the process, making it easier, faster, and stress-free to apply. Additionally, you can check out our helpful Application Guide as well!

You can also look at our recruitment flipbook , an interactive brochure showcasing various entry-level roles. It includes a fun quiz to help you find the right role and links to more information about our hospitals and our fantastic staff.

Corporate Services Roles

For roles in our corporate services departments including – Digital Services (I.T), Recruitment, Employment Services, Temporary Staffing, Rostering, Procurement and Finance, these departments are now part of OneLSC and can be found on the ELHT website: https://elht.nhs.uk/working-us/our-vacancies

Site Royal Preston Hospital & Chorley & South Ribble Hospital Town Preston & Chorley Salary Hourly rate is dependent on age on appointment (£8 to £12.71) Closing 16/11/2026 23:59 Interview date 25/11/2026

Job overview

As a Senior Healthcare Apprentice, you will receive training and will work under the guidance and supervision of the team leader/nurse in charge. This means that alongside your study you will contribute to the essential care and support of patients from the outset of your apprenticeship.

You will be support the delivery of a range of personal care duties for patients and a will learn to complete a range of clinical duties under the guidance and supervision of registered healthcare professionals including: assisting patients with personal hygiene, toileting, use of continence aids, catheter care, stoma care, measuring & monitoring patient output, removal of catheters, moving and handling, use of mobility appliances, correct patient positioning, assess pressure areas and skin integrity, ensuring patient safety, taking specimens including blood sugars, taking and recording physical measurements observing patients for changes in condition, carrying out simple dressings, removal of venflons.
In addition, you will contribute to the smooth running of the ward environment by performing various non-clinical tasks. This may involve tasks related to maintaining a safe and clean environment,
supporting administrative processes and assisting with general ward upkeep.

Main duties of the job

Being a Senior Healthcare Assistant is a wonderful & really valued role. You will support the delivery of a range of personal care duties for patients and a will learn to complete a range of clinical duties under the guidance and supervision of registered healthcare professionals.

Sometimes the role will be tough, you may see and be involved in some difficult things involving our patients, be busy and deliver some very direct personal care. We don’t want to shy away from that and we do know that this part of the role isn’t for everyone, however, for the right people, providing all kinds of support to our patients to meet their needs will be what makes you thrive.

You will be expected to:

Support the aims and vision of our organisation
Act with honesty and integrity at all times
Be a positive ambassador for the organisation
Demonstrate high standards of personal conduct
Set an example and encourage openness and honesty (particularly in reporting incidents and near
misses) and will actively foster a culture of learning and improvement
Value and respect colleagues, other members of staff and patients
Work with others to develop and improve our services
Uphold the organisational commitment to equality and diversity
Take personal responsibility for their words, actions and the quality of the service they deliver

Working for our organisation

We have 10000 fantastic people working hard to deliver quality services to our patients. Whatever your role, you help look after 370,000 people in our local area & give specialist care to 1.5 million people across Lancashire & Cumbria.

Working with us gives you the knowledge and sense of pride that every activity you do genuinely does make a difference to support our patients & staff, ensuring we keep thriving & delivering outstanding healthcare right across our local towns.

You’ll have access to varied development opportunities, learn new skills, meet fab people & do things you’d never have done. You’ll learn about working in a hospital, interacting with people from all different roles to build skills & enhance your career path.

You’ll make an impact, be challenged to think differently, be bold & help innovate to keep improving things. Everything we do centres around patient care which means your role is pivotal and something really to be proud of.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

• Provide good quality personalised care in
  accordance with agreed local and national
  standards.
• Under supervision take samples from patients
  for testing or dispatching eg: Urine, sputum,
  faeces, MRSA swabs, blood sugars
• Assist patients to meet nutritional needs in line
  with their individual care plan.
• Undertake clinical duties relevant to clinical
  area following achievement of competencies.
• Assist to maintain patient safety, conforming to
  health, safety and security legislation, policies,
  procedures and guidelines as competency is
  achieved.
• Assist in maintaining standards of care to
  improve the patient experience and outcome
  of care.
• Promote equality in care and practice by
  recognising, respecting and meeting the needs
  and choices of individuals
• Contribute to maintaining safe, clean, and
  productive care environment, compliant with
  standards for hygiene and cleanliness.
• Assist with resolving issues and complaints at
  local level and then report the outcome to line
  manager.
• Maintain and develop own competence

