Single Point of Access / Central Flow Hub (Urgent Care) Practitioner

Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust; Greater London; On-site; GBP 46,000 - 56,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading NHS organization seeks motivated Practitioners for the Urgent Care Service. You will manage crisis calls, triage patients, and oversee bed resources to ensure efficient patient care in a busy London environment. Ideal candidates are Band 5 or 6 health care professionals with NMC/HCPC registration and relevant experience. This role offers competitive remuneration and professional development opportunities in a supportive team atmosphere.

Benefits

Competitive salary

Continuous professional development

Supportive work environment

Qualifications

• Ability to triage and assess clinical information effectively.
• Experience in an acute or community healthcare setting.
• Strong writing skills for letters and reports.

Responsibilities

• Manage crisis calls and determine correct care pathways.
• Coordinate bed resources effectively across the Trust.
• Facilitate safe admissions of mental health patients.

Skills

Communication skills

Good IT skills

Clinical judgement

Risk assessment

Education

Current NMC/HCPC Registration as RMN, OT or SW

Evidence of relevant Continuous Professional Development

Tools

Microsoft Office

Job description

Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust

Single Point of Access / Central Flow Hub (Urgent Care) Practitioner

The closing date is 04 January 2026

An exciting opportunity has arisen to join our Urgent Care Service as Practitioners in either our Single Point of Access or our Central Flow Hub, or to rotate between the two.

We are looking for experienced and motivated Band 5 or Band 6 health care professionals (nurses, social workers or occupational therapists) to become part of our dynamic service based in a convenient central London location in Victoria.

SPA provides a telephone triage, signposting, advice and support 24-hours a day, seven days per week, 365 days a year for patients, carers, GPs and other referrers. There will also be the opportunity to join our newly developed out of hours crisis response service, which provides a face to face assessment and triaging to crisis alternative services overnight.

CFH is the central point for all bed management referrals, and co-ordinators and manages the adult acute mental health beds across CNWL.

All staff will receive supervision, support and training and have the opportunity to rotate between SPA and CFH and potentially across other services within Urgent Care in CNWL.

Main duties of the job

For SPA you will work as part of a large multi-disciplinary team, managing crisis calls into the service, undertaking a clinical triage and deciding on the correct care pathway for that call, referring callers into secondary adult MH services where appropriate, or signposting callers into non-statutory, third sector services. You will also undertake initial triage and assessments for people referred into the service, signposting and referring on as appropriate. You will be expected to co-ordinate shifts and manage and supervise more junior staff within the team.

For CFH you will work as part of the team, with responsibility for overseeing the daily coordination and management of bed availability across CNWL sites; and ensuring a smooth, efficient flow of patients by managing requests, tracking bed status, and facilitating timely transitions / admissions. This is a high-impact role where any decisions made directly affect patient care and flow across the Trust. This role is integral in helping to create a responsive and efficient system that improves patient outcomes and enhances the overall service delivery.

About us

Become part of our team. We care for you as much as you care for others.

CNWL NHS Foundation Trust are committed to safeguarding all children and vulnerable adults and expect all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. We follow safe recruitment practices to protect children and vulnerable adults.

Job responsibilities

For SPA:

• Ensure safe and effective delivery of care / advice to patients and their carers, utilising own knowledge and skills.
• Be fully conversant with statutory and non-statutory services across Brent, Harrow, Hillingdon, Kensington & Chelsea and Westminster, and the provision of CNWL services in each borough.
• Provide support, information and education to family members, carers and other professionals who may access the SPA.
• Build and maintain excellent working relationships with key stakeholders, such as GPs, the Police and LAS, taking and triaging referrals as appropriate.
• Use your clinical judgement and risk assessments to keep the people using our services as safe as possible.
• Safeguard people by recognising and responding when an adult or child might be at risk from abuse but also recognising their own limits and asking for help and escalated concerns when necessary.
• Escalate safety concerns and by doing so acting as effective advocates for those who use our services.
• Maintain a good public image of the SPA by dealing with all calls in a professional manner.

For CFH:

• Manage bed resources effectively, including internal transfers and repatriation to and from other Trusts.
• Ensure beds are allocated efficiently to meet the fluctuating demands of the mental health urgent care system.
• Facilitate the safe admission of mental health patients, especially those in emergency situations (ie. via Emergency Departments and HBPoS).
• Support the CFH Senior Practitioners in assessing and prioritising patients who require urgent care while balancing the demands of planned mental health assessments.
• Support the CFH Senior Practitioners and Team Manager in effective gatekeeping of patients referred into the service and appropriate decision making around crisis pathways for all referrals.
• Responsible for managing the safe inpatient placement of high-risk community patients, ensuring they receive timely, appropriate care in a safe environment, requiring both clinical knowledge and also a compassionate and patient-centred approach to care.
• Ensure careful recording and monitoring of bed status and bed requests. Accuracy in managing data is crucial to ensure that all admissions and discharges are tracked efficiently and in real-time.
• Responsible for the coordination and smooth running of the service in the absence of a more senior clinician.

Person Specification

Experience

• Previous experience of a clinician in an acute or community setting.

Knowledge and Skills

• Ability to communicate at all levels, with the multi-disciplinary team, with other teams internal and external to CNWL, GPs, external stakeholders (such as the policy, ambulance service), carers and family.
• Good IT skills, including experience of working with Microsoft Office.
• Ability to communicate in writing, and skills in writing letters and reports.
• Ability to communicate, triage and assess clinical information over the telephone.

Education

• Current NMC/HCPC Registered as RMN, OT or SW.
• Evidence of relevant Continuous Professional Development.

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.

Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust

£46,419 to £55,046 a year per annum incl HCAS