Countess of Chester Hospital NHS Foundation Trust

Senior Community Support Worker

The closing date is 28 January 2026

Job summary

Working Full time: 37.5 hours per week

We are looking for a Senior Community Support Worker to work within the Rapid Response Team, providing an early supported discharge service to patients from the Countess of Chester Hospital & Ellesmere Port Hospital.

The post involves assisting patients with their activities of daily living, providing resettlement, rehabilitation & care to patients in their own home, delivered in accordance with the patient's Care Plan.

The post holder will support therapists and nurses with their patient caseload and have general administrative and housekeeping tasks as required to facilitate the smooth running of the service.

Main duties of the job

This person will also support the Band 3 Community Support Workers to manage their caseload and have some basic line management responsibilities. They will need to use their organisational and clinical skills to allocate work and react to service demands.

This person will use their clinical knowledge and excellent communication skills to reduce care as indicated and to refer patients on to relevant community pathways.

About us

The Countess of Chester Hospital NHS Foundation Trust provides services to West Cheshire and to Welsh patients covered by Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board. The Trust works collaboratively within the wider Cheshire and Merseyside Health and Care Partnership. Its services are provided from three locations:

  • The Countess of Chester Hospital: providing 438 general and acute beds
  • Ellesmere Port Hospital: providing 56 beds as a rehabilitation, intermediate and outpatient facility
  • Tarporley War Memorial Hospital: a base for community services which serve the local rural population.

The Trust employs over 5916 staff (headcount) which includes temporary bank staff and provides acute emergency and elective services, primary care direct access services and obstetric services to a population of approximately 411,000. This includes 361,000 residents in Chester and West Cheshire which includes Ellesmere Port and Neston as well as the Deeside area of Flintshire which has a population of approximately 50,000.

Details

Date posted

20 January 2026

Pay scheme

Agenda for change

Band

Band 4

Salary

£27,485 to £30,162 a year pa

Contract

Permanent

Working pattern

Full-time

Reference number

210-2025-774-A

Job locations

Countess of Chester Hospital

Liverpool Road

Chester

CH2 1UL


Job description

Job responsibilities

See Job Description for further details.

Recruitment selection processes are based on competence (see Person specification) and values.

Please note applicants will be required to pay for their DBS check. Costswill be deducted from their salary over the first three months of employment.

You are encouraged to enrol for the DBS Update Service. A small annual fee of £16per year applies.

New entrants to the NHS will commence on the minimum of the scale stated above.

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.

Job description

Job responsibilities

See Job Description for further details.

Recruitment selection processes are based on competence (see Person specification) and values.

Please note applicants will be required to pay for their DBS check. Costswill be deducted from their salary over the first three months of employment.

You are encouraged to enrol for the DBS Update Service. A small annual fee of £16per year applies.

New entrants to the NHS will commence on the minimum of the scale stated above.

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.

Person Specification

Qualifications

Essential

  • NVQ level 4 or equivalent
  • ECDL or CLIAT qualification

Experience

Essential

  • Significant experience working in a health or social care setting, working as a therapy assistant
  • Experience of delivering therapy programmes to patients with complex needs
  • Supervisory experience
  • Knowledge of a range of presenting conditions and implications for swallowing and communication
  • Carry out interventions using a criteria led discharge protocol
  • Able to undertake reviews and amend action plans accordingly

Desirable

  • Understanding of professional conduct
  • Health, safety and risk awareness
  • Experience of undertaking reviews and amending action plans

Skills

Essential

  • Excellent verbal skills
  • Able to demonstrate ability to use basic Microsoft packages such as Word, Excel, PowerPoint
  • Good level of literacy skills to complete therapy documentation and referrals to other services
  • Able to communicate with a range of professionals, patients and relatives regarding patient treatment plans both in the hospital and in the community

Desirable

  • Working knowledge of Meditech system
Person Specification

Qualifications

Essential

  • NVQ level 4 or equivalent
  • ECDL or CLIAT qualification

Experience

Essential

  • Significant experience working in a health or social care setting, working as a therapy assistant
  • Experience of delivering therapy programmes to patients with complex needs
  • Supervisory experience
  • Knowledge of a range of presenting conditions and implications for swallowing and communication
  • Carry out interventions using a criteria led discharge protocol
  • Able to undertake reviews and amend action plans accordingly

Desirable

  • Understanding of professional conduct
  • Health, safety and risk awareness
  • Experience of undertaking reviews and amending action plans

Skills

Essential

  • Excellent verbal skills
  • Able to demonstrate ability to use basic Microsoft packages such as Word, Excel, PowerPoint
  • Good level of literacy skills to complete therapy documentation and referrals to other services
  • Able to communicate with a range of professionals, patients and relatives regarding patient treatment plans both in the hospital and in the community

Desirable

  • Working knowledge of Meditech system

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.

UK Registration

Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).

Additional information

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.

UK Registration

Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).

Employer details

Employer name

Countess of Chester Hospital NHS Foundation Trust

Address

Countess of Chester Hospital

Liverpool Road

Chester

CH2 1UL


Employer's website

https://www.coch.nhs.uk/working-with-us.aspx (Opens in a new tab)

Employer details

Employer name

Countess of Chester Hospital NHS Foundation Trust

Address

Countess of Chester Hospital

Liverpool Road

Chester

CH2 1UL


Employer's website

https://www.coch.nhs.uk/working-with-us.aspx (Opens in a new tab)

Employer contact details

For questions about the job, contact:

Rapid Response Team Leader

Gina Gerrard

gina.gerrard@nhs.net

01244365240

Details

Date posted

20 January 2026

Pay scheme

Agenda for change

Band

Band 4

Salary

£27,485 to £30,162 a year pa

Contract

Permanent

Working pattern

Full-time

Reference number

210-2025-774-A

Job locations

Countess of Chester Hospital

Liverpool Road

Chester

CH2 1UL


Supporting documents

Privacy notice

Countess of Chester Hospital NHS Foundation Trust's privacy notice (opens in a new tab)