Person specification

Knowledge and Experience

• Previous experience of working in a health care setting
• Understanding of concept and application of confidentiality
• Understanding of health and safety issues within healthcare

Qualifications and Education

• Demonstrable numeracy and literacy skills at a minimum of Level 1/Grade D/Grade 3
• Willingness to work towards level 2 in numeracy and literacy Functional skills if not already achieved equivalent.
• Demonstrable numeracy and literacy skills in line with Level 2/Grade A*-C/Grade 4-9

We are committed to promoting equality of opportunity, celebrating and valuing diversity and eliminating any form of unlawful discrimination across our workforce, ensuring our people are truly representative of the communities we serve. All individuals regardless of race, age, disability, ethnicity, nationality, gender, gender reassignment, sexual orientation, religion or belief, marriage and civil partnership, neurodiversity or veteran status are encouraged to apply for this post. Our Statement on the Recruitment of Ex-Offenders is available Here

We recognise that the recruitment process may present barriers for some and you may need personal adjustments to enable you to participate in our recruitment process. Please make contact with the recruitment team at the earliest opportunity to ensure that measures can be put in place to enable your application for this post.

Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) when writing job applications

If you choose to use AI or other tools to assist in writing your application, it's essential to personalise this information, particularly your supporting information section. While AI can help streamline the writing process, these tools cannot fully grasp the context or requirements of the job you’re applying for. There is also a risk that it can generate false or misleading information.
AI-generated job applications can often be generic, impersonal and may not accurately reflect your qualifications, knowledge, skills, and experiences. It is crucial that you personalise your supporting statement by articulating these in your unique voice. Relying solely on AI to write your application or supporting information section is not advocated by Lancashire Teaching Hospitals and could negatively impact your chances of success in the application process.

We have added a disclaimer to our application process advising that the use of AI is monitored and if applicants have used it then they are required to declare this.

Supporting Information

The supporting information section is an opportunity for you to showcase how your qualifications, knowledge, skill and experiences align with the requirements and criteria outlined in the job description and person.

Our recruiting managers score applications based on the criteria listed in the person specification. They will be looking for evidence of how you meet these criteria. To increase your chances of securing an interview, provide examples of how you have applied your skills and knowledge in real-life situations. Share work-related successes and challenges you’ve navigated that align with the criteria. These could be from various aspects of your life, including work, education, and personal experiences.

Consider structuring your supporting information section with clear headings or bullet points. This approach will help both you and the recruiting manager navigate through your application more effectively.

Working Smarter pledge

We are reminded everyday of how important life is, so as part of our Working Smarter pledge we offer a variety of flexible working options and wellbeing support to enable our people to find and maintain the right work-life balance.

Secondments

If you are applying for a secondment role please ensure you have agreement from your current line manager prior to attending an interview. Also please ensure you have read the LTHTR Secondment Policy. A copy of this can be found on the intranet or by contacting [e-mail]

Please note a young person must be in part-time education or training until they’re 18. therefore if you are under 18 we are unable to employ you on a full time basis, unless it is in an apprenticeship role.

Disclosure and Barring Service checks

If the role you’ve applied for requires a Disclosure and Barring Services (DBS) check we will administer this on your behalf and the cost will be recovered from your salary, either as a one-off payment, or over 3 months. The level of check required depends on the role that you have been offered. Currently the charges are - Basic DBS check £26.40 Standard DBS check £26.40 and Enhanced DBS check £54.40. You should be aware that if you are successful in obtaining a position that requires a DBS check but later withdraw your application, you may be required to reimburse the cost of the DBS check. DBS checks remain free of charge for volunteer positions. The DBS Code of Practice can be accessed here .

In line with guidance from United Kingdom Health Security Agency, all staff and volunteers are required to comply with Trust Infection Prevention and Control processes in relation to safe working. This includes mask wearing and adherence to social distancing at all Trust sites.

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We look forward to hearing from you soon!

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.

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