Community Support Worker
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 we are continually working to support healthy and happy high-quality teams 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
Under the direction and supervision of senior practitioners to assist in the provision of care and treatment of clients in a community setting. Working with individuals experiencing mental health difficulties
To provide care, intervention and telephone and face to face support to individuals who are experiencing an acute mental health/ psychological crisis. To assist care co-ordinators or key workers to assess, plan, implement and evaluate individual care plans.
Main duties of the job
Clinical
To maintain accurate electronic records in line with Trust policy.
To feed back to the team and others involved in the care, information regarding any changes observed in the client’s mental state or social circumstances analysing any immediate risks and taking appropriate action.
Provide telephone/face to face support for people who may be in acute distress under the supervision of the senior practitioners.
To deliver medication to clients.
To use any petty cash monies needed for client activities in line with Trust policies and procedures.
To link with employment and benefit agencies to facilitate return to employment where possible.
To plan and organise own daily work activities in an effective and efficient way under the supervision of senior practitioners.
To provide advocacy or links with advocacy organisations as appropriate.
To promote opportunities for service users to create and develop friendships with other citizens.
To contribute to providing support for carers and signposting to appropriate support eg Gloucestershire Carers Hub.
Professional
To partake in regular supervision and annual appraisal.
To attend mandatory training.
To work with supervisor to address any training requirements.
The qualification, training & experience requirements for the role are underlined in the Job Description/Person Specification.
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%.
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
Actively support service users in the management of their medication by delivering medication within a ‘concordance framework’ and relevant policies.
Ensure the physical health needs of service users are met, including advice, support and health education to both the service user and family/carers.
To provide engagement with cares and complete Carers assessments where indicated.
To support senior staff in health assessments as appropriate and support delivery of planned relevant care in partnership with service users and / or carers.
As part of the care plan, ensure the service user is able to meet their personal care needs eg assisting with bathing and washing. This intervention may also be delegated where appropriate.
As a Health Care Assistant/ Support Worker you will be responsible for participating and assisting in the delivery of care / services to patients and service users as part of a Mental Health and Social Care Health Service. Health Care Assistant, Social Care Workers 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/ Health Care Support Workers 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.
Person specification
Length and/or nature of experience
Essential criteria- Significant Experience or working in a mental health or social care setting
- Experience of working in a team and ability to work independently
Qualifications
Essential criteria- NVQ Level 3 or equivalent level of competency based training in a relevant health or social care area
- European Computer Driving Licence
Professional/ Managerial/ Specialist Knowledge
Essential criteria- Knowledge of impact of mental illness and impact on motivation, social skills and activities the individual and the family
- Knowledge of mental illness and impact on the individual
- Knowledge and understanding of CPA ( care programme Approach)
Personal Skills Abilities and Arritbutes
Essential criteria- Good communication skills both written and verbal
- Ability to manage time and plan / prioritise work effectively and efficiently
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
- Our Wellbeing line
- 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.